Chad Underwood

Early Career

Chad Underwood served as a Lieutenant and Naval Flight Officer (Weapon Systems Officer, or WSO) in Strike Fighter Squadron 41 (VFA-41), the "Black Aces," aboard the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68). On November 14, 2004, Underwood was assigned to an F/A-18 Super Hornet equipped with a sophisticated Raytheon Advanced Targeting Forward Looking Infrared (ATFLIR) pod—an advanced electro-optical and infrared sensor system. This equipment would position him at the center of one of the most significant and documented UAP encounters in modern military history.

The TicTac Encounter

Underwood participated in a carrier strike group operation involving multiple fighters and an E-2C Hawkeye early warning aircraft, launched approximately 100 miles off the coast of San Diego. During this exercise, a second wave of fighters was scrambled to investigate an unidentified target detected by the carrier's radar systems. Unlike the first responders, Underwood's aircraft was equipped with the ATFLIR camera system, a capability that proved crucial to the historical record of the encounter.

Underwood recorded the now-famous infrared footage on his FLIR camera, capturing what would become known as the "TicTac" UAP. He later explained that the name was partially inspired by a joke in the 1980s film Airplane! and referred to the distinctive, oval shape visible in the infrared image. Notably, Underwood did not observe the object with his own eyes; his focus was on tracking the target and ensuring the videotape was recording. As he later stated: "I was more concerned with tracking it, making sure that the videotape was on so that I could bring something back to the ship, so that the intel folks could dissect whatever it is that I captured."

Observations and Technical Analysis

What most impressed Underwood about the encounter was the object's erratic behavior—its inexplicable changes in altitude, airspeed, and aspect ratio were unlike anything he had encountered before in his military career. The object exhibited accelerations and maneuverability that appeared to violate known laws of physics. Underwood noted that aircraft have highly distinctive infrared signatures on FLIR systems, and this target was unmistakable as something non-conventional: "Whether it's a 737, another F/A-18, or an enemy aircraft, there are key features on that infrared pod that identify it as an aircraft." This object showed none of those signatures.

In interviews, Underwood indicated that his radar systems showed signs of interference, describing it as if the object was actively attempting to jam his weapons systems. He made a provocative observation: jamming a military aircraft would constitute an act of war. The encounter lasted approximately five minutes and was one of multiple incidents during the operation, later corroborated by pilot David Fravor and others aboard the Nimitz.

Public Disclosure and Testimony

The FLIR footage remained classified until December 2017, when it was leaked to the public by the Stars Academy of Arts & Science (later revealed to involve journalist Luis Elizondo). However, Underwood himself remained publicly silent for 15 years. He finally granted his first interview to New York Magazine in December 2019, explaining that he had hoped to avoid the stigma "attached to the 'little green men' crazies that are out there." His decision to come forward was significant, as it placed the camera operator himself on the record regarding one of the most credible UAP incidents ever recorded.

In 2021, documentary filmmaker Jeremy Corbell released the first on-camera video interview with Underwood, which marked a watershed moment in mainstream disclosure discourse. Underwood provided detailed technical explanations of what his equipment could and could not detect, adding scientific rigor to the public record. He has since continued to participate in disclosure efforts, including testimony before the U.S. Congress's National Security, Border, and Foreign Affairs Subcommittee in July 2024, where he discussed national security and aviation safety concerns related to UAP encounters.

Legacy and Significance

Underwood stands as one of the few eyewitnesses to a major UAP incident with both direct access to advanced military sensor data and the willingness to publicly discuss what he observed. His FLIR footage remains one of the most analyzed pieces of UAP evidence in existence, and his testimony lends credibility to the broader narrative of credible military encounters with anomalous phenomena. His eventual decision to break decades of silence has contributed significantly to the modern disclosure movement, providing a bridge between official military acknowledgment and public awareness of UAP phenomena.