Sighting in Bayonne, September 17, 2014

At about 9:03 p.m., a witness was at home when they noticed a multicoloured light in the sky that intrigued them, and they filmed it. The phenomenon moved along a curved path for roughly two minutes before disappearing. No other witness account was collected. The weather that day was very unsettled, with a wind reversal between 8 and 9 p.m.

Analysis of the video showed that the light had all the characteristics of a helicopter manoeuvring. A white strobe flashing once per second is typical of aircraft and helicopters flying at night. The changes in appearance are explained by the different sides the helicopter presented during its manoeuvre: first one headlight was visible, then two, along with a green position light on the right side of the aircraft. GEIPAN did not make its requests in time to have this hypothesis confirmed by air traffic control. The case was therefore classed B, probably identified, with a strong presumption of a helicopter manoeuvring over the city.