How a Nunavut Sighting Reaches the Public Record

Introduction

When a pilot, controller or other aviation professional in Nunavut reports an unidentified object, the observation can become part of Canada’s public aviation record even if nobody ever determines what was seen. The key point is that the reporting system exists to protect aviation safety, not to investigate extraordinary claims. If a sighting is judged relevant to flight operations, it may move from a radio call to an internal aviation occurrence report and finally into Transport Canada’s Civil Aviation Daily Occurrence Reporting System (CADORS), where members of the public can search it.[Transport Canada]tc.canada.caTransport Canada The Civil Aviation Daily Occurrence Reporting System (CADORSTransport CanadaThe Civil Aviation Daily Occurrence Reporting System (CADORS)July 15, 2021…Published: July 15, 2021

For many northern sightings, especially those reported by commercial or charter crews operating across Nunavut’s vast airspace, a CADORS entry becomes the most durable public record. It preserves operational facts about the event but should not be mistaken for an official finding that an unknown object was extraordinary or unexplained.

From the radio call to an occurrence report

The reporting chain normally begins in the cockpit rather than in a government office.

If a crew observes an unidentified light, object or other phenomenon that could affect flight safety, the pilots typically report it over the radio to the appropriate NAV CANADA air traffic services unit while the event is occurring or immediately afterwards. In Nunavut, where radar coverage and ground observers may be limited compared with southern Canada, the flight crew’s report often forms the foundation of the official record.[Innovation Canada]ised-isde.canada.caOpen source on canada.ca.

The controller records the operational details and, where required under Canadian aviation reporting rules, prepares an Aviation Occurrence Report (AOR). These reports are created because the event may have affected aviation safety or required operational attention—not because anyone has concluded that the object represents an unknown technology. The emphasis is on preserving timely information while memories are fresh.[Transport Canada]tc.canada.caTransport CanadaCivil Aviation Daily Occurrence Reporting System (CADORS) Manual - TP 4044September 5, 2025…Published: September 5, 2025

The information collected commonly includes:

For remote Nunavut operations, these details may be the only contemporaneous documentation that survives beyond cockpit notes or radio recordings.

How Transport Canada builds a CADORS entry

A CADORS record is not written directly by the reporting pilot. Instead, Transport Canada assembles it from occurrence information received through established aviation reporting channels.

NAV CANADA supplies roughly 80% of the information used to create CADORS records nationwide by forwarding Aviation Occurrence Reports to Transport Canada. Additional information may come from aircraft operators, airports, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police or other government agencies where relevant. Transport Canada staff then review the material, fill in missing administrative details where possible, perform quality checks and publish the occurrence.[Transport Canada]tc.canada.caTransport Canada The Civil Aviation Daily Occurrence Reporting System (CADORSTransport CanadaThe Civil Aviation Daily Occurrence Reporting System (CADORS)July 15, 2021…Published: July 15, 2021

The published record remains preliminary rather than a final investigation. If additional information becomes available later—for example, an amended narrative or corrected aircraft details—the CADORS entry can be updated. The reporting manual specifically allows existing records to be supplemented or corrected after publication.[Transport Canada]tc.canada.caTransport CanadaCivil Aviation Daily Occurrence Reporting System (CADORS) Manual - TP 4044September 5, 2025…Published: September 5, 2025

For readers researching Nunavut sightings, this explains why some entries appear brief or incomplete. CADORS is designed to provide timely operational awareness rather than a comprehensive investigative report.

What the published record preserves—and what it omits

A CADORS entry is valuable because it captures evidence that might otherwise disappear.

Typical records preserve:

Equally important are the things the system deliberately does not provide.

Personal identifiers are excluded from the published narrative, and CADORS does not attempt to offer definitive explanations for every unusual observation. Many entries simply document that a report was received. If no safety investigation or technical analysis follows, the database may never record whether the object was later identified as an aircraft, astronomical object, balloon, meteor or something that remained unresolved.[Transport Canada]tc.canada.caTransport CanadaCivil Aviation Daily Occurrence Reporting System (CADORS) Manual - TP 4044September 5, 2025…Published: September 5, 2025

This distinction is frequently misunderstood. The presence of a CADORS entry demonstrates that an aviation occurrence was reported through official channels. It does not demonstrate that officials concluded an extraordinary craft was present.

Why CADORS often becomes the lasting record in Nunavut

Nunavut’s geography makes aviation especially important. Communities depend heavily on aircraft, flights often cross sparsely populated terrain, and there may be few independent observers available to corroborate unusual events.

As a result, a pilot’s report can become the principal surviving document describing a sighting. Unless the event leads to a broader aviation investigation or raises defence or national security concerns, the CADORS record may remain the only publicly accessible official account. Canada’s Sky Canada review notes that CADORS supports aviation safety by allowing follow-up on higher-risk events and identifying trends, but many reports receive no extensive identification effort because the system’s primary purpose is operational safety rather than solving every unidentified aerial phenomenon.[Innovation Canada]ised-isde.canada.caOpen source on canada.ca.

For researchers examining Nunavut’s UFO history, this makes CADORS an important archive. It provides a verified administrative trail showing that an aviation report entered Canada’s official reporting system, while also illustrating the limits of what that system is designed to establish. A documented occurrence is evidence that a report existed and affected aviation reporting processes; it is not, by itself, evidence that the reported object was extraordinary or unexplained.

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Endnotes

1. Source: tc.canada.ca
Title: Transport Canada The Civil Aviation Daily Occurrence Reporting System (CADORS)
Link:https://tc.canada.ca/en/aviation/publications/aviation-safety-letter/issue-2-2021/civil-aviation-daily-occurrence-reporting-system-cadors

Published: July 15, 2021

2. Source: ised-isde.canada.ca
Link:https://ised-isde.canada.ca/site/science/en/office-chief-science-advisor/sky-canada-project/management-public-reporting-unidentified-aerial-phenomena-canada

3. Source: tc.canada.ca
Link:https://tc.canada.ca/en/aviation/aviation-publications/civil-aviation-daily-occurrence-reporting-system-cadors-manual-tp-4044

Published: September 5, 2025

4. Source: open.canada.ca
Title: Open Canada Civil Aviation Daily Occurrence Report System
Link:https://open.canada.ca/data/en/dataset/a348c1d1-2392-4595-b5e2-c6a244a7e87f

Published: October 28, 2016

5. Source: tc.canada.ca
Title: If a serious accident or inciden
Link:https://tc.canada.ca/en/aviation/operating-airports-aerodromes/report-incident-affecting-airport-aerodrome-safety

Published: June 8, 2023

6. Source: tc.canada.ca
Link:https://tc.canada.ca/en/aviation/reference-centre/exemptions-canadian-aviation-regulations-cars/exemption-standards-specified-cadors-manual-made-pursuant-section-80701-canadian-aviation-regulations

Published: May 12, 2008

7. Source: tc.canada.ca
Title: ca Aerodrome Safety Circular (ASC) No
Link:https://tc.canada.ca/en/aviation/reference-centre/aerodrome-safety-circulars/aerodrome-safety-circular-asc-no-97-002a-annex-b

Published: September 11, 1997

8. Source: tc.canada.ca
Title: ca Aerodrome Safety Circular (ASC) No
Link:https://tc.canada.ca/en/aviation/reference-centre/aerodrome-safety-circulars/aerodrome-safety-circular-asc-no-97-002a

Published: September 11, 1997

9. Source: skybrary.aero
Link:https://skybrary.aero/index.php/articles/civil-aviation-daily-occurrence-reporting-system-cadors

Additional References

10. Source: doi.org
Link:https://doi.org/10.1139%2Fdsa

11. Source: icao.int
Link:https://www.icao.int/safety-management/SMI/SI/Examples

12. Source: youtube.com
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6JgyhoCyi8

13. Source: youtube.com
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DgbNKOK7lr4

14. Source: youtube.com
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bBsWjjCChg

15. Source: bst.gc.ca
Link:https://www.bst.gc.ca/eng/rapports-reports/aviation/2021/a21c0078/a21c0078.html

16. Source: youtube.com
Title: Unusual object spotted on Winnipeg flight
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgZ_2Y0_6d4

17. Source: youtube.com
Title: Document reveals first known Canadian UFO study in nearly 30 years
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OGCggCRTh1c