Sighting in Liez, August 1947

The witness was taking their cows out to pasture when they noticed a bright object very high in the sky. It was crossing from east to west at very high speed. It suddenly stopped dead for about 30 seconds, then shot off again and vanished. The witness described its shape as cylindrical or box-like.

The account only reached GEIPAN in December 2014, more than 67 years after the events, and the witness cannot recall the exact day, only that it was August 1947. Their memory seems very precise, but experience shows that recollections can change over time.

GEIPAN noted that the behaviour described, an abrupt stop followed by a fast departure, resembles a Transient Luminous Stormy Phenomenon (P.L.O.T.), similar to ball lightning. Such a phenomenon is possible in stormy weather, which is common in August, even when the sky is clear. However, the shape the witness described does not match these phenomena, which are generally spherical. Because the exact date is unknown and the events are so old, the weather could not be checked with meteorological services. The case is therefore classed C, for lack of sufficiently precise information.