Navy: 78 UAP Photo Documents Denied via FOIA
The U.S. Navy formally denied a FOIA request seeking 78 documents containing UAP imagery. Via TheBlackVault.com (FOIA), the refusal cited national security exemptions under Exemption (b)(1). The response arrived shortly before a Congressional hearing on the same subject.
Background
The Department of the Navy rejected a Freedom of Information Act request submitted by The Black Vault in 2022. The denial, issued on November 13, 2024, covered seventy-eight separate items described as documents containing photographic evidence of unidentified aerial phenomena.
Officials invoked Exemption (b)(1) of the FOIA statute, which protects classified materials pertaining to national defense. They specifically referenced Executive Order 13526 and the UAP Security Classification Guide #04-030 to justify withholding the records. The Navy argued release could compromise military operations, intelligence methods, and infrastructure vulnerabilities.
Notably, the formal response arrived less than sixty minutes before legislators convened a hearing addressing government transparency on UAP matters. This timing underscores ongoing tensions between classification authorities and demands for public disclosure.