Mid-Air Close Call With Unknown missile shaped Object — FAA & FBI Investigate

American Airlines Flight 2292 was cruising at about 36,000 feet on February 21, 2021, when its crew reported a fast-moving object passing above the Airbus A320. The flight was traveling from Cincinnati toward Phoenix over northeastern New Mexico.

The pilots immediately asked air traffic control whether there were any known targets in the area. The question was captured in ATC audio that was later authenticated and associated with Flight 2292. The FBI opened a review of the report, while the FAA examined whether its systems had detected other traffic in the area.

The crews description was unusually specific. One pilot described a long cylindrical object that almost looked like a cruise missile and said it moved extremely fast over the top of the aircraft. The description identifies what the crew saw; it does not identify the object itself.

The FAA later released records through a FOIA process. The Black Vault reported that the FAA initially declined to confirm or deny records, then later released several audio files associated with the event. Separate FBI records also documented the report and the agencys awareness of the incident.

The event also did not develop into a reported loss of control or collision. The aircraft continued its flight, while the unusual observation became the subject of later records requests and investigation.

The case attracted renewed attention because records emerged gradually. FAA audio files were released after the initial incident, while later FOIA work produced additional FBI material. The documentation therefore grew over time without producing a confirmed identity for the object.

The final public picture remains narrow but clear: an A320 crew reported a fast cylindrical object over northeastern New Mexico, ATC had no confirmed identification for it, and federal agencies examined the report. The object itself remains unidentified in the released material.

The later FOIA releases added documentation rather than a final answer. FAA audio files were released, and FBI records were eventually obtained, but the objects identity remained unresolved.

The FBIs involvement did not produce a public determination that the object was a weapon or military aircraft. The released records document the report and the subsequent federal interest, while leaving the object unidentified.

The response from ATC was straightforward: the pilots asked whether there were any targets in the area. The question was important because the crew had encountered something that did not correspond to traffic they recognized. The available federal records do not provide a confirmed identification.

The crews wording was later preserved in both ATC material and federal records. The FBI record describes the aircraft as an Airbus A320 and places the event at 36,000 feet and 400 knots over the remote northwest corner of New Mexico. The FBI record preserves the crews description as long cylindrical object that almost looked like a cruise missile.

Accident facts

Chronology of the event

Sources