2026 has been the busiest year for UFO news in a long time. Since May, the U.S. government has been publishing batches of declassified records on unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP), the official name for UFOs. This week, a former Pentagon intelligence official who once led the government's UAP task force released a memoir making some very big claims. Here's what has actually been released, what is being claimed, and how to tell the two apart.
What Is PURSUE?
PURSUE stands for the Presidential Unsealing and Reporting System for UAP Encounters. It launched on 8 May 2026, when the Department of War (the Pentagon's current name) opened a public page at war.gov/UFO. The first batch was the biggest so far, with more than 150 documents, videos and images. Many of them were partly redacted. Officials said the redactions protect witness identities and sensitive military sites, and promised new batches every few weeks.
The records come from a wide mix of agencies. According to a tracker run by UAP.global, files from the first five releases came from the Department of War, FBI, CIA, NASA, the State Department, the Department of Energy and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
The Most Interesting Cases So Far
A few files stand out:
- Fresh 2026 sightings (August release). Newsweek reported that the fifth batch included FBI records of sightings from this year in the western U.S. In one, two witnesses described a red light over a mountain range, followed by 6 to 10 more red lights that seemed to move together. The FBI even produced artist's sketches based on their descriptions. Exact dates and places were redacted.
- A thermal-camera sighting. A government special agent on surveillance reported a "thermally elevated" object, roughly half the size of a Black Hawk helicopter, which then slipped out of view behind terrain.
- The 1952 Tremonton film (September release). A Navy officer filmed a group of bright objects over Utah. Project Blue Book studied it, but the footage had too little detail and no fixed reference points, so no conclusion was reached.
- A Colorado police video (2023). A local officer recorded a silent object with flashing red, blue and green lights on a phone.
Fact vs. Speculation: Reading the Files Wisely
It's easy to see "UFO files" and assume aliens. The officials releasing the records are careful to say otherwise. "Unresolved" means there wasn't enough information to identify the object, not that it came from another world. AARO, the Pentagon office that studies these reports, also warned that phone autofocus and digital processing can distort the shape and movement of distant lights.
The Insider Memoir: Jay Stratton's Big Claims
The biggest UFO story this week is a book. Jay Stratton, a former Defense Intelligence Agency official who led the government's Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force, released his memoir Out of the Shadows on 13 October 2026, published by William Morrow. The Debrief reports that a TV series based on the book is also in development.
In interviews to promote the book, including with CNN, Stratton said the U.S. government holds non-human craft and that he has personally seen non-human beings and craft. He also described an alleged incident where senior officers were warned off filing a report about a sighting, and suggested that even presidents may not have been fully briefed.
These are serious claims from someone with real credentials, which is why they're getting so much attention. But it's important to be clear: as reported by Cybernews, the claims rest on Stratton's own account. No documents, photos or independent confirmation have been made public to back them up, and no official response was included in the coverage. Until evidence appears, they belong in the "claimed" column.
How to Follow UAP News Without Getting Fooled
- Go to the source. Read the files yourself at war.gov/UFO instead of relying on viral clips.
- Check the label. "Unresolved" or "unidentified" is not the same as "alien".
- Look for corroboration. Multiple witnesses plus sensor data are much stronger than a single story.
- Remember ordinary causes. Drones, satellites, balloons and camera artefacts explain many sightings.
Conclusion
2026 has given UFO watchers more official material than ever before: six PURSUE releases, decades of archive documents and even FBI records from this year. None of it proves alien visitors, but it does show that governments take strange sightings seriously enough to record and investigate them. Stratton's memoir adds a dramatic insider voice, though its biggest claims remain unproven for now. More file releases are expected, so we'll keep watching and keep separating facts from speculation. What do you think? Share your view in the comments.
Sources
- U.S. Department of War – PURSUE UAP records (war.gov/UFO)
- Newsweek – New UFO Files Detail FBI Records of 2026 Sightings (7 Aug 2026)
- The National News Desk – Pentagon releases new UFO videos, decades-old files (18 Sep 2026)
- UAP.global – 2026 U.S. UAP File Releases Timeline
- Cybernews – Ex-UAP chief's cover-up claims (14 Oct 2026)
- The Debrief – Stratton memoir coming to television (24 Sep 2026)