The Pentagon last week released a first batch of previously secret files documenting reported sightings of unidentified flying objects – and among them were details on a potential UFO sighting in southern Argentina.
The newly released documents include a reference to one of Argentina’s most famous alleged UFO encounters: a July 31, 1995 incident involving an Aerolíneas Argentinas Boeing 727 approaching San Carlos de Bariloche in Patagonia.
According to the file, flight AR 674 was around 140 kilometres from the Andean city when a power outage suddenly plunged parts of Bariloche and its airport into darkness. Air traffic controllers instructed the aircraft to remain on standby before beginning its descent.
As the plane prepared to land, pilot Jorge Polanco reportedly spotted what appeared to be an unusual bright light ahead of the aircraft. The Pentagon file says that, after the Boeing aligned with the runway, an unidentified object with three visible lights – including a red light at its centre – appeared on the aircraft’s right side and began flying parallel to it.
The report also states that airport lights failed again during the manoeuvre, leaving the runway and approach lighting system temporarily dark.
Another aircraft waiting in the area allegedly observed the same phenomenon, alongside air traffic controllers and residents on the ground in Bariloche.
According to the document, Polanco was unable to land and instead carried out a go-around manoeuvre. The object then reportedly moved behind the aircraft, stopped mid-air, ascended vertically and later repositioned itself in front of the plane before disappearing towards the Andes mountains.
The file says the phenomenon lasted several minutes and was considered notable because it was allegedly witnessed by multiple independent observers both in the air and on the ground. Investigators also highlighted the reported electrical failures that appeared to coincide with the presence of the object.
The case appears in a section of the released files examining investigations conducted outside the United States and references a report produced by COMETA, a French study group linked to defence and aeronautics specialists.
More than 160 files were released last Friday on the website of the US Department of Defense, which officially refers to UFOs as “Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena,” or UAPs.
One file – from December 1947 – contains a series of reports on “flying discs.”
An Air Force intelligence report marked “top secret” from November of the following year features information on reported sightings of “unidentified aircraft” and “flying saucers.”
Another file documents a 2023 incident in which three teams of federal law enforcement special agents independently described “seeing orange ‘orbs’ in the sky emit/launch smaller red ‘orbs.’”
US President Donald Trump directed federal agencies in February to begin identifying and releasing government files related to UFOs and aliens, saying the move was “based on the tremendous interest shown.”
Trump also claimed the same day he issued the release order that former president Barack Obama had revealed “classified” information in viral podcast remarks about the existence of extraterrestrial life.
“They’re real, but I haven’t seen them and they’re not being kept in... Area 51,” Obama told host Brian Tyler Cohen, referring to the top-secret US military facility in Nevada long associated with UFO conspiracy theories.
Trump later told reporters that Obama “gave classified information, he is not supposed to be doing that,” while adding of his own beliefs: “I don’t know if they are real or not.”
No evidence has been produced of intelligent life beyond Earth.
“These files, hidden behind classifications, have long fueled justified speculation – and it's time the American people see it for themselves,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in a statement confirming the release of the files.
Interest in UFOs has grown in recent years as the US government investigated numerous reports of seemingly unexplained aircraft, amid concerns that foreign adversaries could be testing highly advanced technologies.
In March 2024, the Pentagon released a report saying it had found no proof that UAPs were alien technology, with many sightings ultimately linked to weather balloons, spy planes, satellites and other ordinary activity.
– TIMES/AFP/NA
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