Sighting in Trans-en-Provence, January 8, 1981

The witness was on the upper terrace of their property, building a small masonry structure to protect a pump, when a hissing sound caught their attention. They then saw a craft come down toward the ground, land a few dozen metres below them, and take off again after a few seconds on a vertical path, vanishing at high speed. The whole observation lasted 30 to 40 seconds. The craft was circular and zinc-grey, about 2.5 m wide and 1.70 m high, with a thicker band around its circumference. It gave off no flame or smoke. Underneath, the witness made out rounded protruding shapes, which they took to be hatches or feet; the feet were about the size of a mason's bucket.

When the witness walked over to the spot, they found a mark on the ground about 2 metres across, with skid marks at several points along its edge. The gendarmerie came the next day, interviewed the witness, noted the mark, and collected soil samples along with wild alfalfa plants, taken from the mark out to about 10 metres away. The GEPAN visited on 17 February, found the traces still visible, and took a new series of soil and alfalfa samples.

Four laboratories analysed the soil. They found marked compaction, indicating a heavy body, with a slight deposit of iron and iron oxide, as well as phosphates and zinc that could come from paint rubbing against the ground. The blackish residues could be combustion residues, and significant heating, below 600°, was detected. A biochemistry laboratory at INRA found multiple kinds of damage to the alfalfa, correlated with distance from the mark. The cause was not determined, though an intense electric field was considered a possibility. The analyses provided no quantitative estimate of the phenomenon and no proof of the witness's account, which remains that of a single person, although their behaviour gave no reason to doubt their credibility. An important unusual phenomenon took place that day, but the investigation could not determine its origin, and the case was classified D, unexplained.