The Department of War has launched an initial release of declassified Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena files under a new US government transparency effort, creating a centralized portal for UAP videos, photos, and original source documents while acknowledging that many of the anomalies remain unresolved.
The files are being released through the Presidential Unsealing and Reporting System for UAP Encounters, or PURSUE, an interagency process directed by President Donald Trump. The archive is housed at WAR.GOV/UFO, which the department described as the dedicated webpage for the latest UAP file releases.
The initial release was cleared for public access on May 8, 2026, according to the materials shown on the Department of War page. The release is described as the first tranche, with additional files to be published on a rolling basis as they are identified, reviewed, declassified, and cleared for public release.
The effort includes the White House, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the Department of Energy, the Department of War’s All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, NASA, the FBI, and additional components of US intelligence agencies.
The Department of War said the process involves reviewing government files related to alien and extraterrestrial life, unidentified aerial phenomena, UAP, unidentified flying objects, UFOs, and connected information. It described the undertaking as requiring coordination across dozens of agencies and the review of tens of millions of records, many of which exist only on paper and span multiple decades.
The department said the archive will include unresolved cases, meaning cases where the government has been unable to make a definitive determination about the nature of observed phenomena. It cited several possible reasons, including insufficient data.
That caveat is central to the release. The department said the files have been reviewed for security purposes, but many materials have not yet been analyzed to resolve the anomalies they contain. In other words, the public release expands access but does not automatically convert the records into official explanations.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said the department is aligned with Trump’s effort to release UAP material, calling the files long hidden behind classifications.
“The Department of War is in lockstep with President Trump to bring unprecedented transparency regarding our government’s understanding of Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena,” Hegseth said. “These files, hidden behind classifications, have long fueled justified speculation — and it’s time the American people see it for themselves.”
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said ODNI is coordinating with the Department of War on intelligence community declassification efforts. She called the release “the first in what will be an ongoing joint declassification and release effort.”
FBI Director Kash Patel said the bureau is supporting the rolling declassification process while maintaining national security safeguards. “For the first time in history, the American people have unfettered access to declassified government files on Unidentified Anomalous Phenomenon,” Patel said.
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman framed the process around data and scientific inquiry, saying NASA would bring scientific tools and expertise to bear while remaining candid about “what we know to be true, what we have yet to understand, and all that remains to be discovered.”
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