---
category: Military Technology
date: 2004-11-14
location: Pacific Ocean, off the coast of San Diego
summary: The USS Nimitz (CVN-68) is a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier whose F/A-18
  pilots made the November 2004 'Tic Tac' encounters with unidentified aerial phenomena
  off San Diego - corroborated by USS Princeton radar data - considered the most technically
  documented UAP case in U.S. military history.
tags:
- Technology
- AircraftCarrier
- USNavy
- UAP
---

The [USS Nimitz](/concepts/uss-nimitz/) (CVN-68) is a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier of the United States Navy. It was the lead vessel of the [USS Nimitz](/concepts/uss-nimitz/) Carrier Strike Group that was involved in the 2004 [Tic Tac](/events/tic-tac/), one of the most well-documented and significant [UAP](/concepts/unidentified-anomalous-phenomena/) encounters in modern history.[^1]

### The 2004 Tic Tac Incident

In November 2004, while conducting pre-deployment training exercises off the coast of San Diego, the [USS Nimitz](/concepts/uss-nimitz/) Carrier Strike Group, which included the Aegis-class cruiser [USS Princeton](/places/uss-princeton/), detected a series of anomalous aerial vehicles. These objects were tracked on radar for nearly two weeks, performing maneuvers that defied the capabilities of any known aircraft.[^1]

On November 14, 2004, several F/A-18 Super Hornets from the Nimitz were dispatched to intercept one of these objects. The pilots, including Commander [Dave Fravor](/people/dave-fravor/) and Lieutenant Commander [Alex Dietrich](/people/alex-dietrich/), witnessed a white, oblong craft, nicknamed the "Tic Tac," performing impossible maneuvers over a disturbance in the ocean. The incident was captured on video by an ATFLIR pod, and the object was tracked on radar by the [USS Princeton](/places/uss-princeton/).[^1]

The encounter with the [Tic Tac](/events/tic-tac/) became a cornerstone case for the [Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program](/programs/advanced-aerospace-threat-identification-program/) (AATIP) and was instrumental in bringing the UAP issue to the attention of the public and Congress. The credibility of the witnesses, all highly trained naval aviators, and the high-fidelity data from multiple sensor platforms, made the incident impossible to dismiss.[^1]

### Key Vessels and Personnel

The key vessels involved in the incident were the [USS Nimitz](/concepts/uss-nimitz/) (CVN-68), the lead aircraft carrier of the strike group, and the [USS Princeton](/places/uss-princeton/) (CG-59), the Aegis-class guided missile cruiser that initially tracked the UAP. The key personnel involved were Commander [Dave Fravor](/people/dave-fravor/), the commanding officer of the Black Aces squadron and the lead pilot who engaged the Tic Tac; Lieutenant Commander [Alex Dietrich](/people/alex-dietrich/), the pilot of the second F/A-18 involved in the initial encounter; and Lieutenant Chad Underwood, the pilot who captured the ATFLIR video of the Tic Tac.[^1]

[^1]: Elizondo, Luis. *Imminent*. William Morrow, 2024.