David Scott Fravor

Commanding Officer, VFA-41 'Black Aces' Strike Fighter Squadron, 1987–2006

Case File

Background

David Fravor is a retired U.S. Navy Commander and decorated fighter pilot with over 18 years of service. On November 14, 2004, while commanding VFA-41 during a routine training exercise off the coast of southern California, he was vectored by USS Princeton to investigate an anomalous radar contact. What he and three other aviators observed - a 40-foot white tic-tac-shaped object with no wings, no exhaust, and instantaneous directional changes - became the most credible documented UAP encounter in modern history. The encounter was corroborated by multiple radar systems, two F/A-18 crews, and later confirmed by the Pentagon as authentic. Fravor testified before the House Oversight Committee on July 26, 2023, making him the first military aviator to testify under oath about a direct UAP encounter in a modern congressional hearing.

Service Period

1987–2006

Clearance

Top Secret (active during service)

Organizations

United States Navy · VFA-41 Black Aces (Strike Fighter Squadron 41) · USS Nimitz Carrier Strike Group

Roles

Commanding Officer, VFA-41 'Black Aces' Strike Fighter SquadronU.S. Navy Fighter Pilot (F/A-18F Super Hornet)Naval Aviator, 18+ years service

Education

  • B.S. - U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis (1987)
  • Naval Aviator flight training, Naval Air Station Meridian
  • Naval Fighter Weapons School (TOPGUN)

Career Background

  • Graduated U.S. Naval Academy 1987; commissioned as Ensign
  • Completed flight training; designated Naval Aviator
  • Multiple combat deployments in F/A-18s
  • Accumulated 6,000+ flight hours, 2,000+ carrier landings

Key Events

1987Graduates Naval Academy; begins Navy career
1994–2001Multiple combat deployments; becomes CO of VFA-41 Black Aces
Nov 2004The Tic Tac encounter - vectored by USS Princeton CIC to investigate radar anomaly; observes white 40-ft oblong object with no propulsion signature performing impossible maneuvers 80 miles southwest of San Diego; object detected intermittently on radar for weeks prior
Nov 2004A second F/A-18 crew (Lt. Chad Underwood) captures the FLIR1 footage of a different contact from the same exercise area - this becomes the famous 'Tic Tac video'
2006Retires from U.S. Navy after 18+ years; moves to private sector (later runs a catering business in Massachusetts)
Dec 2017New York Times publishes 'Glowing Auras and Black Money' - AATIP confirmed, Nimitz encounter reported publicly for the first time
Apr 2019Pentagon officially acknowledges FLIR1/Nimitz video as authentic Navy gun-camera footage
Jul 2023Testifies under oath before House Oversight Subcommittee on National Security alongside David Grusch and Ryan Graves - first time a military pilot testified under oath about a direct UAP encounter in a modern hearing
Dec 2023Congress releases written transcripts of closed-door classified briefings referencing the Nimitz encounter in program context