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PURSUE tracker

PURSUE (Presidential Unsealing and Reporting System for UAP Encounters) is the Department of War programme, launched on May 8, 2026 at war.gov/ufo, for publishing declassified and historical UAP files from the Department of War, ODNI, NASA, the FBI, the Department of Energy, the State Department and others. It followed the President's February 19, 2026 post directing agencies to begin releasing government UAP files. No executive order or memorandum establishing it has been published.

This page lists every release, what the Pentagon said was in it, what stood out, and the caveats. Open a release to see the detail. Updated monthly. Last update: October 10, 2026.

How to read these releases

  • "Released" doesn't mean "analysed". The Pentagon's own caveat, repeated across releases, is that many materials "have not yet been analyzed" and "lack a substantiated chain-of-custody". AARO's captions say its descriptions "should not be treated as an investigative conclusion".
  • Metadata is mostly missing. The Scientific Coalition for UAP Studies found that "critical metadata, such as time, date, location, range, altitude, speed, etc., that would allow for a detailed analysis of the videos, were redacted", and that materials are missing for 1974 to 2015.
  • Counts vary by outlet. File counts are the Pentagon's where its release text was available, otherwise the count reported by the linked coverage.

Releases

Six releases so far, about 450 files, roughly every two to six weeks: May 8, May 22, Jun 12, Jul 10, Aug 7 and Sep 18, 2026. The seventh hasn't been published as of October 10, 2026.

Release 1 · May 8, 2026 · ~160 files (1944 to 2026)

The launch release, with files from the Department of War, ODNI, DOE, NASA, FBI and State.

  • Gemini 7 and Apollo transcripts, Greece (Jan 2024) and Syria (Oct 2024) IR clips, a Kuwait May 2022 report, the FBI "flying disc" file.
  • An Army IR clip from Jan 1, 2026, with AARO's note that "Readers should not interpret any part of this description as reflecting an analytical judgment".
  • Secretary of War Pete Hegseth: "The Department of War is in lockstep with President Trump to bring unprecedented transparency regarding our government's understanding of Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena". DNI Tulsi Gabbard: "Today's release is the first in what will be an ongoing joint declassification and release effort."

Sources: Pentagon release · Gabbard · TWZ · The Debrief

Release 2 · May 22, 2026 · 64 files (51 videos, 6 PDFs, 7 NASA audio)

Mostly video, and the first release to answer a congressional request.

  • The Feb 12, 2023 Lake Huron F-16 shoot-down IR video, and the Aug 26, 2022 "four UAP in formation near Iran" clip. Both were on Rep. Luna's March 2026 list of 46 videos.
  • An MQ-9 "instant acceleration" clip and 2022 submarine orbs.
  • A 2025 narrative from a serving senior intelligence officer: "we were virtually speechless after these observations."
  • Pentagon caveat: many materials "lack a substantiated chain-of-custody".

Sources: CBS · EarthSky

Release 3 · Jun 12, 2026 · 72 files (53 documents, 10 images, 6 videos, 3 audio)

Files from the CIA, FBI, NASA and the Department of War.

  • A less-redacted 1953 Robertson Panel report.
  • FBI north-eastern US orb videos (2021 to 2025) and a 2008 Harare disc report.
  • AARO's Jun 5, 2026 "Western United States Event" memo, signed by director Jon Kosloski, on an October 2023 case in which federal agents reported an orange orb releasing smaller red orbs.
  • The Pentagon said war.gov/ufo had drawn 1.7 billion hits since May 8.

Sources: CBS · Newsweek

Release 4 · Jul 10, 2026 · 40 files (14 documents, 19 videos, 4 audio, 3 images)

The first release with AARO case notes attributing items to ordinary causes.

  • A 2015 object over Pantex. A 2019 East Coast aviator account: "an object with flight characteristics unlike anything I had seen in my 28 years".
  • 2025 Yellow Sea and East China Sea tracks. The 1949 Los Alamos green-fireballs conference, Project Sign (1948), Columbia 1996 photos.
  • AARO's notes attribute several items to balloons, ice particles or sensor artefacts.
  • On the same day CENTCOM declassified the Jul 29, 2025 six-spheres mission report that appeared in release 6.

Sources: CBS · The Debrief

Release 5 · Aug 7, 2026 · 41 files (22 documents, 16 videos, 3 images)

Includes Executive Office of the President and State Department material.

  • AC-130J footage of roughly 25 "cold orbs" over the Gulf of Oman, Sep 8, 2021, about 4 ft across at 250 to 1,300 mph with no detected propulsion.
  • A June 2002 Bagram black triangle (artist rendering) and an Oct 2023 Colorado Springs triangle.
  • Eight redacted FBI witness forms and the first FBI-captured video.

Sources: Scientific American · EarthSky · MeriTalk

Release 6 · Sep 18, 2026 · 71 files (55 PDFs, 15 videos, 1 audio)

The most document-heavy release, and the first with non-federal files.

  • 37 of the 38 AAWSAP Defense Intelligence Reference Documents (warp drives, wormholes, negative mass), with the Pentagon's note that they shouldn't be read as validating the concepts.
  • The 1952 Tremonton film with its Blue Book file, and a 1952 Edward Ruppelt recording that Rep. Burlison had asked MIT Lincoln Laboratory to preserve.
  • A CENTCOM mission report and IR video from Jul 29, 2025 of six spheres over the Middle East, crew-estimated at 480 mph at 22,000 ft, status unresolved. AARO's caption: its description "should not be treated as an investigative conclusion about the event's validity, nature or significance".
  • Four files from Colorado law enforcement, the first non-federal source.

Sources: Military.com · ClearanceJobs · Burlison on the Ruppelt recording

Around the releases

  • Who runs it. AARO "is responsible for coordinating the declassification of identified DOW files" (DefenseScoop). An interagency UAP Governance Board (ODNI, FBI, Department of War) was established in June 2026 to coordinate declassification. Its charter and membership haven't been published.
  • The science council. A UAP Science Advisory Council chaired by Avi Loeb advises the government on unclassified data. By September, Politico reported it had received videos but not the underlying sensor data.
  • Disclosures into PURSUE. ODNI's July 31, 2026 memorandum and the Department of War's September 14 waiver let current and former personnel bring UAP information to "PURSUE representatives" notwithstanding prior NDAs. Not public disclosure, and not immunity. No named person has publicly said they've used it.
  • Reactions worth keeping. Christopher Mellon: "Data alone is not disclosure." (DefenseScoop). Former AARO director Sean Kirkpatrick, before the first release: "I don't expect to see anything new." (CBS).