Ryan Graves is a former U.S. Navy Lieutenant and F/A-18F pilot now acting as a central figure in national discussions of Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP). After serving more than a decade in the Navy—flying deployments tied to Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Inherent Resolve—he became one of the first active-duty aviators to publicly disclose frequent UAP encounters during his service. Graves now leads Americans for Safe Aerospace (ASA), a nonprofit he founded to bridge the gaps between pilot-reported data, aerospace safety standards, and UAP policy advocacy.

He also chairs the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics’ UAP Integration & Outreach Committee. His combined military experience and current advocacy make him one of the most visible voices demanding transparency on what is in U.S. airspace.

Graves’ early years in the Navy included service as an F/A-18F Super Hornet pilot. His squadron began detecting anomalous objects—via radar, infrared sensors, and visually—while flying off Virginia Beach around 2014, according to his account. These sightings, Graves says, persisted nearly every day for at least a couple of years, often exhibiting behavior that did not match known aircraft profiles. The objects sometimes hovered motionless, made sudden supersonic movements, or were tracked visually and with imaging sensors in ways Graves and other pilots found difficult to explain using conventional aerial paradigms.

These claims, while contested by skeptics, are based on his personal observations and testimony.

In 2023 Graves testified before the U.S. House Oversight and Accountability Committee. There, he emphasized the aviation safety risks and national security implications posed by these anonymous aerial incursions. He has reported that military aircrews and commercial pilots are frequently witnessing phenomena in controlled airspace—events he argues merit serious investigation and improved reporting channels.

He also maintains these encounters are not rare or isolated.

Under Graves’ leadership, Americans for Safe Aerospace operates as a pilot- and veteran-led nonprofit with several roles: maintaining a confidential network for pilots to report UAP incidents; pushing for better regulatory protection for those pilots; and working with agencies and lawmakers to improve disclosure and scientific study. ASA has spoken with over 1,000 pilots sharing such experiences. In certain high-priority cases, Graves’ organization collaborates with the FBI and the American Institute of Aeronautics & Astronautics, among others, especially when there are potential national security overlaps.

Graves advocates for policy reforms intended to normalize UAP reporting, reduce institutional friction, and create consistent frameworks for analysis. For example, he supports legislation that would allow civilian pilots to report sightings through NASA’s Aviation Safety Reporting System, protect them from retaliation, and mandate public release of reports. The goal is to litigate aerospace safety not just from anecdotal claims but grounded in data and measurable risk.

Because many of Graves’ statements are based on his sensors, his squadron’s experience, and internal military safety reports, they are on-record—but their interpretations often spark debate. Some analysts argue that the claimed behavior of UAP could be explained by sensor error, misidentification, or classified domestic programs. Graves, for his part, maintains skepticism about these explanations when behavior seems to consistently exceed what current technology can produce.

Graves continues to draw attention owing both to his firsthand experience as a military pilot and his current institutional efforts. Whatever the ultimate explanation for UAPs—foreign surveillance, misclassified military craft, atmospheric phenomena, or something else—Graves’ central claim is that the appearance of repeatedly unexplained, high-performance aerial objects demands shifts in policy, science, and aviation culture wherever transparency and safety are concerned.