About O'Hare Airport UFO sighting
On November 7, 2006, about a dozen United Airlines employees and other witnesses reported seeing a silent, dark grey, disc-shaped object hovering near Gate C17 at Chicago O'Hare International Airport. Witnesses stated that the object rapidly shot upward through the clouds, leaving a temporary hole in the cloud deck. The Federal Aviation Administration did not investigate the incident, attributing it to a weather phenomenon, and air traffic controllers and radar recorded nothing unusual.
- Date
- 7 November 2006, about 4:15–4:35 p.m. CST
- Location
- Gate C17, Concourse C (United Airlines), Chicago O'Hare International Airport
- Witnesses
- About a dozen United Airlines employees, plus several people outside the airport
- Description
- Silent, dark grey, disc-shaped object, estimated 6–24 ft across, below a 1,900 ft cloud deck
- Made public
- 1 January 2007, by Jon Hilkevitch in the Chicago Tribune
- Official view
- FAA: probably a "weather phenomenon"; no investigation
- Investigated by
- NARCAP (Richard Haines), Technical Report 10, May 2007
- Testimony
- Shellenberger testimony, p. 164
- Topics
- Military encounters (topic)
- People
- Richard Haines
- Year
- 2007 in UFO history
- Timeline
- 2007 on the UAP Timeline
- Sources
- 14
The full story, section by section
The story of O'Hare Airport UFO sighting in 1 parts. Tap any part to read it in full.
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On the TimelineSee every 2007 event on the UAP Timeline →Read this part → Illustration drawn for this site — not a photograph.
Key people
The people at the centre of the story — witnesses, investigators, officials and sceptics:
- Richard HainesRichard F. Haines is an American perceptual psychologist and research scientist who worked at NASA's Ames Research Center from 1967 to 1988 on human factors in aviation and spaceflight. Alongside his…
- Michael ShellenbergerMichael Shellenberger is an American writer and political activist known for his ecomodernist views, books on various public issues, and unsuccessful runs for governor of California. In 2024, he publ…
- Leslie KeanLeslie Kean is an American investigative journalist and author known for her reporting on unidentified flying objects and her 2010 best-selling book on the subject. She co-authored a 2017 New York Ti…
Related cases & events
Events and sightings linked to O'Hare Airport UFO sighting:
📅 Year · 3 min read2007 in UFO historyThe text outlines UFO and UAP events from 2007, focusing on government programs, sightings, and propulsion research. Key developments include the initiation of the AAWSAP secret U.S.
🗓️ Event · 6 min readGeorge H.W. Bush and the Trudeau briefingPhysicist Eric W. Davis stated that former President George H. W.
🗓️ Event · 7 min read1960s disc hovercraft inquiryThe 1960s disc hovercraft inquiry refers to a January 2007 journal entry by ufologist Jacques Vallée, which records that physicists Hal Puthoff and Eric Davis were researching a disc-shaped jet hovercraft concept reportedly connected to Lockheed. The journals…Programs, organizations & documents
The official programs, groups and papers involved:
📄 Document · 13 min readFreedom of Information ActThe Freedom of Information Act is a United States law signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson on July 4, 1966, requiring federal executive agencies to release records upon request unless they fall under specific exemptions. The statute allows federal courts to …
🏢 Organization · 8 min readThe Black VaultThe Black Vault is an American online archive of US government documents founded in 1996 by John Greenewald Jr. It has grown into one of the largest free civilian collections of declassified records on the internet, holding millions of pages obtained through …
🏢 Organization · 6 min readCenter for UFO StudiesThe Center for UFO Studies is a privately funded American research organization founded in 1973 by astronomer J. Allen Hynek. It collects and analyzes global UFO reports and maintains a library and archive of UFO materials for researchers.
🏢 Organization · 10 min readNASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is an independent US government agency created in 1958 during the Space Race to lead the civil space programme and aeronautics and space research. Headquartered in Washington, D.C.
🏢 Organization · 5 min readNARCAPThe National Aviation Reporting Center on Anomalous Phenomena (NARCAP) is an American non-profit research group that documents and analyzes encounters between aircraft and unidentified aerial phenomena with a focus on aviation safety. It was established aroun…Related topics & places
Ideas, terms and places that come up in the story:
🗓️ O'Hare Airport UFO sighting on the UAP timeline
- The FAA calls a disc seen over O'Hare airport a weather phenomenon despite many reports. Read the article →
🛸 UFO sightings about O’Hare Airport UFO
Sightings that mention O'Hare Airport UFO sighting
More in the encyclopedia
Other articles that link to or mention O'Hare Airport UFO sighting:
- Norton AFB UFO files claimAn unconfirmed 2002 journal entry by researcher Jacques Vallée describes an account from an anonymous couple claiming they saw a large collection of UFO and USO files at Norton Air Force Base in Marc…
- Richard Haines's conviction about a secret project (1982)On April 6, 1982, NASA scientist Richard F. Haines visited Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Following this visit, Haines told Jacques Vallée that he was certain there was a secret government …
- Jack Pickett and the MacDill discsPublisher Jack Pickett claimed that in 1967 he saw disc-shaped aircraft and hundreds of saucer photographs at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida. He concluded that flying saucers were experimen…
- USS Russell drone swarm logsThe USS Russell drone swarm logs are U.S. Navy deck logs and related records from July 2019.
- Samuel Stratton and the SAC base overflightsThis article covers unidentified aircraft that intruded over nuclear weapons storage and missile sites at several Strategic Air Command bases along the U.S.–Canadian border in October and November 19…
- America West Flight 564 sightingOn May 25, 1995, the flight crew of America West Flight 564 sighted a large, dark, cigar-shaped object with flashing strobe lights near Bovina, Texas. An investigation by Walter N. Webb for UFO resea…
- Sunnyvale hangar saucer claimThe Sunnyvale hangar saucer claim is a second-hand story collected by crash-retrieval researcher Leonard Stringfield. According to the account, a Navy chief petty officer named Durward "Buddy" Hack c…
- Death of Amy EskridgeAmy Eskridge was a scientist from Huntsville, Alabama, who co-founded the Institute for Exotic Science to research anti-gravity and unconventional physics. She died in Huntsville on June 11, 2022, at…
- Martins–Pinheiro inertia papersBetween 2006 and 2008, physicists Alexandre A. Martins and Mario J. Pinheiro published two theoretical papers arguing that inertia arises from a charged particle's interaction with its own vector pot…
- DARPA zero-point energy test (2007)In May 2007, astrophysicist Bernard Haisch told Jacques Vallée about a DARPA-connected experiment at the University of Colorado to extract zero-point energy, which had yielded negative results. Altho…
- Inman recording in DreamlandIn 1988, researcher Bob Oechsler recorded a telephone conversation with retired Admiral Bobby Ray Inman, which later gained a wider audience through the 2007 documentary Dreamland. Although Oechsler …
Questions & answers
What is O'Hare Airport UFO sighting?
O'Hare Airport UFO sighting: On November 7, 2006, about a dozen United Airlines employees and other witnesses reported seeing a silent, dark grey, disc-shaped object hovering near Gate C17 at Chicago O'Hare International Airport. Witnesses stated that the object rapidly shot upward through the clouds, leaving a temporary hole in the cloud deck. The Federal Aviation Administration did not investigate the incident, attributing it to a weather phenomenon, and air traffic controllers and radar recorded nothing unusual. Read: O'Hare Airport UFO sighting →
Who is Richard Haines?
Richard Haines: Richard F. Haines is an American perceptual psychologist and research scientist who worked at NASA's Ames Research Center from 1967 to 1988 on human factors in aviation and spaceflight. Alongside his career, he became a prominent collector of pilot reports on unidentified aerial phenomena and helped found the National Aviation Reporting Center on Anomalous Phenomena in 1999 or 2000 to treat these events as aviation safety issues. Read: Richard Haines →
Who is Michael Shellenberger?
Michael Shellenberger is an American writer and political activist known for his ecomodernist views, books on various public issues, and unsuccessful runs for governor of California. In 2024, he published a whistleblower's report about an alleged secret UAP program called Immaculate Constellation and testified about it at a House Oversight hearing. Read: Michael Shellenberger →
Who is Leslie Kean?
Leslie Kean is an American investigative journalist and author known for her reporting on unidentified flying objects and her 2010 best-selling book on the subject. She co-authored a 2017 New York Times story that revealed the Pentagon's secret Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program. Admirers credit her reporting with helping remove the stigma from the subject, while critics argue she has lent respectability to unverified claims. Read: Leslie Kean →
What is 2007 in UFO history?
2007 in UFO history: The text outlines UFO and UAP events from 2007, focusing on government programs, sightings, and propulsion research. Key developments include the initiation of the AAWSAP secret U.S. Read: 2007 in UFO history →
What was George H.W. Bush and the Trudeau briefing?
George H.W. Bush and the Trudeau briefing: Physicist Eric W. Davis stated that former President George H. W. Read: George H.W. Bush and the Trudeau briefing →
What is National UFO Reporting Center?
National UFO Reporting Center: The National UFO Reporting Center is a non-profit corporation founded in 1974 that collects and catalogs public reports of UFO sightings. Operating in Washington State, it runs a 24-hour hotline and an online reporting form, and its database serves as a widely cited source of sighting data. The organization has been directed by Peter Davenport since 1994 and relocated in 2006 to a former Atlas nuclear missile site in eastern Washington. Read: National UFO Reporting Center →
What is Freedom of Information Act?
Freedom of Information Act: The Freedom of Information Act is a United States law signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson on July 4, 1966, requiring federal executive agencies to release records upon request unless they fall under specific exemptions. The statute allows federal courts to order the release of improperly withheld documents and has been repeatedly amended by Congress and altered by various executive orders over the years. Read: Freedom of Information Act →
What is Military encounters (topic)?
Military encounters (topic): This overview covers 72 military encounters with unidentified objects reported by pilots, radar operators, and service members between 1947 and 2022. Key incidents include World War II "foo fighters," the 2004 USS Nimitz "Tic Tac" encounter off southern California, and Navy pilot videos made public in 2017. While these sightings often carried weight in the UFO debate, they frequently turned out to have ordinary explanations or lacked a single definitive cause. Read: Military encounters (topic) →