1976 Tehran UFO: Iranian F-4 Jets Crippled by UFO

At dawn on September 19, 1976, an event occurred over the skies of Tehran, Iran, which was recorded by the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) as “the most compelling UFO military encounter in history.” Two Iranian Air Force F-4 Phantom fighter jets were ordered to intercept an unidentified object locked on by radar.

When the first F-4 approached to about 40 kilometers, all communication and navigation instruments on board suddenly failed. After the pilot turned back, the systems returned to normal, but upon approaching again, they failed once more. When the second F-4 took off, it also experienced instrument failure, and its radar locked onto the target, but the target’s size and maneuverability were completely beyond reasonable limits.

Both the Iranian Air Force radar stations and civilian airport radars simultaneously confirmed the target’s existence. A detailed report of this incident was later released by the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, making it one of the very few UFO cases acknowledged by U.S. military intelligence agencies.

📚 Sources

• U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, “Iranian F-4 Incident Report” (1976)
• Iranian Air Force, “Operations Log” (September 19, 1976)
• Fink, D. “The Tehran UFO Encounter” (1977), Aviation Week