May 8, 2026 release guide
The Department of War opened the PURSUE UFO portal on May 8, 2026. This guide tracks the first release through its official announcement, unresolved-case caveat, and selected source PDFs.
PURSUE Release 01 was cleared on May 8, 2026.
The Department of War describes the release as unresolved UAP-related records.
The covered PDFs include the USPER statement, DOW-UAP-D20, and DOW-UAP-D18.
No covered record is presented as proof of alien origin or final identification.
Official release
PURSUE Release 01 is the first official Department of War tranche in the Presidential Unsealing and Reporting System for UAP Encounters. It centralizes unresolved UAP records, photos, videos, and source documents at war.gov/UFO.
Release 01 records covered now
A verified overview of PURSUE Release 01, the May 8, 2026 Department of War UFO/UAP file release.
The key caveat in PURSUE Release 01: the Department of War says the materials are unresolved cases, not final determinations.
Verified notes on the redacted USPER statement describing orb/light reports, helicopter search activity, FLIR/NVG references, and unresolved observations.
A verified guide to DOW-UAP-D20, the Release 01 mission report describing several bright objects and a targeting pod observation in March 2023.
A verified guide to DOW-UAP-D18, the Release 01 mission report describing one possible UAP/UAV observed near Baghdad in December 2022.
Official source chain
Primary official host for PURSUE Release 01 and the May 8, 2026 release announcement.
Several Release 01 mission reports state they were approved for release to AARO.
Named by the Department of War as a supporting partner in the PURSUE declassification effort.
Named by the Department of War as part of the interagency effort behind Release 01.
Named by the Department of War as part of the interagency effort behind Release 01.
Briefings
A briefing on how to read PURSUE Release 01 carefully, with emphasis on unresolved-case language and source verification.
A source map for the May 8, 2026 UFO disclosure release, including the official portal, announcement, and selected PDFs.
Timeline
The official PURSUE page describes a presidential directive to identify and release government files related to UAP, UFOs, and related matters.
The Department of War announced Release 01 and opened the war.gov/UFO portal for public access to unresolved UAP records.
UFO Disclosure Files begins with a focused five-page cluster around the May 8 release.