DOE-UAP-D005, Pantex Unidentified Object Incident Report, 2015

File ID: DOE-UAP-D005
Agency: Department of Energy
Release: Release 04, 10 Jul 2026
Event date: 9/1/2015 (read as 1 Sep 2015; precision: day)
Location: Texas
Type: PDF
Redactions: Yes, parts of the official copy are blacked out
Paired files: DOE-UAP-D001

The official record

Official summary, as published

This file contains imagery and a report documenting the circumstances surrounding a September 1, 2015, incident involving an unidentified object intruding the airspace above the Pantex Plant near Amarillo, Texas. The Pantex Plant is a sensitive national security site that contains the primary facility for the assembly, disassembly, maintenance, and life-extension of nuclear weapons. Pages 5 and 6 of this report were originally released under the PURSUE initiative in a more redacted form on May 22, 2026. (See: DOE-UAP-D001, Enhanced Pantex Imagery)

Named in this file

1 name

People, programs and institutions from The Legacy Program research board whose names appear in this file, found by exact spelling against a hand-checked list. A match says only that the file names them, not what part they play. People and programs lists every file that names each one.

Tier B National Nuclear Security Administration institution
Named in page 1.
Semi-autonomous DOE agency established by Congress in 2000; operator of the nuclear weapons complex

Our reading

READ FIRST

The full security report on an object tracked over the Pantex nuclear weapons plant near Amarillo on 1 September 2015 (the cover letter says 2 September). Radar tracked it at 10 to 15 mph; officers who chased it heard no sound and saw no propulsion through binoculars; a CROWS camera crew tracked it at 100 to 200 ft for 3 to 5 minutes. Witnesses describe a diamond-like shape about 4 ft tall. Video went to Sandia and all evidence to the FBI. This is the narrative behind the images first released in Release 02.

Three separate measures, each with its reason. They are never added into a score.

E Evidence 3 of 3

Ground surveillance radar track, a CROWS camera track, tower video and several officers with binoculars, with height, size, speed and range estimates.

N Novelty 3 of 3

The narrative report is new here; only its image pages appeared before, more redacted, in DOE-UAP-D001 (Release 02). No pre-PURSUE publication found.

L Linkage 2 of 3

Prepared for the NNSA Production Office about a DOE nuclear weapons plant; names Sandia National Laboratories, which enhanced the imagery.

Flags

Paired. Read together with DOE-UAP-D001.
Redacted: parts of the official copy are blacked out.

People and programs

Tier A United States Department of Energy institution Tier B National Nuclear Security Administration institution Tier A Sandia National Laboratories institution Tier B Nuclear Weapons Complex Nexus domain

Reading published 31 Oct 2026.

Our saved copy

Download our saved copy (DOE-UAP-D005_Pantex-Unidentified-Object-Incident-Report_2015.pdf)

One version seen. The checksum lets you confirm that a copy you hold is the one we saved.

First seen 2026-10-26 22:48:21 UTC

1.2 MB (1,244,028 bytes)

SHA-256 249cd9f5b85c4a92dc819d65e1dad180744479d1c8a68ebbc202ade66facbcbb