GoFast Video, USS Roosevelt
Approximately 35-second ATFLIR video appearing to show a small object skimming rapidly above the ocean surface, with aircrew exclaiming 'Look at that thing! It's flying!'
The original photographs, video, audio, and supporting documents for this case are hosted by the originating agency. Direct embedding will be added to this page as the corpus is mirrored into our reference archive.
AARO records ↗Official description
Mid-wave infrared video from the same Roosevelt deployment as Gimbal. Released in 2017 via NYT/TTSA, formally acknowledged by DoD in April 2020.
Editor's context
Geometric analysis using the metadata visible on the FLIR display has substantially constrained the object's actual speed. The visual impression of high speed is largely a parallax artifact: the ATFLIR pod is moving rapidly over a near-still object, making it appear to fly. Several independent analyses converge on this conclusion.
Prevailing explanation
What scientists and analysts generally think
Detailed parallax analysis of the on-screen sensor metadata shows the object is moving slowly relative to the air mass, consistent with a small balloon, bird, or piece of debris drifting with the wind. The rapid apparent motion is caused by the aircraft's own velocity over a near-stationary target. This is now the consensus among analysts who have worked the geometry, including Mick West and the SCU's response.
In the margins
Transcribed redactions, stamps, and handwritten markings, the paratext of the file. Often the most human part of a declassified document, and worth reading on its own.
- Stampp. video headerDECLASSIFIED, DoD Public Release, April 27, 2020
- StampVFA-211 / USS THEODORE ROOSEVELT, UNCLASSIFIED
- AnnotationAircrew radio audio: 'Whoa! Got it! Woo-hoo!' followed by 'What the [expletive] is that thing?'
- AnnotationATFLIR display readouts (visible on the recording) yield aircraft altitude ~25,000 ft, range ~3.4nm, target altitude ~13,000 ft. These numbers are what enables the parallax calculation.
- AnnotationMick West's published geometry: object's actual ground speed ~30 mph, consistent with a small wind-drifting object. Apparent high speed is parallax due to camera motion over a near-stationary target.
Cite the primary source
Citations center the originating government agency and link to the official record. This archive is listed as the access point, not the author.
U.S. Department of Defense. "GoFast Video, USS Roosevelt." Released via PURSUE program, 2017-12-16. https://www.aaro.mil/UAP-Records/. Accessed 2026-05-12 via Social Media for Aliens archive, https://socialmediaforaliens.com/files/gofast-2015.
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