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The FBI submitted a single, redacted still image to the U.S. government’s primary unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) office in 2025, but the accompanying mission report for the incident was never provided, according to a newly released document from the Department of War’s PURSUE archive. The file, titled “FBI Photo B16,” was made public on May 8, 2026, and offers limited detail about an event that occurred in the late 2025 timeframe over the Western United States.
Document Details and Official Description
According to the official description accompanying the FBI’s submission, the image was derived from a U.S. military system. The record states that “the original imagery was altered with redactions before being submitted to AARO,” the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, which is the Pentagon’s office tasked with investigating UAPs. The document notes that “an accompanying mission report was not provided” alongside the photograph. The operator of the system that captured the image reported that they “were unable to positively identify the UAP.” The official description further clarifies that the date stamped on the image is incorrect, as “the system date/time not being set” led to an erroneous timestamp.
The document’s narrative description, provided for informational purposes only and explicitly not reflecting any analytical judgment or conclusion, describes the image as “a monochrome image” with “a grainy texture” and “a simplified central crosshair.” It states that “two dark, irregular-shaped objects are visible just right of the center in the upper right quadrant.” The FBI’s submission to AARO is the core of the record, but the official summary offers limited detail beyond the basic facts of the image’s origin, its redacted state, and the missing report.
The record is part of a broader release of U.S. government files concerning UAPs. Per a Wikipedia summary of the “United States UFO files” entry, these documents are “a collection of declassified United States government records concerning UFOs, also called unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAPs), released by the administration of Donald Trump beginning on May 8, 2026.” The Wikipedia entry further notes that the release was “announced to continue as repeated, ongoing, expanding releases of UFO materials.” The FBI document, identified by its title “FBI Photo B16,” is one of the initial records made available through this process.
Context and Unanswered Questions
The document’s release raises several questions that are not answered by the available material. The official description is notably vague about the specific nature of the objects captured in the image, offering no analysis of their shape, size, or behavior. The fact that the original image was redacted before being sent to AARO, and that the mission report was withheld, leaves significant gaps in understanding the full context of the incident. The FBI’s role in submitting the image, rather than a military branch, is also a point of interest, though the document does not explain why the Bureau was the submitting agency.
The incorrect date on the image, attributed to a system clock error, means that the precise timing of the event cannot be confirmed from the document alone. The location is listed only as the “Western United States,” a broad geographic area that does not narrow down the specific site of the observation. The operator’s inability to positively identify the UAP is stated plainly, but no further details about what the operator observed or what the system was tracking are included in the released file.
Readers should watch for future releases in the PURSUE archive, which the Wikipedia summary indicates will be “repeated, ongoing, expanding releases.” The absence of the mission report for this specific incident suggests that additional context may emerge if that document is included in a later tranche of materials. The redacted nature of the image also leaves open the possibility that a less-altered version could be released in the future, potentially providing more clarity about the two dark objects captured by the military system. For now, the “FBI Photo B16” document stands as a single, incomplete piece of a larger puzzle that the ongoing PURSUE releases may help to fill.
