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October 21, 1954, La Rochelle, Charente-Maritime:

Reference for this case: 21-Oct-54-La-Rochelle.
Please cite this reference in any correspondence with me regarding this case.

Summary:

Several newspapers throughout France, on October 22, 23 and 24, 1954, reported among summarized sighting reports, that on October 21, 1954, in La Rochelle, "several horse riders of a horse center in La Rochelle, claim to have seen a character fleeing from their park."

"He was strange," they say, "he could only be a Martian."

No details were given.

Reports:

[Ref. jps1:] NEWSPAPER "LE JOURNAL DU PAS-DE-CALAIS ET DE LA SOMME":

Scan.

APPEARANCES IN THE SKY
FROM FRANCE...

Melun, 22. -- Many witnesses, residents of the communes of the regions of Bray-sur-Seine, Lagny, Moret, Thomery, said they saw a strange phenomenon after dark: an oval-shaped object, yellow orange in color, measuring more than 20 meters, at 300 or 400 meters of altitude. Clarification: the 20 meters would be the real measure of the object and not its size as it appeared to them.

The craft remained motionless for a while and disappeared at breakneck speed.

One of the witnesses, Mr. André L..., a weather specialist, who lives in Thomery, believes that the speed of machine was of the order of 10,000 km.p.h, quite simply. Mr. L... clarified:

"I am absolutely certain, because I know this question well, that it is neither an airplane nor a weather balloon."

In Melun itself, several young girls coming out of an evening class claim to have seen an almost similar craft in the sky; which, after having stopped for ten minutes, would have risen very quickly in the sky.

However, a luminous ball resembling a car headlight would have appeared, six times, to two industrialists from Melun who were traveling on the road national Melun-Rubelles. The appearance of this luminous hearth would have caused each time a very large flash illuminating the region.

Finally, several horsemen from a horse center in La Rochelle claim to have seen a character flee from their park. "He was strange", they said, "he could only be a Martian".

La Rochelle. -- A motorist from Cherbonnières was driving on the road to Souzou with his three-year-old son when he felt all over his body tingling sensations similar to electric shocks which increased as his car moved forward. The child, who felt the same discomfort, began to cry. Soon the car engine stopped and the headlights went out.

At the same time, a bright glow was seen, going from bright red to orange. Blinded, the motorist could however distinguish a craft stationary in space, for a few moments and then it would disappear soon. Immediately afterwards, the driver was able to restart the engine of his car.

... and from Italy

Rome, 22. -- Many discs, saucers and flying cigars were seen in the sky of Italy. Several people saw these craft move over Milan. While inhabitants of Perugia, Bologna, and other localities in the north of the Peninsula were also eyewitnesses to these incursions of flying discs or cigars.

The most precise testimony was collected in Naples, where two workers who were in the suburbs of the city clearly distinguished an apparatus, of circular shape, moving in the sky at an altitude of 800 meters approximately following a North-East direction. The phenomenon lasted three minutes and the two workers were able to specify that the metal carcass of the disc was painted red and that white smoke escaped from it.

[Ref. lml1:] NEWSPAPER "LE MERIDIONAL":

In the sky of Ile-de-France

A luminous craft said to have evolved at 10.000 km. hour

Melun. -- A very large number of witnesses, inhabitants of the communities of the areas of Bray-sur-Seine, Lagny, Moret, Thomery stated to have seen, at the fallen night, a strange phenomenon: a craft of oval form, yellow orange color, measuring more than 20 meters, at 300 or 400 meters altitude. Precision: The 20 meters are said to be the real measurement of the object and not its dimension such as it appeared to them.

The machine remained motionless during a certain time and disappeared at a vertiginous speed.

One of the witnesses, Mr. André L..., weather specialist, who lives in Thomery, estimates that the speed of the machine was approximately 10.000 kilometer-hour. Quite simply!

Mr. L... specified: "I am absolutely certain, for I know this question well, that it was neither a plane, nor of a weather-balloon."

In Melun directly, several girls leaving an evening course claim to have seen in the sky a machine that was more or less similar, which, after having stopped during ten minutes, had risen very quickly in the sky.

Meanwhile, a luminous ball resembling a headlight of a car is said to have appeared, six times, to two industrialists of Melun who circulated on the national road Melun-Rubelles. The appearance of this luminous source is said to have caused each time a very broad flash illuminating the area.

Finally, several horse riders of center of a horsing center of La Rochelle claim to have seen a character fleeing from their park.

"He was strange, they say. It could only have been a Martian."

[Ref. ler1:] NEWSPAPER "L'EST REPUBLICAIN":

"Stacks" of saucers in the sky of Ile-de-France

"One of them was moving at 10.000 km/h", a witness estimates

Paris. -- The gentle sky of Ile-de-France has been criss-crossed over the past twenty-four hours by many mysterious craft.

All of them did not appear until dark, but the witnesses brought a lot of details and they are now on the long list of "those who have seen it". In Bray-sur-Seine like in Lagny, in Moret like in Thomery, many inhabitants have seen at nightfall, an oval-shaped craft, of orange-yellow color, measuring more than 20 meters at 300 or 400 meters of altitude. Precision: the 20 meters would be the real measure of the object and not its dimension as it appeared to them.

The craft remained stationary for some time and disappeared at a dizzying speed. It could only be a Martian!

One of the witnesses, Mr. André L..., a weather expert, estimated that the craft was traveling at ten thousand Kms-hour approximately. So he must have, at the same time, a good view and a precise idea of the speed. Mr. L... specified: "I am absolutely certain of what I am saying, because I know the question well." But no one doubts it.

In Melun itself, several young girls, coming out of an evening class, claim to have seen in the sky, a similar craft which, after stopping for about ten minutes, would have gone up very rapidly in the sky.

Meanwhile, a luminous ball resembling a car headlight appeared six times to two industrialists of Melun who were traveling on the national road Melun-Rubelles. The appearance of this luminous spot caused every time a very wide flash illuminating the area.

Finally, several riders from a horse racing center in La Rochelle say they saw a character escape from their park. "He was strange," they said. "It could only be a Martian." These are witnesses who are not devoid of a certain sense of humor.

Tickle, tickle...

Much more disturbing, if not funny, is the testimony of a motorist of Cherbonnières (Charente-Maritime). He was driving along the road to Souzou with his son, aged three, when he felt tingling like electric shocks all over his body which increased as his car moved on. The child who felt the same discomforts, began to weep. Soon the engine stopped and the headlights went out. At the same moment a bright glow "changed" from a bright red color to an orange color.

Blinded, the motorist was able, however, to distinguish a stationary machine in space for a few moments, then the latter disappeared soon. Immediately after that, the driver was able to restart the engine of his car.

Italian disk

Numerous discs, saucers and flying cigars have, moreover, been seen in the Italian sky, above Milan as well as Perugia or Bologna.

The most precise testimony was taken in Naples, where two workers who were in the suburb of the city, clearly distinguished a craft, circular in shape, moving in the sky at about eight hundred meters, in a northeasterly direction. The phenomenon lasted three minutes and both workers were able to specify that the metal carcass of the disc was painted red and that a white smoke came out of it.

... and Swedish fireball

Finally, a luminous object having, according to certain witnesses, of the appearance of a rotating disc, and according to Others that of a violently lit aircraft, was seen over several cities in the center-west of Sweden. The object was surrounded by sparks. It is assumed to be an aerolite of exceptional brightness.

[Ref. nnm1:] NEWSPAPER "LE NOUVEAU NORD MARITIME":

Scan.

Another stack of saucers...

Few flying saucers have appeared in France in the past 24 hours, and those that have appeared, according to people who have seen them, were moving without much fantasy. One of them, near Luzy, even contented itself, affirm a pensioner of the Nevers railways, his wife and his son, to take the form of a metal airship flying at a very low altitude, but, it is true, at a "dizzying" speed...

Stop!
Priority to mysterious
craft

Near Ham (Somme), the passage of a mysterious craft was marked by a curious phenomenon. Two inhabitants of the region were traveling side by side, one on a motorbike, the other on a moped, when they saw an orange mass moving in the sky. When this mass was above them, the two engines suddenly failed and did not resume until the mass had moved away.

The craft
lit the ground

On national road 393, near Turquestein, the engine of a truck was suddenly stopped again by a "luminous apparition." The driver, Mr. Schonbrenner, hands riveted at the wheel as if he was paralyzed, saw a kind of cone with a phosphorescent base, the tip of which was yellow-orange, which moved in the sky while lighting the ground.

Mr. Schonbrenner said he felt a warm feeling, as did other people in similar circumstances.

- Also in Lorient, a retired navy worker, Mr. Jean Roignant, saw a circular white craft which emitted white and purple gleams. It is a disc, orange in color this time, that was seen by Mr. Leonard Roumy, deputy mayor of Raveau. In Chevenon, near Imphy, Guy Chevrier only saw a kind of rocket.

Horses
intrigue
the "Martians"

Melun, 22. - Many witnesses, inhabitants of the regions of Bray-sur-Seine, Lagny, Moret, Thomery, said they saw a strange phenomenon after dark: an oval-shaped object, yellow orange in color, measuring more than 20 meters, at 300 or 400 meters of altitude. Note: the 20 meters would be the real measure of the object and not its size as it appeared to them.

The craft remained motionless for a while and disappeared at breakneck speed.

One of the witnesses, Mr. André L..., weather specialist, who lives in Thomery, believes that the speed of craft was in the order of 10,000 kilometers an hour, quite simply. M. L... clarified:

"I am absolutely certain, because I know this question well, that it is neither an airplane nor a weather balloon."

For their part, several riders from a horse center in La Rochelle claim to have seen a character flee from their park. "He was strange, they say. It could only be a Martian."

[Ref. cpd1:] NEWSPAPER "LE COURRIER PICARD":

Scan.

A WEATHER SPECIALIST
saw an "oval craft"

MELUN, October 22. -- Numerous witnesses, residents of municipalities in the regions of Bray-sur-Seine, Lagny, Moret, Thomery, declared to have seen, at nightfall, a strange phenomenon: an oval shaped object, of yellow orange color, measuring more than 20 meters, at 200 or 400 meters of altitude. Note: the 20 meters would be the real measure of the object and not its size as it appeared to them.

The craft remained motionless for a while and disappeared at breakneck speed.

One of the witnesses, Mr. André L..., weather specialist, who lives in Thomery, estimates that the speed of the craft was of the order of 10,000 km/hour, quite simply.

Mr. L... said: "I am absolutely certain, because I know this question well, that it is neither an airplane nor a sounding balloon."

In Melun itself, several young girls coming out of an evening class, claim to have seen an almost similar craft in the sky which, after having stopped for ten minutes, would have risen very quickly in the sky.

Also, a luminous ball resembling a car headlight appeared six times to two industrialists from Melun who were traveling on the Melun-Rubelles national road. The appearance of this luminous focus would have caused each time a very large flash illuminating the region.

Finally, several riders from a horse racing center in La Rochelle (Seine-et-Marne) [sic], claim to have seen a character run away in the park. "He was strange, they say. He could only be a Martian."

In the Charente-Maritime, on the other hand, a motorist from Cherbonnières was driving on the road to Sousou with his 3-year-old son, when he felt tingling all over his body similar to electric shocks, which increased as his car moved. The child, who felt the same discomfort, began to cry.

Soon the car engine stopped and the headlights went out. At the same time, a bright glow was seen, going from bright red to orange.

Blinded, the motorist could however distinguish a craft stationary in space for a few moments, then this one will disappear soon. Immediately afterwards, the driver was able to restart the engine of his car.

An optical illusion

In the department of Isère, in recent days, motorists claim to have seen, in the Morestel region, a mysterious craft which must have landed near this location.

Continued on 2nd page under the title Flying Saucers

Scan.

Flying saucers

(Continued from 1st page)

However, the next morning, a farmer from a neighboring hamlet noticed that a strange device was in a field. What increased his surprise was that an intermittent light emanated from the device.

It was actually a sounding balloon with its recording devices which included bulbs, whose light would vary, it is said, according to certain temperature conditions.

The farmer shipped the balloon and the devices to the address indicated on the attached sheet, that is to say the Observatoire de Trappes (Seine-et-Oise).

It is probably the luminous "saucer" seen the previous evening by motorists victims of an optical illusion.

In the Italian sky

Many discs, saucers and flying cigars were seen yesterday in the sky of Italy. Several people saw these craft moving above Milan, while residents of Perugia, Bologna and other localities of the North of the peninsula were also eyewitnesses of these incursions of flying discs or cigars.

The most precise testimony was collected in Naples, where two workers who were in the suburbs of the city, clearly distinguished an apparatus, of circular shape, moving in the sky at 800 meters of altitude, following a northeast direction.

The phenomenon lasted 2 minutes and the two workers were able to specify that the metal carcass of the disc was painted red and that white smoke escaped from it.

In Norway

Around Kongsvinger, a town about 80 km northeast of Oslo, several people said they saw several luminous objects crisscrossing the sky last night at an extraordinary speed, from west to southeast, disappearing on the horizon after a few minutes,

Some witnesses claim that these fireballs exploded in their course.

According to most observations, it is a giant fireball that ignites on contact with the atmosphere.

[Ref. nll1:] NEWSPAPER "NORD LITTORAL":

Scan.

The "LUMINOUS OBJECTS"
still appear
in the sky of France

Melun, October 22.

Numerous witnesses, residents of municipalities in the regions of Bray-sur-Seine, Lagny, Moret, Thomery declared to have seen, at nightfall, a strange phenomenon: an oval shaped object, yellow orange in color, measuring more than 20 meters, at 300 or 400 meters of height. Clarification: the 20 meters would be the real measure of the object and not its size as it appeared to them.

The craft remained motionless for a while and disappeared at breakneck speed.

One of the witnesses, Mr. André L ..., weather specialist, who lives in Thomery, estimates that the speed of the craft was of the order of 10,000 km per h., quite simply. Mr. L ... clarified:

"I am absolutely certain, because I know this question well, that it is neither an airplane nor a weather balloon."

In Melun itself, several young girls coming out of an evening class claim to have seen an almost similar craft in the sky, which, after having stopped for ten minutes, would have risen very quickly in the sky.

However, a luminous ball resembling a car headlight would have appeared, six times, to two industrialists from Melun who were traveling on the national road Melun-Rubelles. The appearance of this luminous focus would have caused each time a very large flash illuminating the region.

Finally, several riders from an equestrian center in La Rochelle claim to have seen a character flee from their park.

"He was strange, they said. He could only be a Martian."

The driver feels
tingling

La Rochelle, October 22.

A motorist from Cherbonnière was driving on the road to Pouzou with his five-year-old son when he felt all over his body tingling sensations like electric shocks which increased as his car moved forward. The child, who felt the same discomfort, began to cry. Soon the car engine stopped and the headlights went out. At the same time, a bright glow was seen, changing from bright red to orange. Blinded, the motorist could however distinguish a craft hovering in space for a few moments and then it soon disappeared. Immediately afterwards, the driver was able to restart the engine of his car.

In the Italian sky

Rome, October 22.

Many discs, saucers, and flying cigars were seen yesterday in the sky of Italy. Several people have seen these craft move over Milan. While residents of Perugia, Bologna, and other localities in the north of the peninsula were also eyewitnesses to these incursions of flying discs or cigars.

The most precise testimony was collected in Naples, where two workers who were in the suburbs of the city clearly distinguished a circular craft, moving in the sky at about eight hundred meters of altitude, following a direction to the northeast. The phenomenon lasted three minutes and the two workers were able to specify that the metal casing of the discs was painted red and that white smoke escaped from it.

In the Norwegian sky

Oslo, October 22.

Around Kongsvinger, a city about eighty kilometers northeast of Oslo, several people said they saw several luminous objects flying in the sky last night at an extraordinary speed, from the west to the southeast, to disappear on the horizon after a few seconds.

Some witnesses claim that these balls of fire exploded in their course.

According to most observations, it is a giant fireball that ignites on contact with the atmosphere.

[Ref. lon1:] NEWSPAPER "L'OISE-MATIN":

Scan

FLYING SAUCERS
CONTINUE THEIR ROUND
IN THE OISE AND ELSEWHERE

IT IS, in our region, in Noyon, in Morenval, and in Mesnil-en-Thelle, in the rest of the country, in the regions of Bray-sur-Seine, Lagny, Moret, Thoméry, Melun and the Rochelle, that "saucers", "cigars", "disks" and other flying craft - with and without "Martians" have been reported in the past 24 hours.

In Noyon they are young people and several other reliable people who claimed to have seen Tuesday evening, around 9 pm, "a mysterious luminous craft, having the shape of a cigar tapering at both ends and representing rather well the profile of a saucer."

The craft; which according to the statements of the witnesses was "of variable color, brilliant and indefinable", carried out, they say, vertical oscillations above the village of Vauchelles.

The phenomenon concludes the witnesses could be observed for half an hour, then the saucer seemed to dive towards the ground and disappeared behind the hills of Porquericourt.

Other witnesses

Tuesday evening, Mssrs. Baquet, a schoolteacher in the hamlet of Morenval, and Letombe, his neighbor, took advantage of the moonlight to hunt for wild boars.

Both leaving, rifles on their shoulders, they reached around 9:30 p.m. a cornfield located at the place "la pointe de Blérancourt" along the Tracy-le-Mont-Blérancourt road.

Suddenly, Mr. Letembe, looking up, saw a luminous craft in the shape of an "elongated spheroid"; which moved horizontally in the sky, at a dizzying pace. Mr. Letombe, calling for the attention of Mr. Baquet, the two hunters were able to follow for about ten seconds, the course of the craft which, without the slightest noise, continued its course from east to west, until it disappears on the horizon.

The same phenomena woas reportedly also seen more or less at the same time, by residents of Attichy and Carlepont.

For their part, Mssrs. René Didelet, technical agent at the S.N.C.F., and Omer Van de Sompaele, farmer, living in Mesnil-en-Thelle, declared that they saw "towards the south, a red sphere the size of a fist, which moved horizontally at breakneck speed, leaving behind an incandescent trail."

Numerous witnesses living in the municipalities of the regions of Bray-sur-Seine, Lagny, Moret, Thomery, also declared having seen, at nightfall, a strange phenomenon: an oval-shaped machine, yellow-orange in color, measuring more than 20 meters, at an altitude of 300 or 400 meters.

The craft stood still for some time and disappeared at breakneck speed.

One of the witnesses, Mr. André L ..., a weather specialist, who live in Thomery, estimates that the speed of the craft was of the order of 10,000 kilometers per hour.

Mr. L ... specified:

"I am absolutely certain, because I am familiar with this matter, that it is neither an airplane nor a weather balloon."

In Melun itself, several young girls coming out of an evening class, claim to have seen a similar machine in the sky, which, after stopping for ten minutes, would have risen very quickly in the sky.

A luminous ball

However, a luminous ball resembling a car headlight reportedly appeared, on six occasions, at two industrialists from Melun who were circulating on the national road Melun-Rubelles. The appearance of this luminous focus would have caused each time a very large flash of lightning illuminating the region.

For their part, several riders from a horse riding center in La Rochelle, claim to have seen a character flee from their park.

"He was strange, they say, he could only be a Martian."

Strange discomfort

Finally, a motorist from Cherbonnières was driving on the road to Souzou, near La Rochelle, with his 3-year-old son, when he felt a tingling sensation all over his body similar to electric shocks which increased as his car moved forward. The child, who felt the same discomfort, began to cry. Soon the engine of the car stopped, and the headlights went out. At the same time, a bright glow was seen, going from bright red to orange. Blinded, the motorist was however able to distinguish a machine motionless in space for a few moments then it soon disappeared. Immediately afterwards, the driver was able to restart the engine of his car.

Many disks, saucers and flying cigars were also reported yesterday in the skies over Italy. Several people said they saw these craft flying over Milan, while residents of Perugia, Bologna, and other localities in the north of the peninsula also claimed to have seen incursions of discs or flying cigars.

[Ref. lqh1:] NEWSPAPER "LE QUOTIDIEN DE LA HAUTE-LOIRE":

[...]

To finish, several horse riders of a center of La Rochelle claim to have seen a character fleeing from their park. He was strange, they say, it could be only a Martian.

[...]

Full article available here.

[Ref. usa1:] US AIR FORCE ARCHIVE:

The file of the US Air Force UFO investigation project "Blue Book" include a number of Press reports about the flying saucers in France in 1954, including this one, with no source reference:

Several horsemen of a La Rochette [sic] stable say they saw a personage running from their riding park. "He was strange", they say. "It could only have been a Martian."

[Ref. fle1:] FERNAND LAGARDE:

The ufologist Fernand Lagarde believed he found a connection between the locations of UFO sightings and the locations of earthquakes or geological faults.

He published a map centered on the Charente-Maritime department, with parts of the surrounding departments, with these cases (his list is incomplete) represented, all dates October 1954:

"N 150 between Saintes and Royan 10.54"
"Taupignac 10.54"
"Pont L'Abbé 10.54"
"St Savinien 10.54"
"Birac 10.54"
"Soudran 10.54"
"Tourriers 10.54"
"Angouleme 10.54"
"Puymoyen 10.54"
"Marcillac 10.54"
"Nessier 10.54"
"Béruge 10.54"
"Lusignan 10.54"
"St Maixent 10.54"
"Niort 10.54"
"La Rochelle 10.54"
"Angles 10.54"
"Luçon 10.54"

Map by Fernand Lagarde

[Ref. ubk1:] "UFO-DATENBANK":

This database recorded the case 8 times instead of one:

Case Nr. New case Nr. Investigator Date of observation Zip Place of observation Country of observation Hour of observation Classification Comments Identification
19541021 21.10.1954 La Rochelle France 21.30 CE II
19541021 21.10.1954 Larochelle France CE II
19541021 21.10.1954 La Rochelle France 21.30 CE II
19541021 21.10.1954 La Rochelle France 21.30 CE II
19541021 21.10.1954 La Rochelle France 21.30 CE II
19541021 21.10.1954 La Rochelle France 21.30 CE II
19541021 21.10.1954 La Rochelle France 21.30 CE II
19541021 21.10.1954 La Rochelle France

Explanations:

Map.

Probable misinterpretation.

Keywords:

(These keywords are only to help queries and are not implying anything.)

La Rochelle, Charente-Maritime, multiple, parc, being

Sources:

[----] indicates sources that are not yet available to me.

Document history:

Version: Created/Changed by: Date: Change Description:
0.1 Patrick Gross March 16, 2006 First published.
1.0 Patrick Gross March 5, 2010 Conversion from HTML to XHTML Strict. First formal version.
1.1 Patrick Gross July 17, 2010 Additions [usa1].
1.2 Patrick Gross November 28, 2016 Additions [ler1], [ubk1].
1.3 Patrick Gross January 2, 2019 Addition of the Summary.
1.4 Patrick Gross February 26, 2020 Additions [nnm1], [fle1].
1.5 Patrick Gross May 7, 2020 Addition [cpd1].
1.6 Patrick Gross June 11, 2020 Addition [nll1].
1.7 Patrick Gross July 6, 2020 Addition [jps1]. In the Summary, "October 23 and 24, 1954" changed to "October 22, 23 and 24, 1954".
1.8 Patrick Gross May 14, 2021 Addition [lon1].

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