Cmdr. David Fravor & Jeremy Corbell

Who is Cmdr. David Fravor & Jeremy Corbell?

Commander David Fravor is a retired US Navy pilot, who has a close encounter in 2004 with the so-called Tic Tac UFO, and Jeremy Corbell is a contemporary artist and documentary filmmaker.

Topics and Timestamps

• 01Commander David Fravor recounts the 2004 Tic Tac UFO encounter off the coast of San Diego while piloting an F/A-18 Super Hornet
• 02The object exhibited flight characteristics that defied conventional physics, including instantaneous acceleration and hovering capabilities
• 03Jeremy Corbell discusses his documentary work investigating the incident and the credibility of military witnesses
• 04The discussion covers government transparency, media suppression, and why this incident remained relatively unknown for years
• 05Fravor describes the object's appearance, maneuverability, and the radar confirmation from multiple military sources
• 06Both guests explore the implications of the encounter and what it suggests about advanced technology or non-human intelligence
• ▶Fravor describes the initial encounter with the Tic Tac object0:15:30
• ▶Discussion of the object's impossible acceleration and lack of sonic boom0:28:45
• ▶Corbell explains his documentary investigation and witness interviews0:42:10
• ▶Fravor addresses why this incident was suppressed for years1:05:20
• ▶Discussion of the radar confirmation and multiple independent witnesses1:18:45

The Show

Joe brings together Commander David Fravor, a retired Navy pilot with a legitimate close encounter story, and Jeremy Corbell, a filmmaker and artist investigating these incidents. What makes this episode different from typical UFO talk is that Fravor isn't some random guy claiming he saw something weird. He's a decorated military officer with combat experience, piloting a multi-million dollar jet, with multiple corroborating witnesses including radar operators and other pilots.

Fravor breaks down what happened on November 14, 2004, near San Diego. He and his wingman were conducting a training exercise when they were directed toward an anomaly by an E-2D Hawkeye radar operator. What they found was something that didn't fit any known aircraft. The object was described as white, oblong, roughly 40 feet long, with no visible wings, engines, or exhaust. It moved in ways that shouldn't be physically possible for anything in our known inventory of aircraft.

The crazy part is the performance envelope. Fravor witnessed the object accelerate from a standstill to supersonic speeds in seconds, without any sonic boom. It could hover effortlessly, then dart around with g-force changes that would liquify a human pilot. When Fravor tried to engage and get a closer look, the object moved away at speeds that his F/A-18 couldn't match, even with full afterburners.

Corbell jumps in with the documentary perspective, explaining how he tracked down witnesses, reviewed official military records, and interviewed the radar operators who tracked this thing on instruments. The credibility factor is insane here. These aren't fringe people. These are career military professionals with clearances, pensions, reputations on the line. None of them have financial incentive to lie about this.

They discuss the government's handling of the incident, or rather, the lack of handling. For years, this was treated like it didn't happen. No official investigation, no media coverage, just silence. That silence itself becomes part of the story. Why would the military completely ignore something that violated everything we know about aviation and physics?

Fravor explains that as a pilot, his first instinct was to find a rational explanation. Maybe it was some classified American tech. But the more he analyzed the capabilities, the less that made sense. Nothing in the American arsenal could do what he witnessed. Nothing in any allied country's arsenal either. And the Russians and Chinese certainly weren't flying around San Diego in 2004 without major international incidents.

The discussion touches on why this story didn't blow up immediately. Media coverage was minimal. The government didn't acknowledge it. It wasn't until the New York Times story in 2017 and subsequent official government acknowledgment that this really entered mainstream consciousness. Corbell's documentary work has been crucial in keeping the story alive and adding credibility through his investigative approach.

What's fascinating is both guys remain open-minded but grounded. They're not saying aliens definitely exist or making wild leaps. They're saying something happened that we can't explain with current understanding, multiple credible witnesses confirmed it, and the government's nonresponse is suspicious.

Best Quotes