Sighting in Marmande, December 17, 2021

At about 5:15 pm, the witness was driving home from work when, on approaching a roundabout, they noticed a motionless bright point in the sky to the north-northwest. The object shone intensely, and the witness thought the setting sun was reflecting off it. They headed in that direction, drove alongside a shopping centre, then parked near a store and got out of the car.

From there, they saw the bright point move eastward, toward the town. They then made out a shape made up of two white blocks joined by a curved, metallic-grey section. They took several photos and a short video. The object finally disappeared to the south-southeast, near a supermarket, after about three minutes of observation. The witness described it as moving in slow motion and said they were sure it was not an aircraft, since a plane flying that slowly would fall.

Only one account was collected. GEIPAN considered it well documented, thanks to the photos, the video and the witness's availability. After studying the case and data from several aviation applications, GEIPAN concluded that the witness had seen flight BGA121J, a Beluga operating the scheduled Saint-Nazaire–Toulouse service. The aircraft passed at the same time, in the same azimuths and at the right angular height. At 63 m long and about 19 m high, the Beluga is an exceptionally large aircraft, and its surface facing the setting sun that day must have reflected a great deal of light. The case was classified A.