Landmark case · 1976Tehran, Iran
Tehran F-4 Phantom Encounter
September 19, 1976
The Imperial Iranian Air Force scrambled two F-4 Phantom jets toward an unidentified bright object over Tehran, with crews reporting instrument and communications disruptions.
Primary source · Declassified DIA report · via The Black VaultDeclassified U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency report on the incidentOpen ↗What is on the record
- In the early hours of September 19, 1976, two Iranian Air Force F-4 Phantom II jets were sent to intercept a brightly lit unidentified object reported over Tehran.
- The crews reported temporary loss of instrumentation and communications as they approached, which they said returned when they moved away.
- The incident was described in a U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency intelligence report that was distributed to several U.S. agencies and later released under FOIA.
The ordinary explanation / open question
No conventional explanation has been officially confirmed; some skeptics have suggested a combination of misidentified celestial objects (such as a bright planet) and aircraft equipment malfunctions.
Recorded in a declassified U.S. DIA intelligence reportView the location on the atlas map →
Sources
A documented event, presented with sources — not a claim about its cause. Where a mundane explanation exists it is noted above; where the record is genuinely open, that is said plainly.