---
title: "Defence Force has no record of UFO correspondence since 2010 - RNZ"
url: "https://usubjects.com/article/defence-force-has-no-record-of-ufo-correspondence-since-2010-rnz-4702"
updated: "2026-11-10T16:21:17.234Z"
description: "New Zealand’s Defence Force says it has no record of correspondence about UFOs since 2010. The information was reported by RNZ."
sources: ["https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/science-and-technology/2495764/defence-force-has-no-record-of-ufo-correspondence-since-2010"]
licence: "All rights reserved"
---

# Defence Force has no record of UFO correspondence since 2010 - RNZ

Published: 2026-11-10  
Source: [Google News](https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/science-and-technology/2495764/defence-force-has-no-record-of-ufo-correspondence-since-2010)

### Overview

The New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) says it has found **no record of correspondence about unidentified flying objects since 2010**, according to reporting by RNZ. The disclosure came in response to an Official Information Act (OIA) request covering material held between January 2010 and June 2026.

The request sought information about a broad range of potential UFO-related activity, including military sightings, radar observations, photographs, video recordings and communications with intelligence partners in the Five Eyes network. The NZDF said it searched its correspondence using the terms **“UFO,” “UAP,” “Unidentified Flying Object” and “Unidentified Aerial Phenomena.”**

The search, the Defence Force said, **“produced nil results.”**

### Scope of the Search

The response does not necessarily establish that no unusual aerial observations occurred during the period. Rather, it indicates that the NZDF could not locate correspondence matching the requested terms in the records it searched. The distinction is significant because reports may be recorded under operational, aviation or air-traffic terminology without using the language associated with UFOs or unidentified aerial phenomena.

The OIA request also asked about communications with Five Eyes partners—the intelligence-sharing group comprising New Zealand, Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States. The NZDF’s response, as reported by RNZ, found no relevant correspondence in the period covered by the search.

The finding contrasts with the Defence Force’s earlier decision to release its historical UFO files. In 2010, the NZDF made public **15 volumes of accumulated correspondence dating from 1952 to 2009**. Copies were provided to public libraries in Dunedin, Hamilton and Marlborough, as well as the Alexander Turnbull Library and RNZ’s library service, Infofind.

### Historical Files and Public Interest

The historical collection includes correspondence and reports gathered over several decades, reflecting public and official interest in unexplained aerial sightings during the second half of the 20th century. Making the material available placed the records in the public domain and allowed researchers, journalists and members of the public to examine the original documents.

The absence of comparable records after 2010 may reflect a change in how such reports are handled, categorized or retained, rather than a definitive conclusion about the nature of any sightings. It also comes during a period in which military organizations internationally have increasingly used the term **UAP** instead of UFO, particularly when discussing observations that cannot immediately be identified as aircraft, drones, atmospheric phenomena or other known objects.

### International Context

The NZDF disclosure follows increased attention to UAP records in the United States. RNZ reported that the US Department of Defence had released **seven batches of UFO-related files since February**, following directives from President Donald Trump. The reported releases were linked to what Trump described as “tremendous interest” in matters that were “highly complex, but extremely interesting and important.”

Unlike the United States, New Zealand’s latest response does not announce a new archive or confirm the existence of classified investigations. It is instead a record-management finding based on an OIA search. **No evidence of extraterrestrial activity was identified**, and the Defence Force did not indicate that it had reached any conclusion about the cause of historical or contemporary aerial reports.

## Provenance

This USUBJECTS page is a summary or digest of the linked original source. Any accompanying generated visual is an illustrative reconstruction, not evidence.