What did the declassified documents reveal?

On August twenty-fourth, nineteen-fifty-six, the Department of the Navy issued a Top Secret memorandum titled "Report of attack on a U.S. Navy Aircraft by Hostile Aircraft." This declassified record from the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations documents an incident involving a United States Navy aircraft operating near the Chinese Communist mainland. The document is accessible at documents2.theblackvault.com. This document was released through the Freedom of Information Act, without an explicit FOIA case number cited, and declassified by authority of the Chief of Naval Operations. It serves as a historical account of a specific military engagement, as recorded by the Department of the Navy. The document states: Department of the Navy, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Washington twenty-five, D.C. Op-thirty-three slash ehb, Ser zero-zero-zero-eight-four-P-thirty-three. Twenty-fourth August, nineteen-fifty-six. Top Secret. From: Chief of Naval Operations. To: Secretary of State. Subject: Report of attack on a U.S. Navy Aircraft by Hostile Aircraft. One. At one-six-two-five-Z, twenty-second August nineteen-fifty-six (zero-zero-two-five local time, twenty-third August), naval aircraft Bureau Number one-two-four-three-six-two from Electronic Countermeasures Squadron One (V-Q-one) was attacked by hostile aircraft in a position initially reported to be latitude twenty-seven degrees fifty-two minutes North, longitude one-two-two degrees zero-eight minutes East. This position is approximately one-hundred-eighty miles north of Formosa and thirty-two miles east of the Chinese Communist mainland and was obtained by projecting the intended track from the last known position sent by the plane commander forty minutes prior to the attack. The mission of the aircraft on this patrol was for the purpose of obtaining Electronic Intelligence information. At the time of the attack the aircraft sent one code group message and repeated it once. Transmission was then abruptly stopped during an attempt to transmit additional information. Prior to the time of attack the aircraft reported it was on a southerly course, at an air speed of one-hundred-eighty knots and at an altitude of six-thousand feet. The weather was scattered clouds with moderate winds. The moon was full. Two. The aircraft was attached to Electronic Countermeasure Squadron One which is based at Iwakuni, Japan. This squadron conducts regular patrols along the coasts of Communist China, North Korea and Siberia to obtain the frequencies of radar and communication facilities along the coast for purposes of intelligence. The aircraft have instructions to remain over international waters and to remain at least twenty miles from the coastline. Depending on the sector of the patrol, the planes normally stage through airfields located at Naha, Okinawa and Sangley Point, P.I. if required. Three. The type aircraft assigned to Squadron V-Q-one is the P-A-M-one-Q which is a four engine landplane. The…

Why was this case declassified?

This material entered the public record through the U.S. declassification and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process. The originating source document is linked on this page so the citation chain is auditable.

Case File · ARCHIVE-389Declassified

Filed SEP 23 · 2026Runtime 1 min

Report Of Attack On A U.s. Navy Aircraft By Hostile Aircraft.

U.S. public record · FOIAUpdated September 23, 2026

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◆ BLUF — The short version

S. " This declassified record from the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations documents an incident involving a United States Navy aircraft operating near the Chinese Communist mainland. com. This document was released through the Freedom of Information Act, without an explicit FOIA case number cited, and declassified by authority of the Chief of Naval Operations.

Date: SEP 23 · 2026
Release: Declassified · U.S. public record (FOIA)
Source document: View the primary source document

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On August twenty-fourth, nineteen-fifty-six, the Department of the Navy issued a Top Secret memorandum titled "Report of attack on a U.S. Navy Aircraft by Hostile Aircraft." This declassified record from the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations documents an incident involving a United States…

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Questions about this case

What was Report Of Attack On A U.s. Navy Aircraft By Hostile Aircraft. about?: S. " This declassified record from the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations documents an incident involving a United States Navy aircraft operating near the Chinese Communist mainland. com. This document was released through the Freedom of Information Act, without an explicit FOIA case number cited, and declassified by authority of the Chief of Naval Operations.
Why was this case declassified?: This material entered the public record through the U.S. declassification and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process. Storyflo narrates it directly from the public release.

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