FAA Notice N 7110.800 Orders Controllers to Report UAP Activ

FAA Notice N 7110.800 Orders Controllers to Report UAP Activity

The FAA has replaced 'UFO' with 'UAP' in its air traffic control directives and now requires controllers to notify supervisors and the Domestic Events Network of any reported or observed unidentified anomalous phenomena.

Published

October 4, 2026

Declassified

Date not listed

Source agency

The Black Vault (FOIA archive)

faauapfoianotice7110800orderscontrollers

FAA Replaces UFO Term With UAP Reporting Mandate

FAA Notice Organization personnel and anyone using ATO directives, and it is distributed electronically through the FAA's air traffic publications channels. It is initiated by AJR-2 and signed by Jon Stowe, Director (A), Policy, AJV-P, Air Traffic Organization. The directive carries a cancellation date of January 22, 2026, roughly three months after it takes effect — a detail the source document does not explain.

S. airspace in real time.

Paragraph 9-8-1 Amendment Defines Controller Notification Duty

The operative language Two distinct trigger categories are embedded in that phrasing. "Reported" activity covers secondhand information — a pilot's radio call, for instance — while "observed" activity covers what air traffic personnel themselves see or detect. The dual construction means the duty attaches whether the information originates inside the controller's own scope or arrives from an aircraft under control.

The notice also pairs the term UAP with the broader phrase "unexplained phenomena," a formulation that does not appear in the…

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Based on the official release at https://www.theblackvault.com/documentarchive/faa-updates-controller-manual-to-reflect-new-uap-reporting-policy/

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