On 31 March 2026, Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna, Chairwoman of the Task Force on the Declassification of Federal Secrets, formally requested the delivery of 46 classified Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP) video files to the Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. The deadline set was 14 April 2026. This action follows a Task Force hearing on 9 September 2025, during which whistleblowers alleged that the Pentagon’s All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) possessed additional undisclosed UAP footage. The requested files reportedly span multiple years and geographic locations, including notable recordings over Iran, Syria, the United States, and incidents involving submarine-related objects. Of particular interest is confirmed footage of an F-16 Air National Guard pilot shooting down a UAP over Lake Huron on 12 February 2023, an event widely reported but for which the sensor and infrared footage remains classified.
The letter from Congresswoman Luna criticised AARO’s perceived inadequacy in responding to congressional inquiries about UAP encounters and evidence. The specific request for 46 files, each identified with operational details such as callsigns and dates, suggests insider knowledge of the contents and undermines the possibility of bureaucratic evasion. Witness accounts include a pilot’s description of the Lake Huron object as octagonal and unlike known balloons, lending credence to the claim of genuinely unexplained aerial phenomena. The list also mentions footage of a four-UAP formation over Iran in 2022, rapid acceleration of a UAP in Syrian airspace in 2021, and Unidentified Submerged Objects near a U.S. submarine, a rare category implying underwater anomaly activity. The breadth and detail of the materials requested highlight the continued challenges faced by legislators in accessing potentially sensitive information held by military and intelligence agencies.
This congressional move arrives amid growing public and governmental interest in UAP investigations, particularly following the establishment of AARO, mandated to collect and analyse reports of anomalous aerial objects. The inclusion of USO sightings aligns with a lesser-explored area of UAP research that considers undersea phenomena as part of the broader anomalous activity spectrum. Historically, military encounters with UAPs often involve advanced sensor data and multiple witnesses, yet many recordings remain under wraps, fostering debate over transparency and the potential national security implications. The Lake Huron shoot-down is one of the few incidents publicly acknowledged, yet the withheld videos and data underscore a continued reluctance to fully disclose such encounters. This request for declassification reflects increasing political pressure to provide clarity and potentially reshape official understanding of aerial and subaqueous unidentified objects.
Source: UFO News
