Incident · 19 May 1986 · São José dos Campos, São Paulo, Brazil
Official UFO Night (Brazil, 1986)
Also known as Noite Oficial dos OVNIs, Brazilian UFO night 1986
On the night of 19–20 May 1986, air traffic controllers at São José dos Campos and São Paulo reported moving coloured lights and radar contacts over southeastern Brazil. The Brazilian Air Force scrambled interceptors from Santa Cruz and Anápolis. Several pilots reported lights or airborne radar contacts that kept their distance, and one target pulled away from a supersonic interceptor. On 23 May the Minister of Aeronautics, Brig. Octávio Júlio Moreira Lima, held a press conference about it, attended by five of the pilots and the flight controllers, and the episode became known as the "Official UFO Night".
The Air Defence Command's confidential report, now held by Brazil's National Archives, concluded that the phenomena were "solid and reflect a certain intelligence". It also documents the weakness of its own data: radars designed for air traffic control, manual tracking, and contacts often too faint to form tracks. No single explanation has been established; individual lights and radar contacts need to be assessed separately.
Sources: Comando de Defesa Aérea, report of 2 June 1986 (Arquivo Nacional) · Government of Brazil (2022)
Facts and claims
- documented On the night of 19–20 May 1986, the São José dos Campos tower and São Paulo approach reported moving coloured lights and radar contacts, and the Brazilian Air Force scrambled interceptors from Santa Cruz and Anápolis. Pilots reported lights and airborne radar contacts they could not close on, including one that pulled away while the interceptor was supersonic. Source: Brazilian Air Defence Command report on the events of 19–20 May 1986 ("Official UFO Night")
- documented The Air Defence Command's report of 2 June 1986 concluded that "the phenomena are solid and reflect a certain intelligence", "not necessarily crewed". The same report stresses that its radars were built for air traffic control, that tracking was manual, and that many detections were too weak to establish tracks. Source: Brazilian Air Defence Command report on the events of 19–20 May 1986 ("Official UFO Night")
- claimed The Minister of Aeronautics, Brig. Octávio Júlio Moreira Lima, held a press conference on 23 May 1986, attended by five Air Force pilots and the flight controllers. The Brazilian government's account says 21 unidentified objects were sighted that night, "some of them up to 100 meters in diameter". Source: gov.br (archived)
Connected files
Documents
- Brazilian Air Defence Command report on the events of 19–20 May 1986 ("Official UFO Night") (documented in)
People
- Armindo de Sousa Viriato (witnesses)
- Ozires Silva (witnesses)
- Sérgio Mota da Silva (witnesses)
Videos
Mentioned in this file
- National Archives and Records Administration (Organization)