Sighting in L'Île-d'Yeu, September 11, 2012

Two people were sailing on a sailboat in the night, between midnight and 2 a.m., and were nearing the harbour. They noticed three red lights, lined up and tilted, above the ocean to the right of the green buoy marking the harbour entrance. The phenomenon stayed motionless for several minutes and made no sound, then suddenly went out. The two witnesses then carried on with their manoeuvres to enter the harbour.

The investigation first considered Chinese-style sky lanterns, given the three red balls at low altitude that stayed almost stationary for 3 to 4 minutes. Three points weigh against this explanation, however. The wind recorded nearby was light and from the south-west, which should have produced a slight drift to the witnesses' right; but the witnesses were themselves moving, and the harbour, on the island's north-west coast, is sheltered from south-westerly winds. Such lanterns are most often released at the end of parties on Saturday evenings, whereas this sighting took place on a Tuesday around 1 a.m., although the area is very touristy. Finally, all three lights going out at the same moment would be very unlikely for lanterns. GEIPAN classified the case C, for lack of information and corroboration. The report reached GEIPAN too late for air traffic control to be consulted.