TheBlackVault: JAL 1628 FAA documents released via FOIA
After a 17-year search, TheBlackVault obtained FAA documents related to the 1986 JAL 1628 incident through FOIA requests. The records contradicted earlier government claims that all materials had been destroyed in 2001. This release provided official confirmation of the investigation into the cargo flight's encounter with unidentified objects over Alaska.
Background
Following persistent Freedom of Information Act requests initiated in 2001, TheBlackVault successfully acquired previously suppressed Federal Aviation Administration records regarding the Japan Air Lines flight 1628 incident. The documentation became available despite earlier assertions from agency representatives that all pertinent files had been scheduled for destruction seventeen years prior.
The released materials contained investigative correspondence, radar data discussions, and internal communications validating the crew's extraordinary reports from November 1986. These papers confirmed that aviation authorities had treated the encounter seriously, coordinating with military and civilian aircrews during the event.
This disclosure represented a significant victory for government transparency regarding unidentified aerial phenomena, demonstrating that crucial evidence sometimes survives despite official declarations of destruction. The records are now publicly accessible through TheBlackVault's digital archive.