Sighting in Nouméa, August 7, 2025

A pilot taxiing at the aerodrome reported by radio an unidentified object directly above the runway, at an estimated altitude of 150 to 200 feet. An air navigation officer confirmed it with the naked eye, then with binoculars, after raising the sun shades in the control tower. A second member of the technical staff also confirmed the sighting. The object was dark and oblong, held in a vertical orientation, and rose slowly at a constant speed. Over the 7 to 8 minutes of observation, it gave off no light and no sound and showed no apparent sideways movement, until it finally vanished into the cloud layer. Several witnesses in the control tower and a crew on approach corroborated the report. No usable photo or video existed, so the case rests solely on direct testimony. Its consistency was rated medium to good.

The investigation looked at several hypotheses. A parachute was ruled out because of the upward movement. A drone did not fit the described shape, and no drone activity had been reported on the airfield or by the relevant services. A balloon, however, was consistent with the observation: a dark oblong shape, slow and mainly vertical movement, a possible string visible beneath the object, and gradual disappearance into the clouds. The aircraft crew also said the object resembled a long black balloon shown in a photograph during the investigation. One strange element remained: the main witness perceived a shape suggesting a flaming parachute. Still, the other witnesses' accounts and the way the object moved match a balloon carried by rising air currents and the local wind, possibly released by accident near the airport, which sits right beside the public Magenta beach. GEIPAN classified the case as B: probable balloon.