IncidentTehran F-4 Incident (19 September 1976)
Two Iranian Imperial Air Force F-4 Phantoms scrambled to intercept a luminous object over Tehran; both lost weapons, communications, and instrumentation upon approach.
What's documented
At 00:30 local time on 19 September 1976, Tehran’s Mehrabad control tower began receiving calls from civilians reporting a bright object over the city. At 01:30 an F-4 from Shahrokhi Air Base was scrambled. As it approached, the pilot reported complete loss of instrumentation and UHF/intercom communications; he aborted, and the systems recovered. A second F-4 launched at 01:40 piloted by Maj. Parviz Jafari with weapons systems officer Lt. Jafari Damirian. As they approached the object at supersonic speed, a smaller luminous object emerged from the primary and headed for the F-4; Maj. Jafari attempted to launch an AIM-9 missile; the weapons control panel went dead. The incident is recorded in DIA case 6 846 0139 76, distributed within 24 hours to the White House, the Joint Chiefs, the CIA, the NSA, and the Secretary of State.
Notable & intriguing
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The DIA case file 6 846 0139 76, declassified in 1977, was distributed within 24 hours of the incident to the White House, Joint Chiefs of Staff, CIA, NSA, and Secretary of State.
DIA distribution list, attached to DIA case 6 846 0139 76, declassified 1977
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Maj. Parviz Jafari testified on the record at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. on 12 November 2007 that 'the moon was up — we could see it next to the object. The object was the size of the full moon.'
National Press Club UFO press conference, 12 November 2007; transcript, James E. Fox / Leslie Kean
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The DIA Defense Information Report Evaluation attached to the file rates the case on every category — reliability of information, value of information, utility of information, and uniqueness — as 'High.'
DIA DIRE evaluation form, 12 October 1976, attached to case 6 846 0139 76