Puerto Rico Radar UAP Incident (1964) – PURSUE Files

CIA memos and briefing notes on a delta-shaped object seen by a Navy pilot and tracked by a destroyer’s radar at over 4,000 mph near Puerto Rico on November 19, 1964

⚠ Note on validity: The CIA’s scientific intelligence chief suggested the object was “conceivably associated with foreign intelligence gathering activities,” given U.S. missile testing in the area. Fast radar tracks of the era were also sometimes caused by equipment errors or atmospheric effects.

Puerto Rico, 1964
Date	November 19, 1964
Location	Near Puerto Rico, Caribbean Sea (Atlantic Fleet Weapons Range)
Witnesses	U.S. Naval aviator; radar of USS Gyatt (DDG-1)
Agency	CIA (AD/SA, AD/SI); briefing for Walter N. Elder
Released	Release 05 (Aug. 7, 2026)
Files	2 (PDF)
Previously public?	No — new in PURSUE Release 05
Official releaseUnresolved

On November 19, 1964, near Puerto Rico, a U.S. Naval aviator reported an unidentified object he described as “delta-shaped, about the size of a jet fighter,” moving at an estimated Mach 3. An AN/SPS-49 radar aboard the guided-missile destroyer USS Gyatt tracked a contact at more than 3,800 knots (about 4,373 mph) for 21 minutes. CIA memoranda between the heads of Special Activities (who ran the U-2 and A-12 OXCART spy planes) and Scientific Intelligence, and briefing notes for Walter N. Elder, executive assistant to the CIA Director, were released in PURSUE Release 05.^[1]

The records

CIA-UAP-D022, Unidentified Flying Object Reported near Puerto Rico, 1965

Open CIA-UAP-D022 (PDF) on war.gov →

This file contains Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) memoranda exchanged between the Assistant Director for Special Activities (AD/SA) and the Assistant Director for Scientific Intelligence (AD/SI) regarding an incident allegedly involving unidentified aircraft in the vicinity of Puerto Rico. The AD/SI was then-responsible for analyzing foreign scientific advancements and technological threats, such as Soviet nuclear, chemical, and ballistic missile capabilities. The AD/SA managed the CIA’s classified overhead reconnaissance operations, including the deployment of advanced aircraft like the U-2 and A-12 OXCART. Together, these offices ensured the United States could both gather critical intelligence over contested territories and accurately evaluate the technical capabilities of foreign adversaries during the Cold War.
The memoranda refer to an incident on November 19, 1964, in which a U.S. Naval aviator described observing an unidentified object as “delta-shaped, about the size of a jet fighter.” The pilot visually estimated the object’s velocity as Mach 3 (approximately 2,200 mph). A corresponding track from an AN/SPS-49 radar system aboard a U.S. Navy guided missile destroyer in the area, USS Gyatt, measured the object’s speed at 3,800 knots (approximately 4,373 mph). The memoranda indicate that, in the opinion of the AD/SI, the object was conceivably associated with foreign intelligence gathering activities, citing active missile testing within the AFWR, or Atlantic Fleet Weapons Range, as being an attractive reconnaissance target. The AD/SA and AD/SI also ruled out domestic experimental aircraft, such as the YF-12A OXCART, as a potential attribution.
— Official PURSUE description

CIA-UAP-D023, Briefing Notes for Mr. Walter Elder

Open CIA-UAP-D023 (PDF) on war.gov →

This document contains briefing material prepared for Mr. Walter N. Elder, Executive Assistant to the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), regarding a November 19, 1964, incident allegedly involving unidentified aircraft in the vicinity of Puerto Rico. The previous entry in this collection, CIA-UAP-D022, contains CIA memoranda on the same subject matter. The briefing includes additional details regarding that incident, including a characterization of the meteorological conditions and sensing capabilities of nearby U.S. military collection systems.
The briefing states that a radar system aboard USS Gyatt, a guided missile destroyer operating in the vicinity, detected a contact tracking more than 3,800 knots (approximately 4,373 mph) over a period of 21 minutes. The briefing contains visual estimates regarding the phenomenon’s apparent capabilities from the pilot of an F-8 Crusader who was present during the incident.
— Official PURSUE description

Analysis

Was it a U.S. spy plane? The memos went to the office running the A-12 OXCART, a CIA reconnaissance jet that flew at about Mach 3.2 and was being tested in 1964, which suggests officials checked whether one of their own aircraft was involved. The A-12’s speed matches the pilot’s Mach 3 estimate, though not the radar’s figure of nearly Mach 6. The CIA’s scientific intelligence chief thought the object was “conceivably associated with foreign intelligence gathering activities,” noting active missile testing on the Atlantic Fleet Weapons Range.^[1]

Other possibilities. A sustained 21-minute track at over 4,000 mph would be extraordinary for 1964 technology. Radar of the period could produce false tracks from anomalous propagation (ducting), from equipment faults, or from jumping between two different targets. The briefing notes discuss weather conditions and nearby sensors, which suggests these possibilities were considered. The released records reach no final conclusion.

New or previously released? New. This incident does not appear in earlier public UFO literature.

Released files

PURSUE ID	Title	Type
CIA-UAP-D022	Unidentified Flying Object Reported near Puerto Rico, 1965	PDF
CIA-UAP-D023	Briefing Notes for Mr. Walter Elder	PDF

References

^ U.S. Department of War (2026). PURSUE Release 05 (Aug. 7, 2026): CIA-UAP-D022, CIA-UAP-D023, with official descriptions. war.gov/ufo.

Source: U.S. Department of War, PURSUE (Presidential Unsealing and Reporting System for UAP Encounters), war.gov/ufo. Official records are U.S. government works in the public domain; summaries and analysis on this page are by UFO UAP Wiki.