Sighting in Annoeullin, October 29, 2024

At about 5:35 pm on a Tuesday in late October, the witness was alerted by their dog, looked up and saw an unidentified aerospace phenomenon (UAP). They filmed it with their phone. It moved from the witness's left to their right along a southwest-to-northeast path, then drifted away toward the northwest. The object was close, yet the witness heard no noise at all. There was only one witness, but the file included photos, videos and an interview with them, so GEIPAN rated the case's consistency as good.

The investigation looked at two hypotheses: a balloon-type object carried by the wind, or a radio-controlled drone or helicopter. The second could fit the trajectory but not the shape that was seen. In addition, the witness had heard no sound, and the heads of the local model-aircraft clubs confirmed that they never fly in that area.

GEIPAN settled on the balloon. Its movement matched the wind direction shown in the weather records, and its shape and colour were fully consistent with a novelty balloon with a mylar envelope. The rotation, climbs and descents made sense given the asymmetrical shape of the envelope, which was visible in the witness's video. The investigation could not trace where the balloon had been released. The case was classified A.