Pilot Report Unclassified Complete

733667-001-007-0001

National Archives and Records Administration

Released
Published
Added to archive
Jun 16, 2026
Department
National Archives and Records Administration
Original size
3.7 MB
External ID
22036f341c1b7ddd993a403d7cc540c8dc25d3cdfe618090bb574971071dc7a3
Confidence
85%
Credibility
90%

View original document ↗ hosted at the official government source

Intelligence summary

This document recounts the experience of Captain Kenju Terauchi during Japan Airlines Flight 1628, which encountered unidentified flying objects (UFOs) over Alaska on November 17, 1986. The captain describes the sighting of two spaceships and a mother ship, expressing curiosity and a lack of immediate danger.

Tags & topics

AviationPilot ExperiencesUFO sightings Aviation HistoryFlight EncounterUAPUFO

Linked cases

Locations referenced

LocationContextConfidenceSupporting text
International Airport Airport Location Unresolved …t special French wine from Iceland to Anchorage for approximately a 6 hour and 20 minute flight. It is an extremely short flight compared to most flights. It t
Kefurabik Airport Airport Location Unresolved …rather than flying direct from Paris to Anchorage. However, since being wintertime if the condition of the runway waS poor, we may have to reduce the cargo, th
Kefurabik Airport Airport Location Unresolved …fore, everyone was paying special attention to the amount of cargo. The temperature of Kefurabik Airport in November is approximately maximum of 3 degrees C. a
Alaska Incident Location Unresolved Location of the UFO sighting
Alaska on November Sighting Location Unresolved This document recounts the experience of Captain Kenju Terauchi during Japan Airlines Flight 1628, which encountered unidentified flying objects (UFOs) over Ala
Alaska Incident Location Unresolved Location of the UFO sighting

Extracted timeline

Jun 16, 2026

Ingestion Date

Ingestion Date for 733667-001-007-0001

Jun 16, 2026

Document Record Date

Document Record Date for 733667-001-007-0001

Jun 16, 2026

Update Date

Update Date for 733667-001-007-0001

Entities mentioned

Full document text

2,347 characters, transcribed via OCR. Errors reflect the source scan. Compare with the original ↗

Suggest a correction
Vivo S TRAM SLATED Gy Ss. Mimeto Page l. OF FRA AK Reta Meeting the Future by Kenju Terauchi Once upon a time if a hunter saw a t.v., how did he describe it to other people? My experience was similar to this. The north of Alaska in mid-November you cannot even see the sun; the darkness continues until the middle of March. Flight JL 1628, B/747 jumbo cargo encountered two Spaceships and a Mother ship about 50 minutes above Alaska. There was no danger but it Created many questions that a human being cannot answer. Page Ze So I am writing that experience down here. In mid-October, I was excited to hear the special flight. This special flight was to import special French wine from Iceland to Anchorage for approximately a 6 hour and 20 minute flight. It is an extremely short flight compared to most flights. It takes about two-thirds normal flight hours. There are only two landings at Kefurabik (sp.?) International Airport. Page 3. This particular flight was planned to stop at Iceland and increase cargo items rather than flying direct from Paris to Anchorage. However, since being wintertime if the condition of the runway waS poor, we may have to reduce the cargo, therefore, everyone was paying special attention to the amount of cargo. The temperature of Kefurabik Airport in November is approximately maximum of 3 degrees C. and the lowest was minus 3 degree C. Page 4. Six of us Japan Airline employees arrived at Kefurabik Airport at midnight and three people welcomed us as usual. We headed on to a new hotel. The bed was extremely small. I understood why the down blanket was only 135 centimeters. We stayed only about 17 hours. The weather became good and the runway was not frozen and we left the Kefurabik at 2042. Page 16. Co-employees are married, have children and are young. I am pleased that nothing happened. The ending of this encounter was very well. We worried because we do not know the purpose of the Spaceship, but there is no immediate danger. What do you think about our experience? I hope we humans will meet them in the near future and confirm my experience. “— [Personal statement concerning JAL Flight 1628 sighting of unidentified air traffic, Nov. 17, 1986. Written by Capt. Kenju Terauchi; translated by Sayoko Mimoto, FAA Alaskan Region, Airway Facilities Division. Received by FAA 1/2/87]