A private jet pilot flying over Rhode Island was left baffled after spotting what appeared to be a mysterious silver cylindrical object hovering near the aircraft’s wing tip — a puzzling encounter that prompted air traffic controllers to joke about “aliens.”
The unusual sighting occurred as the pilot was navigating a Piper PA-32RT-300T Turbo Lance II at approximately 3,500 feet. In recordings that have recently resurfaced and gained attention, the clearly perplexed pilot can be heard reporting the strange object to air traffic control at Rhode Island T.F. Green International Airport.
“It appears to be standing still,” the pilot reported in the exchange. “Looks like a strange, small object that we just floated by. A small silver canister. Do you know what that could be?”
Hovering Mystery
What makes the encounter particularly strange is the object’s reported behavior. According to the pilot, the unidentified object seemed to defy conventional physics, appearing stationary in mid-air before apparently flying alongside the aircraft and then vanishing.
“I saw nothing attached to it,” the pilot continued in his report. “It was sort of hovering there. It was astonishing. I don’t know what it was.”
The recording, which was shared on YouTube in October by the VASAviation channel, captures the bewilderment of both the pilot and ground personnel. “Creepy,” one member of the ground team can be heard remarking, while an air traffic controller adds with a touch of humor: “Good luck with the aliens.”
The mysterious sighting didn’t go unnoticed by other pilots in the vicinity. Another aviator joined the radio conversation with a wry comment that has since become a highlight of the recording: “I want to believe him.”
Official Response
Could this be another in a growing list of unexplained aerial phenomena being reported by experienced pilots? The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has established protocols for exactly these types of incidents.
“The FAA documents UAP sightings whenever a pilot reports one to an air traffic control facility,” the agency stated to Fox News Digital. “If supporting information such as radar data corroborates the report, the FAA shares it with the UAP Task Force.”
The incident highlights the growing seriousness with which unidentified aerial phenomena are being treated by government agencies. Gone are the days when such reports might be dismissed outright or buried in bureaucratic paperwork.
“Multiple U.S. government agencies have individual programs or processes to study and document UAP. However, the agencies also work collaboratively on the topic,” the FAA added in their statement.
The Rhode Island incident joins a growing catalog of unexplained aerial encounters reported by pilots across the country. What sets this particular case apart is the object’s reported proximity to the aircraft and its unusual hovering behavior at high altitude.
For now, the silver cylindrical object remains unidentified — just another mysterious entry in the increasingly public conversation about what exactly pilots are seeing in our skies.
