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Ahead of the release of a much-anticipated U.S. intelligence report on aerial phenomena, former Canadian defence minister Harjit Sajjan received a briefing on UFOs.

Documents obtained by CTVNews.ca reveal the May 2021 briefing followed a flurry of mainstream media coverage about a then-upcoming of 鈥�unidentified aerial phenomena,鈥� or UAP, the term American officials use for what are more commonly known as unidentified flying objects and UFOs.

鈥淚 expect I am not alone in noting the recent increase in comment regarding Unidentified Flying Objects in the media internationally, particularly in the U.S.,鈥� Sajjan鈥檚 then-chief of staff wrote in a May 19, 2021 email to senior defence officials. 鈥淚 believe it is prudent to request a full briefing for Minister Sajjan from the Canadian perspective on this issue.鈥�

A lieutenant-colonel co-ordinated the effort. An accompanying five-page slide presentation included an overview of cases and procedures, which currently link the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) with air traffic controllers, federal aviation authorities and a civilian researcher in Manitoba. CTVNews.ca acquired the slides and related emails through an access to information request.

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It took six weeks of emails before a Department of National Defence spokesperson confirmed the briefing occurred in mid-2021, although they would not provide an exact date. A subsequent access to information request revealed the briefing took place on May 27, 2021.

Sajjan, a former CAF lieutenant-colonel himself, was replaced as defence minister by Anita Anand in an Oct. 2021 cabinet shuffle and now serves as Minister of International Development.

鈥淣o, we have no records of subsequent briefs based on currently-available information,鈥� the National Defence spokesperson said. 鈥淢inister Anand has not received a brief at this juncture.鈥�

'VITAL INTELLIGENCE SIGHTINGS'

The briefing slides say approximately 1,000 UFO sightings are reported in Canada each year.

Emails and five-page slide deck below show how Sajjan received a briefing on 鈥渦nidentified aerial phenomena鈥� in May 2021. CTVNews.ca has redacted email addresses and phone numbers for privacy.

The most recent case referenced was from May 9, 2021, when the pilot of a Delta Air Lines flight over Saskatchewan asked air traffic controllers 鈥渁bout traffic well above them and moving right to left.鈥� According to a , the 鈥渃ontroller advised that there was no known traffic in the area. The pilot replied that they couldn't figure out what it was either.鈥�

The , where this report was published, is peppered with 25 years of strange sightings from , , as well as pilots on , , and passenger flights operated by , , and .

Transport Canada, the federal department that maintains the database, warns such 鈥渞eports contain preliminary, unconfirmed data which can be subject to change.鈥�

That data is mostly supplied by Nav Canada, a private company that owns and operates Canadian civil air navigation infrastructure such as airport control towers. When Nav Canada personnel receive UFO reports, the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) are also usually alerted.

鈥淣AV Canada is the responsible agency for managing UAP-related reporting,鈥� the slides prepared for the then-defence minister read. 鈥淐AF does not typically investigate sightings of unexplained phenomena outside the context of investigating potential threats or distress.鈥�

A Nav Canada spokesperson said the company doesn鈥檛 investigate UFO reports, adding that their role is to forward information to federal authorities. They point to a Nav Canada , which puts 鈥渦nidentified flying objects鈥� at the front of a list of 鈥渧ital intelligence sightings鈥� requiring reports. Other examples include 鈥渟urface warships identified as being non-Canadian or non-American.鈥�

A spokesperson from Transport Canada told CTVNews.ca that UFO reports 鈥渉ave no potential for regulatory enforcement and often fall outside the department鈥檚 mandate.鈥�

鈥淩eports of unidentified objects can rarely be followed up on as they are as the title implies, unidentified,鈥� the spokesperson said in an email.

The U.S. government has funded UFO research programs almost continuously . The public got a rare peek at those efforts on June 25, 2021, when the U.S. intelligence community released an unclassified report on recent military sightings, which included UAP that 鈥渁ppeared to remain stationary in winds aloft, move against the wind, maneuver abruptly, or move at considerable speed, without discernable means of propulsion.鈥�

From drones to weather phenomena to top-secret technology, many potential explanations are floated for odd observations like these, and officials say they should not be interpreted as proof extraterrestrials are visiting earth. But finding answers requires investigation, and compared to , little appears to be happening in Canada.

Opposition defence critic Kerry-Lynne Findlay believes Ottawa should be paying more attention to American developments, which recently included to establish .

鈥淎s our closest ally and NORAD partner continues to investigate the national security implications of UAP, it would be prudent for Canada to take a similar approach,鈥� the former Conservative cabinet member said in a statement to CTVNews.ca. 鈥淩ather than ridicule and silence, it would be wise to take this issue seriously, with the objective of identifying the origins and intent of these UAP.鈥�

'CANADA'S PRE-EMINENT UFOLOGIST'

Declassified reveal military UFO and dating back to the early 1950s. By the 1960s, responsibility was transferred to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and scientists at the National Research Council of Canada, which ended their involvement in 1995.

According to the briefing slides obtained by CTVNews.ca, it wasn鈥檛 long before a civilian researcher described as 鈥淐anada鈥檚 pre-eminent ufologist鈥� started receiving UFO reports directly from the military and Transport Canada.

Chris Rutkowski is a Winnipeg-based science writer and University of Manitoba communications professional who has led efforts to document more than 23,000 sightings since 1989 through the annual . Rutkowski told CTVNews.ca he was asked to provide material for the minister鈥檚 briefing as a 鈥渃ivilian advisor,鈥� and that he last received official UFO data in early 2021.

鈥淚 have been called both a sceptic and a believer, which probably demonstrates that my position is appropriate,鈥� Rutkowski said in an email. 鈥淲e are long past the era of UFOs being a subject of ridicule. Well-trained observers have reported sightings of UFOs and UAP and there seems to be a renewed interest by both scientists and the military establishment in taking a closer look at this persistent phenomenon.鈥�

Rutkowski, whose is scheduled to be released this spring, would like to see a panel or committee formed to gather and examine Canadian cases. Findlay also thinks it鈥檚 time for Canada to be more active and open about UFOs.

鈥淲e believe the government should adopt a streamlined, whole-of-government approach to standardize the collection of reports across numerous departments and contractors, such as NAV Canada,鈥� Findlay told CTVNews.ca in a rare statement on the subject from a Canadian politician. 鈥淓fforts should be undertaken to investigate and make those findings public in a responsible manner.鈥�

UFO procedures remain unchanged in Canada, the Department of National Defence spokesperson told CTVNews.ca. When asked if information on the subject has been provided to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau or his office, their response was, 鈥渘ot directly, no.鈥�

麻豆影视 was first made aware of Sajjan鈥檚 UFO briefing by an anonymous source, who shared documents acquired through Canadian freedom of information laws. 麻豆影视 verified those documents by filing a new access to information request with the Department of National Defence.

Edited by CTVNews.ca's Rachel Aiello and Brooklyn Neustaeter