USS Nimitz Carrier Strike Group — Tic Tac Encounter Reassessment
Category: incident. Original document date: November 14, 2004. Released: April 12, 2026. 47 pages.
Summary
A 47-page reassessment of the November 2004 Nimitz incident, integrating previously withheld AEGIS track data with FLIR1 imagery. The report concludes that the object exhibited acceleration profiles inconsistent with any known airframe, and acknowledges for the first time that two additional F/A-18 crews observed the object that week. Internal estimates of object velocity have been revised upward from prior public statements.
Key findings
- AEGIS tracks confirm sustained hypersonic transit at sea-level altitude
- Two additional aircrews (previously unnamed) corroborated the encounter within 96 hours
- Object signature persisted across S-band and X-band returns simultaneously
- No corresponding civilian or military flight plan was filed in the operating area