On January 29, 1994, three American pilots reported to the U.S. Embassy in Tajikistan that they had encountered an unidentified flying object on January 27 while flying a Boeing 747 at 41,000 feet over Kazakhstan. The object appeared as a bright light of enormous intensity, maneuvered in circles and corkscrews, and made 90-degree turns at high speeds. The pilots watched it for about forty minutes before it disappeared over the horizon.
What did the pilots observe?
The three pilots, led by Tajik Air Chief Pilot Ed Rhodes (an American citizen), first saw the object as a bright light approaching from the east at great speed and higher altitude than their aircraft. They described the light as having a "bow wave" resembling a high-speed photo of a bullet in flight, with a small object giving off a much larger trailing wave of heat and light. The object performed circles, corkscrews, and rapid 90-degree turns. Rhodes took several photos with a pocket camera. About forty-five minutes after the initial sighting, as the sun was rising, the aircraft flew under contrails the object had left behind. Rhodes estimated the contrails at approximately 100,000 feet altitude.
Why did the pilots rule out conventional explanations?
When the embassy suggested the object might be a meteor, Rhodes and his crew stated they had seen thousands of "falling stars" and space debris during their years flying passenger aircraft for Pan Am. They insisted this sighting was nothing like a meteor. Rhodes expressed the opinion that, based on the object's speed and maneuverability, it was extraterrestrial and under intelligent control.
What was the embassy's assessment?
The embassy cable states: "We have no opinion and report the above for what it may be worth." The cable was sent to the State Department, Moscow embassy, and other U.S. diplomatic posts, as well as the CIA and Defense Intelligence Agency.
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UNCLASSIFIED
CSP-2025-00040 B-00002707028 "UNCLASSIFIED" 3/2/2026
UNCLASSIFIED
MRN: 94 DUSHANBE 259
Date/DTG: Jan 31 , 1994 / 310000Z Jan 94
From: AMEMBASSY DUSHANBE
Action: WASHDC, SECSTATE ROUTINE; MOSCOW, AMEMBASSY ROUTINE
E.O.: Unknown
TAGS: TSPA, EAIR, KZ, Tl, TAJIK AIR, (RHODES, ED)
Reference: n/a
Subject: TAJIK AIR PILOTS REPORT UNIDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECT
UNCLASSIFIED
PAGE 01 DUSHAN 00259 310310Z
ACTION OES-09
INFO LOG-00 AID-01 AMAD-01 OASY-00 DOTE-00 EAP-01 EB-01
EUR-01 FAAE-00 TEDE-00 INR-00 ADS-00 NSAE-00 SSO-00
SNIS-00 NISC-02 /016W
--1FA298 310310Z/38
R 310258Z JAN 94
FM AMEMBASSY DUSHANBE
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 2150
INFO AMEMBASSY MOSCOW
AMEMBASSY TASHKENT
AMEMBASSY ASHGABAT
AMEMBASSY ALMATY
AMEMBASSY BEIJING
AMEMBASSY BISHKEK
CIA WASHDC 0224
DIA WASHDC 0232
UNCLAS DUSHANBE 00259
DEPARTMENT FOR OES/S
E.O. 12356: N/A
TAGS: TSAP, EAIR, Tl
SUBJECT: TAJIK AIR PILOTS REPORT UNIDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECT
1. TAJIK AIR CHIEF PILOT, AMCIT ED RHODES, AND HIS TWO AMERICAN
PILOT COLLEAGUES REPORTED JANUARY 29 THAT, ON JANUARY 27, THEY
HAD ENCOUNTERED A UFO WHILE FLYING AT 41,000 FEET IN THEIR BOEING
UNCLASSIFIED
Released in Full
John Powers, Acting-Director
US Department of State
2/25/2026
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PAGE 02 DUSHAN 00259 310310Z
747SP AT LAT 45 NORTH AND LONG 55 EAST, OVER KAZAKHSTAN . THEY
FIRST ENCOUNTERED THE OBJECT AS A BRIGHT LIGHT OF ENORMOUS
INTENSITY, APPROACHING THEM FROM OVER THE HORIZON TO THE EAST AT
A GREAT RATE OF SPEED AND AT A MUCH HIGHER ALTITUDE THAN THEIR
OWN . THEY WATCHED THE OBJECT FOR SOME FORTY MINUTES AS IT
MANEUVERED IN CIRCLES, CORKSCREWS AND MADE 90-DEGREE TURNS AT
RAPID RATES OF SPEED AND UNDER VERY HIGH G'S. CAPTAIN RHODES
TOOK SEVERAL PHOTOS WITH A POCKET OLYMPUS CAMERA AND WILL SEND
COPIES TO THE EMBASSY AND THE TAJIKISTAN DESK (LOWRY TAYLOR) IN
THE DEPARTMENT, IF THEY COME OUT. AFTER SOME TIME, THE OBJECT
ADOPTED A HORIZONTAL HIGH-SPEED COURSE AND DISAPPEARED OVER THE
HORIZON.
2. AS IT WAS DARK WHEN THE OBJECT WAS OBSERVED, THE CREW WERE
UNABLE TO DISCERN ITS SHAPE. THEY DESCRIBED THE LIGHT IT EMITTED
AS HAVING A "BOW WAVE" AND AS RESEMBLING A HIGH-SPEED PHOTO OF A
BULLET IN FLIGHT, IN WHICH A VERY SMALL OBJECT GIVES OFF A MUCH
LARGER TRAILING WAVE OF HEAT/LIGHT. SOME FORTY-FIVE MINUTES
AFTER THE INITIAL SIGHTING, AS THE SUN WAS RISING, THE AIRCRAFT
FLEW UNDER THE CONTRAILS WHICH THE OBJECT HAD LEFT BEHIND. THE
PLANE WAS MAKING OVER 500 KNOTS. RHODES ESTIMATED THE ALTITUDE
OF THE CONTRAILS AT APPROXIMATELY 100,000 FEET, NOTING THAT THERE
IS TOO LITTLE AIR/MOISTURE AT THAT EXTREME ALTITUDE TO ENABLE THE
CREATION OF CONTRAILS BY THE PROPULSION MECHANISMS OF ORDINARY
AIRCRAFT WHICH MIGHT BE ABLE TO REACH THAT HEIGHT. THE PATHS OF
THE CONTRAILS REFLECTED THE MANEUVERS OF THE OBJECT, I.E.,
CIRCLES, CORKSCREWS, ETC.
3. TO OUR SUGGESTION THAT THE OBJECT MIGHT HAVE BEEN A METEOR
ENTERING AND SKIPPING OFF THE EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE, RHODES AND HIS
CREW WERE ADAMANT THAT THEY HAD SEEN THOUSANDS OF "FALLING STARS"
UNCLASSIFIED
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PAGE 03 DUSHAN 00259 310310Z
AND OTHER SPACE JUNK ENTERING THE ATMOSPHERE IN THEIR YEARS OF
FLYING PASSENGER AIRCRAFT FOR PANAM. THIS, THEY INSISTED, WAS
NOTHING LIKE A METEOR. ON THE BASIS OF ITS SPEED AND
MANEUVERABILITY, RHODES EXPRESSED THE OPINION, WHICH HIS CREW
SEEMED TO SUPPORT, THAT THE OBJECT WAS EXTRATERRESTRIAL AND UNDER
INTELLIGENT CONTROL.
4. COMMENT: WE HAVE NO OPINION AND REPORT THE ABOVE FOR WHAT IT
MAY BE WORTH.
ESCUDERO
UNCLASSIFIED
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Dissemination Rule : Archive Copy
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