Tic Tacs are back in the news after a Homeland Security flight crew reported a close encounter that took place in the sky over Avenal, California. Unlike previous Tic Tac encounters near Southern California’s coastline, the video shows it took place near the heart of the Central Valley. Now, the pilot has come forward to talk about what they saw in February of 2024, with a video re-enactment and audio with an air traffic controller.

According to the pilot’s account, the object moved in incredible ways similar to previous Tic Tac incidents reported by the Navy in 2004 and 2023. That’s to say, it also moved in ways that suggest it exceeded any known human capabilities.

Football-Sized Object

In all cases, there didn’t seem to be hostile intentions, although, in this incident, the pilot banked the right wing of the plane, fearing a possible collision. This time, the Tic Tac was relatively tiny compared to an estimated 45 feet across in the case of the object recorded in November 2004. According to George Knapp, the Navy detected that object dozens of times, taking off “like a bullet fired from a gun.” But this one was an isolated incident that was over in a flash.

There’s another difference in that this object was not the color of the popular breath mint. The pilot, who went by “TROY 21” in the video, recalled seeing a “dark gray cylindrical object,” which was “probably the size of a football.” At that size, it rules out any human passenger. Regardless, how could anyone survive the reported speeds?

“And it passed maybe 10 feet under our right wing,” the pilot said (see video below).

As the object appeared out of nowhere, the pilot had to react fast, taking evasive action and banking the wing. As it zoomed into view, they feared it might be a surface-to-air missile. But this was something as yet unexplainable.

Hopscotching Tic Tac Moves 40 Miles in Seconds

At one point, the object was at the same altitude of 20,000 feet and 60 miles behind the plane. Then, as Hansen described, it seemed to play “hopscotch” beyond the speed of sound. It’s almost as if it were acting in a playful manner, although it must have been shocking and scary to see it come out of nowhere so close to the plane.

“In a couple of seconds, that object then jumps to about 20 miles closer to them, back to 30 or 40, and then to 10. It’s like it’s playing hopscotch, back and forth, and they have no idea what this is,” said Hansen.

As with previous incidents, the object didn’t have any visible propulsion system.

“Nobody should be flying at 20,000 feet unidentified,” said Hansen. “And this object has no means of visible propulsion, there was no smoke, no streak, no anything, as it passes by. So, how is it flying, and how is going several times the speed of sound; and then hopping back and forth? It reminds us of the Navy Tic Tac video in 2004, right and they described that on radar covering 60 miles in mere seconds. Same California coastline, same kind of description, a lot of similarities. Everyone’s baffled about it and we’re hoping that officials take this seriously and look into it.”

Credible Witnesses Saw the Object Flash By

Unfortunately, the crew couldn’t catch the fast-moving object on video. However, they tracked an object at the same altitude on radar.

In the 2023 encounters, the Navy tracked four Tic Tacs with a SAFIRE System, a thermal sensor, not a camera. As for the 2004 encounter, the world saw a grainy image from an infrared sensor and a video that eventually appeared in the New York Times in 2017.

You can see the new encounter in the recreated video discussed by Ben Hansen, host of “UFO Witness” on Discovery+, below. Journalist Ashleigh Banfield noted that the witnesses have credibility as crew from Homeland Security aboard a Beechcraft King Air 350C.

“You can’t get a more reliable witness than a crew from Homeland Security, pilots who literally had to protect themselves against it,” said Banfield.

“It sure did not look or act of this world,” she said.

Video by NewsNation:

Featured image by Corbin Black, The Cosmic Web