Tehran F-4 incident
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The visual record
Illustrations, recordings and archival references — each with its own provenance. A documented source is a starting point for investigation, not a verdict on its explanation.
Imperial Iranian Air Force F-4E Phantom II
An Imperial Iranian Air Force F-4E of the type scrambled from Shahrokhi on the night of 18–19 September 1976, when crews reported instrument failures approaching a bright object. Aircraft type photograph · context, not from the incident.
IIAF ↗Public domainLicence terms ↗James Fox · 1:41:20
Open the source at the cited time. The episode thumbnail is video packaging, not a photograph of the reported subject.
American Alchemy / Jesse Michels ↗YouTube-hosted preview and player; not relicensedRyan Graves · 1:03:51
Open the source at the cited time. The episode thumbnail is video packaging, not a photograph of the reported subject.
American Alchemy / Jesse Michels ↗YouTube-hosted preview and player; not relicensedEarly on 19 September 1976 Imperial Iranian Air Force F-4s were scrambled toward a bright object over Tehran; pilots reported instrument and weapons failures when approaching it and a smaller object detaching toward them. A US Defense Intelligence Agency report rated the case outstanding. In the corpus James Fox says he met the pilot, and Ryan Graves recalls the account.
Read the full account
What was reported. After citizens reported a bright object over Tehran, an F-4 was launched from Shahrokhi AFB around 1:30 am; approaching the object it lost instruments and communications and turned back, regaining them. A second F-4 flown by Lt Parviz Jafari acquired a radar return, then reported a smaller object leaving the main one and heading toward him; when he tried to fire a missile his weapons panel and radio failed and he evaded. A further object was seen to land. (FACT about the report.)
What followed. The US Air Force attaché in Tehran filed a detailed message that reached the DIA, NSA and White House; a DIA evaluator rated the report outstanding. Jafari spoke publicly in 2007 at the National Press Club. (FACT.)
What the corpus adds. James Fox says he met the Iranian pilot who had the encounter in a Phantom in the mid-1970s. Ryan Graves recalls the case as one in which a pilot fired at a UAP and lost control, saying he knows of few such incidents. (FACT about testimony.)
Explanations offered. Skeptics propose Jupiter, a meteor shower and equipment faults on ageing aircraft; supporters cite the multiple crews, radar contact and the DIA rating. (INFERENCE.)
The event
| Date | |
|---|---|
| Place | 35.6892, 51.3890 approximate · Iran |
| Official response | A 1976 US Defense Attaché message forwarded to the DIA described the encounter and a DIA evaluation form rated it of high reliability and outstanding value; no explanation was offered. |
Reported by
- parviz jafari military IIAF F-4 pilot, later general
- yaddi nazeri military IIAF F-4 pilot
Investigated by
- us defense intelligence agency government
- us air attache tehran military
Who spoke about it later
Mentioned in the corpus
Passages this record cites, with the stamp of the block each quote sits in.
The Most Important UFO Investigator On The Planet (ft. James Fox) 28 September 2024
US Fighter Pilots Witness UFO (ft. Ryan Graves) 6 December 2024
- 1:03:51 ▶ Ryan Graves
this Iranian pilot like shoots at the UAP and then there's, you know, this sort of dog fight and then he starts going down. And so there clearly are
- 1:03:51 ▶ interview
- 1:03:51 ▶ Ryan Graves
On the map
Tehran F-4 incident, Rendlesham Forest incident. Open the full map filtered to this record.
Sources on this record
- 1:41:20 The Most Important UFO Investigator On The Planet (ft. James Fox) · James Fox ▶
I met this uh this this Iranian pilot that had this dramatic UFO encounter over Tyron Iran in 19 I want to say 75 in a phantom F4 jet the 1976 ton UFO incident involv radar and visual
- 1:03:51 US Fighter Pilots Witness UFO (ft. Ryan Graves) · Ryan Graves ▶
this Iranian pilot like shoots at the UAP and then there's, you know, this sort of dog fight and then he starts going down. And so there clearly are
- 1976 Tehran UFO incident