Documented case · Rafael Hernandez Airport area, Aguadilla, Puerto Rico
Aguadilla infrared recording
26 April 2013 · Details below are limited to the linked public record. Source conclusions are attributed and do not establish an extraordinary cause.
- Incident date
- 26 April 2013
- Place in source
- Rafael Hernandez Airport area, Aguadilla, Puerto Rico
- Location precision
- AARO places the recording over the airport and surrounding area. The point is an area locator; the public synopsis does not publish an exact object coordinate.
Documented record
An infrared sensor aboard a U.S. Customs and Border Protection aircraft recorded two objects. The video appeared to show a split and movement into and out of the water; AARO’s reconstruction instead found two nearby objects traveling in a straight line at wind speed, without entering the water.
Source assessment
AARO assessed with high confidence that the objects showed no anomalous speeds or flight behavior, and with moderate confidence that they were a pair of sky lanterns.
Details stated in the record
- Recorder
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection De Havilland Canada 8 aircraft
- Sensor
- Infrared video
- Aircraft path
- The aircraft arced around the airport, gained about 1,725 feet, and lost sensor contact at 3,600 feet.
- Object altitude
- Reported: not available; AARO assessed about 656 feet.
- Object speed
- Reported: not available; AARO assessed about 8 mph.
- Object shape
- Reported and assessed shape: not available in the case synopsis.
- Reporter and data type
- Publicly available media originally recorded by CBP; infrared data.
- AARO reconstruction
- Two objects traveled in a straight line at wind speed; AARO found no water entry.
- AARO confidence
- High confidence: no anomalous performance. Moderate confidence: a pair of sky lanterns.
Not available in the cited public record
- The exact position of the objects is not published as a map coordinate.
- AARO did not conclusively identify the objects; its sky-lantern attribution is stated at moderate confidence.
Source references
- Puerto Rico UAP case resolution (opens in a new tab)
AARO · U.S. Department of Defense