On September 17, 2024, a U.S. Air Force pilot flying a Beechcraft 350 C over California experienced a startling close encounter with an unidentified flying object (UFO), described as a “football-sized,” dark gray, cylindrical object that passed just 10 feet beneath his aircraft’s wing.
The incident, which occurred at 20,000 feet in controlled airspace near Los Angeles, was captured in leaked audio of the pilot’s conversation with air traffic control, sparking intrigue and speculation about unexplained aerial phenomena (UAP).
Mainstream news outlets, including the New York Post, Daily Mail, and NewsNation, have reported on this event, shedding light on a sighting that echoes other mysterious encounters documented by military personnel.
The pilot, identified only by the call sign “Troy 21,” was conducting a classified mission linked to the Department of Homeland Security when the object appeared at approximately 2:30 p.m. on a clear afternoon.
According to the New York Post, Troy 21 radioed Los Angeles air traffic control, saying, “This is going to sound weird, but I just had something pass underneath my wing.
Maybe a football-sized object right under my wing.” He further described it as “a dark gray, cylindrical object” that came within a mere 10 feet of his right wing, an unnervingly close distance at such an altitude.
The Beechcraft 350 C, a twin-engine aircraft often used for surveillance missions, was equipped with sophisticated radar and camera systems, which the pilot immediately directed his sensor operator to use in an attempt to track the object.
Roughly one minute after the initial sighting, Troy 21 reported detecting an object on the jet’s air-to-air system, and about 40 seconds later, he noted it appeared on radar approximately 60 miles away.
As reported by NewsNation, if this was the same object, it would have needed to travel at speeds exceeding Mach 2—twice the speed of sound—to cover that distance in such a short time.
This remarkable velocity has led experts to question whether the object could have been a conventional drone or aircraft.
Ben Hansen, a former FBI agent and host of Discovery+’s UFO Witness, told NewsNation that the speed and altitude made a drone explanation unlikely, noting, “It would have exceeded Mach 2 in two minutes.”
Hansen emphasized the significance of the encounter occurring in controlled airspace with no prior notification of other air traffic.
The leaked audio, first obtained by NewsNation’s “Banfield” program, also captured a subsequent exchange with a different air traffic controller who acknowledged the sighting but downplayed its immediate concern.
“There was a UFO reported here, but that’s all taken care of now,” the controller said, adding, “So you don’t have to worry about it… it’s gone.”
This dismissive response has fueled speculation about whether authorities quickly identified the object or simply chose to move on without further explanation.
According to the Daily Mail, one of the air traffic controllers later reported the incident to the National UFO Reporting Center, a recognized channel for pilots to document such sightings, as acknowledged by the Federal Aviation Administration.
The aircraft involved, a Beechcraft 350 C, had been modified with advanced radar systems typically used to monitor drug trafficking—an indication that Troy 21’s mission may have been part of a Homeland Security operation to surveil illegal activity, per the Mirror.
The sighting’s proximity to a military operations area, though not within restricted airspace, added to the mystery, as no known aircraft or drones were reported in the vicinity at the time.
Hansen pointed out to NewsNation that any commercial drone operating at that altitude would have required prior notification, deepening the enigma surrounding the object’s origin.
This incident bears similarities to other reported UAP encounters by military personnel.
The New York Post noted parallels with a sighting by former NASA astronaut Leroy Chiao, who observed two cylindrical, metallic orbs while flying his plane over Texas in the summer of 2024.
Chiao described the objects as rushing toward him, reminiscent of a Pentagon-documented UFO sighting in Iraq.
Meanwhile, the Daily Mail contextualized the event within a broader wave of UAP reports, citing the Pentagon’s November 2023 review, which documented hundreds of sightings—many identified as balloons, birds, or satellites, but some defying easy explanation.
The encounter comes amid heightened public and governmental interest in UAPs.
The Mirror reported that the Pentagon’s latest UFO report, while finding no evidence of extraterrestrial origins, reflects efforts to address potential national security and air safety threats posed by such phenomena.
This push for transparency was underscored by a House hearing on UAPs held just a day before the report’s release, where lawmakers called for greater openness about these incidents.
As of now, the object spotted by Troy 21 remains unidentified. Was it a cutting-edge drone, a secret military craft, or something entirely unknown?
Mainstream sources offer no definitive answer, but the leaked audio has reignited debates about what lurks in America’s skies.
For now, the close encounter of September 17, 2024, stands as another compelling chapter in the ongoing mystery of unidentified aerial phenomena.
