Sighting in Vieilley, May 19, 2022

The witness was at home one evening. It was quiet, with only the usual night sounds, when a very powerful, deafening noise came from behind the house. It sounded like thunder in a storm, but far louder. Turning toward it, the witness saw a huge red-orange ball that they likened to a small planet. It looked like it was on fire, yet it left no luminous trail, unlike what is seen in images of meteorites, and it was perfectly round. The witness was struck by its size, its trajectory, its fast and steady speed, and how close to the ground it was. It was heading toward Besançon. It remained in view for about 7 to 10 seconds, then continued on its way and disappeared, while the noise lasted about 30 seconds.

Before the investigation, the case had medium consistency: a single witness and no photo or video. After the study it was rated very good, because the aircraft radar map matched the account. The CNOA (the French Air and Space Force's national air operations centre) confirmed that a military patrol of two Mirage 2000 aircraft was nearby at the time. One of them passed just 2 km southeast of the observation site, on a path fully consistent with that of the object. The investigation concluded that the witness had seen a Mirage 2000 flying at low altitude with its afterburner on. This explains every unusual feature reported: the large red-orange ball, the fireball appearance, the deafening noise that continued after the object was out of sight, the very high speed and the low height. The case was classified A.