Hello and welcome to the program UFO Warning.
In this episode we're talking about Jetpack Man Files
released. That's correct.
Jetpack Man Files released. Now you probably remember this
case happened back in, I suppose, mid to late 2020.
There were multiple cases what pilots were describing as a man
wearing a jetpack flying right there in the landing zone around
LAX airport. Really crazy stuff.
We did a few podcast on it. There was a lot of interest in
it. None of this stuff makes any
sense. But thanks to John Greenwald
over there at the Black Vol. I follow him on Twitter.
I highly recommend you follow John over there, John Greenwald.
And he has just come out with this a pretty thorough article
talking about this. He got the files finally, here
we are. What, five years later or
something released on the jetpack man.
Now why this stuff would take so long to release just kind of
goes to show you the, the, the blanket abuse of, of FOIA as far
as I'm concerned, things being classified that should never be
classified, things that should be released to the public
immediately. And This is why we don't need
another government agency, in my opinion, to locate and correlate
these UFO reports. We just need more people to use
newfork.org. They do a good job over there of
getting this stuff directly to the public.
We can all look at it now. The title of John's article is
FBI releases LAF Jetpack, quote UN quote case files pilot
interview contradicts jetpack description.
So that should give you a little bit of a preview.
What's happening here? You know, you read one thing in
the newspaper articles and then when you go right to the primary
source, the pilot, you find out that maybe what they saw is not
actually quite exactly what the government told us they saw.
So why are they trying to control the narrative at that
early of a stage in these UFO sightings, what they're calling
Jetpack Man, it says. The FBI has released a detailed
set of investigative files on the so-called Jetpack Man
sightings near Los Angeles International Airport, LAX.
The release on October 1st, 2025 followed a Freedom of
Information Act, a FOIA request by the Black Vault, first filed
August 3rd, 2021. So here we are, four years to
get this stuff. It's ridiculous.
And resubmitted November 27th, 2021 after an initial denial.
Now what would there possibly be to deny this?
There was an investigation of this UFO, what they're calling
Jetpack Man over LAX International Airport.
John's trying to get the information on it and find out
what was said. Oh, no, can't have that.
Then he has to go and refile, and then four years later, over
four years later, actually gets the information that he's
looking for. Well, some of it, I suppose.
The Bureau originally withheld all the records under the FOIA
exemption, BX7X B, XB7A for ongoing investigations, but
reversed this position with the second request after nearly four
years. Yeah, they're, boy, they're
always have an ongoing investigation, don't they?
Sources and methods, Boy, I mean absolutely the wrong people to
put in charge something like this.
When the sightings first made headlines in 2020 and 2021, they
were widely portrayed as encounters with a person flying
a jetpack near a commercial aircraft.
Yet the FBI's file show that at least one pilot later walked
back that description. In one case, the China Airlines
captain who initially thought he saw jetpack told investigators
on reflection that he did not believe it resembled the shape
and size of a human and noted there were no propellers or Jet
Propulsion devices attached to the object.
Well, I can totally understand that.
I mean, you're a pilot. You're trying to land this
airplane or take off. I mean, you're really engaged
with what you're doing. Look out the window and you see
this thing hovering outside your window.
Normalcy bias alone might be enough to make you think, well,
it's got to be a guy in a jet jetpack.
But really, when you when you start to think about this and
really consider all the different things, go into it,
pretty unlikely that could even be a possibility.
It says the records released mark the first interim
disclosure for this case, which remains open, indicating that
additional material may still be forthcoming.
For this release, 250 pages were reviewed.
The only 130 were released. It is unclear what is in the 120
pages completely withheld. I mean, come on, what are these
guys doing all day? Really?
It's just a sad reflection on our society.
Goes on down and says. The FBI's first reference to the
case appears in an internal summary of the August 30th, 2020
incident, when pilots of American Airlines Flight 1997
reported seeing a person with a jetpack flying approximately 30
yards to the left of them as they descended to land at LAX at
about 3000 feet. According to the records.
Approximately 1 minute later, JetBlue Flight 23 was
approaching LAX and a pilot possibly saw the same person
flying with the jetpack. So then they're making some
assumptions here. The bureau's records show the
FBI's Los Angeles Residence agency open a file 164B-LA Dash
3313857 on September 1st, 2020 to investigate the sightings.
October 2020 Pilot describes object in detail.
So here we have another Pilot eyewitness account a year later
on October 14th, 2020. So here we have.
I mean, this stuff's been going on for a long time.
A China Airlines captain flying from Taipei to Los Angeles told
FBI agents he saw an object at 6000 to 6500 feet over Colville
City during descent. The pilot described it as moving
horizontally and only visible for two seconds.
Now that's about what, a mile and a quarter up quite a ways up
in the air. To think that somebody could be
up there with a jetpack doesn't seem likely to me.
I mean why not just called a drone?
He called out the sighting to the Co pilots.
The object was approximately 100 to 200 meters away from the left
wing tip when it went past the plane couple 100 yards away.
Now come on man, this this plane is going several 100 mile an
hour. Wouldn't you think that the wash
from the air turbulence would be enough just to knock that guy
right out of the right out of his orbit?
If that was a person in a jetpack?
Didn't none of this seems reasonable to me.
At first, the October 14th, 2020 sighting was linked to the idea
of a jetpack or fly suit. But after an FBI interview, the
China Airlines captain made a crucial clarification.
He told investigators that on reflection quote, he did not
believe it resembled the shape and size of a human.
He added that there were no propellers or Jet Propulsion
devices attached to the object. Well, kind of hard to have a
jetpack without a jet. This reversal is noteworthy.
The incident was widely described in headlines as a
another jetpack man encounter that the pilot himself cast
doubt on that interpretation. If the object did not look like
a human and carried no visible proportion system, at least open
the possibility that it was not a balloon, not a drone, and not
a man of flight gear. The FBI documents stopped short
of offering an alternative explanation, but the pilot's
testimony underscores the unresolved nature of what was
seen that night. Well, that's kind of why we call
them UF OS unidentified flying objects then.
It's just under social media tips and public lease.
The files show that tips poured in through the FB is National
Threat Operations Center NTOC. On one December 2020, E tip
accused a Los Angeles graffiti tagger of being the jetpack
flyer, alleging he had posted about this on social media
knowing the FBI was looking into this and that he clearly has no
remorse and finds it funny that he has got away with it so far.
Now come on. We've talked about how rare
these jetpacks are, how much they cost, how much training it
takes to fly them. Pretty hard for me to.
I believe that some graffiti vandal out there has the
resources, the time and inclination to go hire out a
jetpack, fly it up into the airspace right there at LAX
where you might quite likely be knocked to the ground by the
wake of one of these giant passenger airships.
I mean, come on. Doesn't make any sense, does it?
The tipster urged the FBI to find out this his real name, his
cell phone IG IG use location and charge him appropriately
because he's scaring people by being able to operate a jetpack.
No evidence in the release files confirm that lead produced
results. Well, of course not, because the
whole thing's imaginary if you ask me.
May 2021. Cessna Pilot reports jetpack
like figure near Van Nuys in kind of same general
neighborhood. On May 9th, 2021, a student
pilot and a Cessna 172 with an instructor at Van Nuys Airport
reported seeing what appeared to be a person on a jetpack for
about 6 seconds at 2400 feet. Still up there quite a ways, you
know, almost a half a mile in altitude, 400 to 500 feet from
the plane. Now who in their right mind
would fly that close to an airplane?
If you're wearing a jetpack, could could you imagine, I mean
that, that a prop propeller from that plane hits you and guess
what, you're not with us any longer.
The person was just same thing if you get too close to that
airplane and 1 of this giant jet engine sucks you in.
We've all heard those horror stories.
So come on, let's let's have a little bit of common sense about
this. The person was going the
opposite direction from the lane, standing up straight,
wearing black and red clothing. The pilot compared the sighting
to a prior photo and video and said it was exactly the same in
shape and build, but with different colors.
OK July 2021 cargo pilot describes reddish object The
July 28th, 2021 incident involved a Calida Air cargo
flight. On final approach to LAX, the
captain told the FBI he saw an unidentified object at 5000
feet. Once again, you're up there
about a Mile High, pretty high for a jetpack.
Not even sure they can actually go that high.
Initially thinking it was a guy with a jetpack, but later noting
it was larger than a balloon and smaller than a helicopter or
small airplane. They've got an excerpt here from
the report. It says Blank saw the object for
seven or 8 seconds before it was behind their position.
The first couple of seconds he tried to figure out if the
object posed a danger of colliding with the aircraft.
Once he determined it was not about to hit the plane, he tried
to figure out what it was. The object appeared to be
reddish and taller and five to seven feet tall, similar to the
height of a person. Blank sent a photo and video of
an object for a comparison enclosed with this report.
Said the photo was similar in size and shape, but the color
was wrong. The color of the object in the
photo was black and white. Did not believe the color
difference could be explained by the sun reflecting off the
object. I have a little bit of a problem
with these guys sending the picture and saying well did it
look like this? I mean, why not have this guy
sit down with a police sketch artist and have him sketch out
what he saw? I mean, given him something to
look at, could, I think bias their memory of what they
actually, you know, we're trying to recall goes on.
It says he described the object as reddish in collar and five to
seven feet tall, similar in the height of a person.
And he observed it for 7 to 8 seconds, first trying to
determine if it posed a collision risk before attempting
to identify. He was later sent a photo and
video of similar object that said that the collar was wrong.
The comparison image showed black and white, not red.
Wow. And then goes on down here.
It says in November 2021, an individual reported seeing a man
at San Pedro's Lookout Point Park flying a fast advanced
looking drone that landed on his arm like a hawk and speculated
it could be connected to the jetpack sightings.
That sounds pretty weird. Never seen a drone before that
landed on someone's arm like a hawk I suppose.
At no definitive conclusion in FBI files.
The released records contain no definitive identification of the
object or person. Instead, they show a mix of
pilot testimony, public tips, and FBI investigative activity,
and including interviews with flight instructors, pilots, and
possibly industry contacts. One record shows agents received
at least one CD containing video recording evidence in December
2020, but the contents were not included in the foyer release.
Well, I wonder why not? The Fbis decision to initially
withhold the records for years under exemption signals how
seriously the Bureau took their reports and their investigation
that the eventual release leaves the mystery unresolved.
Pilots repeatedly described objects that appeared humanoid
at altitudes and distances difficult for current consumer
jet packs, and the files reveal the Bureau explored but did not
prove links to drones or social media personalities.
What the files do show for the first time in an official
release is how pilots, airline crews and tipsters perceive the
incidents and how the FBI documented them in his case
file. The records also confirm the
federal authorities obtained A at least some video evidence but
have not released it publicly. Future releases will be
highlighted on the Black Vault and linked below when available.
And then he's got the PDF file here of of the files that he
got. Yeah.
What a great job by John Greenwald.
Really appreciate that. Staying on top of this story
here five years later. Just really wild stuff.
I want to go take a look at this next article.
I want to finish up with this article here from
interestingengineering.com. interestingengineering.com
written by Amaya Palacia, Palacia PLPALEJI.
It says articles written four years ago so and then updated
July 24th, 2024. So I don't know if this is just
like a regular update they do on this thing or what.
But anyway, it says Jetpack man spotted flying again.
Is he becoming a regular in LAX? Question mark.
The jetpack man is back at 5000 feet and pilots on the are on
the lookout and somehow cool with it.
I don't know about that. They're mean.
They're calling it in reporting. And I'm not sure how cool they
are with it. It seems like months of
investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and
Federal Aviation Authority have yielded nothing.
And a jetpack man who was first reported in September last year
appears again. ABC Seven reported the sightings
have been so common pilots seemed unperturbed by the
warnings coming from air traffic control.
Wow, a little complacency, you know.
Why would you be unconcerned about these things when they're
right there in your landing and take off zone?
Even small birds flying near runways can spell disaster for
planes attempting to land and take off.
Imagine how worried one would be if a man with a jetpack was
allowed to fly freely around airports.
That's exactly what happened in September 2020 when American
Airlines Flight 1997 reported a guy in the jetpack flying at
3000 feet. But then another incident
occurred just over a month later.
This time, the jetpack man made some progress.
He was spotted soaring at 6000 feet.
Now, these are ridiculously high altitudes for a jetpack.
I mean, come on. The FAA swung into action while
also seeking the FBI's help to find out what it was, what was
happening. Later in December, the man was
captured on video near California for the first time.
Now, here you go. They're making a leap.
They're saying, well, this was a man captured on video.
We don't know that, OK? Nobody has ever identified this
thing. And now he's back in Los Angeles
again. So here a little bit you have a
little bit of a normalcy bias creep in there.
The jetpack's man was spotted at about 5000 feet and was reported
to air traffic control. As the ATC staff contacted other
aircraft in the vicinity to warn them.
The pilots casually reported back whether they saw a man
flying with a jetpack or not. Interestingly, most pilots
naturally seem to refer to him as Iron Man, which signals the
likelihood that the previous incidents have been heavily
discussed on piloting circles and dismissed off as non
hazardous. This is the danger of a of a of
this normalcy bias, people just not paying attention to these
things and creating a situation where a really catastrophic
situation could occur. Just check the ATC
communications with pilots here, it says.
We'll play it in just a second. Given the limited capabilities
of jetpack technology, investigation agencies have
suggested that it might be a drone that is designed to look
like a man in a jetpack or else we really have a Tony Stark in
our midst who has finally mastered the technology that why
in the world would they want to do this over at airport, at
International Airport, landing and take off zone makes no
sense. Let's go ahead and listen to
this brief transmission of these pilots discussing this real
quick. Close encounter for an American
Airlines jet about to land at LAX last night.
The pilot of that American Airlines plane called air
traffic control to report a man wearing a jetpack flying near
his plane. The Tower Tapes just released.
A tower. American, 1997.
We just passed the guy in a jetpack.
American 1997. OK, thank you.
What they up here? Left side or right side?
Off the left side of maybe 303 hundred yards or so.
About an hour. That jet was flying at an
altitude of 3000 feet at the time of this encounter.
The tower then warned other approaching flights to be on the
lookout for a man with a jet pack.
That incident under investigation.
Well, there you have it, right there from the horse's mouth as
they say that the air, the airline pilot coming in,
reporting that 300 yards off to our left or whatever it was,
claims it was a man of jetpack. Like I said, normalcy bias, who
knows what these things were and never have been identified.
Nobody's ever come forward. The FBI investigated supposedly
for what, four or five years? Nothing substantial has ever
come up to even suggest who it might have been or where the
jetpacks may have came from. I mean, it's not like you're
just going out there and renting an Uber or something.
How many jetpacks could there possibly be even available to
use out there? Got to be a pretty small circle.
So if this was actually literally a man in a jetpack,
you would have thought that something would have turned up
by now with these repeated incursions into LAX airspace.
And another thing that I just seem to really upsets me a
little bit is this is this apathy toward what's going on
here. You have this unauthorized
unidentified flying object, what they call a jetpack in the
airspace over LAX, possibly interfering with air travel,
flying in and around these huge airplanes, traveling at
extremely fast rates to speed. Anything could happen.
Something terrible could happen, putting the lives of people at
risk. And even the pilots themselves
just seem to be a little bit unconcerned about it.
I don't get it. I think it's just the societal
pressure from so many decades. Well, if you reported UFO, you
must be a conspiracy theorist or you must be a little bit wacky
and to the point where the people we depend upon to look
out for our safety. These airplane pilots just don't
want to be bothered, don't want to risk being the person by
reporting a really dangerous situation instead of just saying
we don't know what this thing is, but it shouldn't be here and
then. Having the FBI get out there and
really try to solve this, it's almost like it's put on a shelf
somewhere and they just kind of chalk it up to this little thing
of it's a man of jetpack. We have some random stranger out
there flying around its jetpacks, kind of like what we
heard down there in Peru, what earlier this year when we have
these strange things show up flying around.
And we're supposed to believe that illegal gold miners from
Columbia or Brazil or something that are just there to steal the
gold from the local population. And they they've dragged in all
these jetpacks and fuel and whatnot, you know, hundreds of
miles into the, into the deep jungle.
Makes no sense. I don't know if we'll ever get
to the point where people can just be satisfied with saying we
don't know what they are. They are definitely not showing
any respect for our airspace. But it would sure be nice to be
aware of them and try to take evasive actions if necessary.
I hope you've enjoyed the program.
If you have, don't forget to like, follow, subscribe.
Doesn't cost a dime. Until next time.
This is UFO warning over now.