What Are You Afraid of? UFOs

Pilots and air traffic controllers are in a unique position to help us understand what’s happening above us.

Jason Judy

Wednesday, April 22, 2026 at 09:00 AM ET

Verified

Edited By:

Zach Vasile

Artist’s rendition of UAP over the New Jersey coast [Credit: Americans for Safe Aerospace]

Key Takeaways:

A former air traffic controller shares personal UAP sightings and anomalous radar events, emphasizing the professional concern and frustration unknown objects pose in controlled airspace.
The re-designation of "UFO" to "UAP" and official disclosures, like Navy videos, have significantly reduced the stigma for aviation professionals discussing these phenomena.
Historically, pilots and controllers feared career repercussions for reporting UAPs, but this culture is changing towards genuine curiosity and professional safety concern.
The author advocates for open discussion of UAP experiences by pilots and controllers as crucial for understanding these unexplained occurrences, linking it to fundamental human curiosity.

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Back in 1999, when I was working as an air traffic controller at Fort Worth Center, one of my
co-workers ended up on Coast to Coast AM with Art Bell.

He had submitted audio of unusual aerial activity over the Dallas-Fort Worth area, something people now refer to as UAPs (unidentified anomalous/aerial phenomena). I remember listening to the show and laughing as Bell treated the recording as if it were a leak from a secret government source.