Incident Report: JAL Flight 1628 Sighting of Unidentified Air Traffic, November 17, 1986

This document consists of a series of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) field reports and interview notes regarding an incident on November 17, 1986, involving Japan Airlines (JAL) Flight 1628. The flight crew, consisting of Captain Kenju Terauchi, First Officer Takanori Tamefuji, and Flight Engineer Yoshie Tsukuda, reported observing unidentified air traffic (UAT) while flying a cargo flight from Reykjavik, Iceland, to Anchorage, Alaska. According to the reports, the crew first sighted the UAT in the vicinity of the Potat intersection and the Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ). The UAT was described as having yellow, amber, and green lights, but no red lights, and appeared to be two distinct sets of lights joined together. The object was estimated to be at least the size of a B747. The crew reported that the object performed erratic movements, changed from a horizontal to a vertical position, and maintained its position relative to the aircraft even during a 360-degree turn requested by the captain near Fairbanks. The object remained on the port side of the aircraft for approximately 35 minutes before moving away to the east near Talkeetna. The crew reported that the object was tracked on their onboard Bendix color radar at a distance of seven to eight nautical miles. Furthermore, the crew stated that they were in communication with Air Route Traffic Control Center (ARTCC) personnel, who confirmed they also had the object on radar. Captain Stevens, the Duty Officer to NORAD, confirmed that they also showed two targets on radar, one being the JAL flight, and indicated that the data would be provided to Intelligence. The reports note that the crew experienced static during VHF communications, but the aircraft's navigational systems were functioning normally. An addendum to the report, based on a confidential source at Japan Airlines, suggests that this was not the first time Captain Terauchi had reported an unidentified aircraft. The document includes hand-drawn sketches by Captain Terauchi illustrating the light configurations and the object's movement, as well as a chart prepared by Agent Mickle.