DOD IG to evaluate Pentagon's actions on UFOs

The Defense Department inspector general announced today a plan to begin evaluating DOD's actions on "unidentified aerial phenomena."

The evaluation will begin this month, according to the announcement. The project will "determine the extent to which the DOD has taken actions regarding Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP)."

In April, DOD confirmed the authenticity of leaked videos taken by Navy pilots showing unidentified flying objects. The Pentagon said one video was taken in November 2004, while two were taken in January 2015. The earlier video had been circulating in public since 2007.

Last August, the Pentagon established an "Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force" under the auspices of the Navy. The task force's mission is to "detect, analyze and catalog UAPs that could potentially pose a threat to U.S. national security," according to DOD.

Meanwhile, Congress is also asking for answers on the UFOs. Passed as part of the $2.3 trillion omnibus appropriations bill in December, the Intelligence Authorization Act for 2021 requires DOD and U.S. intelligence agencies to deliver to Congress by late May a report on unidentified aerial phenomena.

The report should include "a detailed analysis" of data the U.S. government has collected on UFOs, as well as an assessment of whether the incidents may be attributed to any foreign adversaries, according to the legislation.