GETTY There were 1,800 UFOs tracked by NORAD radar over five years.

That equates to around 360 UFOs officially tracked by radar each year. And as many as 75 - 15 EACH YEAR - have been intercepted as a result, according to information released by the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). UFO investigators have hailed the statistics proof that the UFO phenomena is real and taken seriously by military leaders. But there remains a veil of secrecy over what happened when they were intercepted or if any have been confined as not coming from Earth, with national security reasons being cited. The figures were revealed to UFO investigators following a Canadian Access to Information Act request. But officials refused to reveal any further data or specific details about individual UFO interceptions. Candian UFO expert Victor Viggiani requested information on the tracking and intercepting of UFOs by NORAD after obtaining secret documents which detailed a case of jets being scramble to "three UFOs". A response from NORAD said that requests for "unknown track reports" are classified and cannot be released on grounds of national security and espionage.

YouTube Victor Viggiani

It said the information was not to be released to the public or media because they do not have a "valid need to know". But the response did confirm the extent of UFO activity caught on radar. It said: "The NORAD commander has approved the release of the following information regarding tracks of interest (TOI) and unknown tracks. "The yearly average in the past five years has been 1,800 TOIs and 75 intercepts." Intercepts are when NORAD scrambles a pair of fighters, which are on alert at sites around the US, to locate and attempt to identify the unknown object. The fighters are armed and ready to take off within minutes of receiving a scramble order. NORAD has refused to detail any of the 75 intercepts in the five year period, so it is unclear if any went off to be identified. Although Mr Viggiani received some of the information using access to information laws, he claimed he was not permitted to share it or release it publicly and he had threatened with indictment if he did so.

The Canadian documents…indicate the Canadian government has been and remains vitally concerned about the unauthorised incursion of unidentified flying objects within Canadian airspace. ZlandCommunicationsNewsNetwork website

And, in a public snub at the national security implications, he said: "I have here in front of me 11 documents…they are directly from NORAD and indicate that over the last five years an average of 1,800 tracks of interest, with 75 intercepts have been made, this is directly from the commander in NORAD. "In reference to the NORAD documents, I have been threatened with indictment if I release that file. "I am hereby releasing it to you and I dare the US government to charge me." On the ZlandCommunicationsNewsNetwork website, which Mr Viggiani is involved with, it says the documents are proof the UFO phenomena is real. It said: "The Canadian documents…indicate the Canadian government has been and remains vitally concerned about the unauthorised incursion of unidentified flying objects within Canadian airspace. "All of the above raises serious and unacknowledged questions. "What kind of craft are able to elude NORAD’s most sophisticated aircraft? These and other questions bring into sharp focus substantial historical, on-going and covert discussions and documentation about the UFO phenomenon among Canadian government agencies - none of which has ever been openly addressed by bureaucrats, military officials or elected representatives."

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