FAA Releases Documents on Reported UFO Sighting Last November

This document collection, released by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Alaskan Region on March 5, 1987, details the agency's inquiry into a reported UFO sighting by the crew of Japan Air Lines (JAL) flight 1628 on November 17, 1986. The flight, a Boeing 747 cargo aircraft en route from Iceland to Japan via Anchorage, Alaska, reported visual contact with an unidentified object accompanied by unusual lights. Captain Kenjyu Terauchi described the object as having irregular pulsating lights and being as large as a Boeing 747. The FAA conducted interviews with the flight crew and reviewed radar data. The agency's official conclusion was that the radar anomalies were 'uncorrelated primary and beacon target returns,' a phenomenon where the primary radar signal reflects off the aircraft's surface, creating the impression of a second target. Regarding the visual sightings, the FAA concluded that the lights were likely village lights distorted by ice crystals present in the atmosphere due to a temperature inversion. The document also includes reports of other sightings, including an Alaska Airlines flight on January 29, 1987, and a Flying Tigers flight on November 21, 1985. The FAA maintained that it does not investigate UFOs unless they pose a safety hazard to the air traffic control system and stated it had no further interest in pursuing the JAL 1628 case.