Pilot Report Unclassified Complete

733667-001-011-0043

National Archives and Records Administration

Released
Published
Added to archive
Jun 16, 2026
Department
National Archives and Records Administration
Original size
2.6 MB
External ID
bc2b2ef5352973153ed80c900929ad4bfbbfc19128278f803c3b25af2baebd0b
Confidence
85%
Credibility
90%

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Intelligence summary

This document details a personal account by Captain Kenju Terauchi regarding an encounter with unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP) during JAL Flight 1628 on November 17, 1986. The captain describes the sudden appearance of multiple unidentified ships that moved in formation alongside the aircraft, causing communication disruptions with air traffic control.

Tags & topics

Aviation SafetyPilot ExperiencesUAP AviationJAL1628PilotReportUAPUFO

Linked cases

Extracted timeline

Jun 15, 1986

Document Date (year hint)

Document Date (year hint) for 733667-001-011-0043

Jun 16, 2026

Ingestion Date

Ingestion Date for 733667-001-011-0043

Jun 16, 2026

Document Record Date

Document Record Date for 733667-001-011-0043

Jun 16, 2026

Update Date

Update Date for 733667-001-011-0043

Entities mentioned

Full document text

1,484 characters, transcribed via OCR. Errors reflect the source scan. Compare with the original ↗

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-p 10° moved so suddenly. We probably would have felt more in danger and would have been prepared to escape if the spaceships were shaking unsteadily or were unable to stop themselves. It is impossible for any man-made machine to make a sudden appearance in front of a jumbo jet that is flying 910 kilometers per hour and to move along in a formation paralleling our aircraft. The ships moved in formation for about three to five minutes, then two ships moved forward in a line, again slightly higher in altitude as we were, 40 degrees to our left. We did not report this action to the Anchorage Center. Honestly, we were simply breathtaken. The VHF communication, both in transmitting and receiving were extremely difficult for ten or fifteen minutes while the little ships came close to us and often interfered with communication from the Anchorage Center; however, communication conditions became just as good as soon as the ships left a) There were no abnormalities in the equipment or the aircraft. I have no idea why they came so close to us. : Then again, there was a pale white flat light on the direction where the ships flew away, moving in a line along with us, in the same direction and same speed and in the same altitude as we were. [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}