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The article below was published in the daily newspaper Sud Ouest, France, on November 8, 1990.
(This is about the observations of November 5, 1990 at about 7 p.m.; of what were re-entry of a Russian rocket debris.)
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Faced with the tide of testimony; experts ask for a little time to give a reliable explanation
The experts of the National Center for Space Studies (CNES) need more than a week to try to give a scientific answer to the luminous phenomenon observed Monday night in the European sky.
They were struck by "the coherence, the concordance and the multiplicity" of the testimonies collected by the gendarmerie and the police on these "orange, yellow and green lights arranged in triangle".
The service of expertise for the phenomena of re-entry into the atmospheric atmosphere [sic] (SEPRA), under the responsibility of CNES, was charged with conducting the investigation.
Unlike the Munich observatory, who announced that the strange lights were caused by the explosion of a meteorite, the SEPRA does not rule out any hypothesis.
For its part, to better understand the nature of the possible phenomena or phenomena, the International UFO Data Basenk (1) invites the witnesses to send them a "precise and detailed description of the facts".
This database, created in 1986 by the secretary for research and special studies that has been in existence for some twenty years, asks the witnesses to share with them any direct or indirect evidence related to the appearance of these moving luminous "dots": the date, time, duration, precise location and detailed nature of the observation, if possible, a colored sketch as well as the description of any abnormal animal reactions, disturbances of the local electrical network, engine stop without known reason, etc.
(1) International Ufology Data Bank, BP 10, 92323 Ch tillon Cedex
Dominique Andrieux
French airspace is subject to the careful and permanent surveillance of the military. However, Monday night, a strange luminous object was noticed in the sky, at altitudes varying according to the testimonies. Contacted by us, the Army Light Aviation Specialization School (ESALAT) in Dax said "on the log book, it is noted that a pilot noticed odd lights. No trace was detected on the radar." Captain Muville, in charge of public relations, would say nothing more. Official version.
Another differs. It is whispered. In the military environment of Acquois, where one speaks of a tanker aircraft of KC 135 type, on a secret mission flying surrounded by fighter planes. In these circumstances, why would the radar set, operating at approximately 19 hours, because of a night flight of the Alouettes of Dacq, not have detected them. One thing is certain, even if it is not proclaimed under every roof. ESALAT pilots have seen an immense mass fly over them, equipped with white lights, arranged anarchically, a few tens of meters above their "propellers". At about 1,500 meters. Northbound towards Mont-de-Marsan. Where we know that the same report was made by soldiers to whom the hierarchy would strongly advocated silence. An aviator from Mont-de-Marsan was a little more precise still. The military man, who was flying, noticed the round shape of the lower part of the "aircraft".
"I DO NOT BELIEVE IT"
These descriptions are close to that of a witness. Mr. Georges Henon, retired soldier of ESALAT exposes "satellite or meteorite, zero. I do not believe this. I was fishing on the beach of Saint-Girons. I saw two thick smoke appear about 10,000 meters of altitude, above the sunset." And to add: "Moments later, the same phenomenon appeared but this time at 200 meters, where I distinguished red and orange lights." He was not alone. Mr. Henon pushes the nail down. "Mr. Gu rin, a retired airline pilot thought it was a big fret plane, he thought the plane was in trouble and wanted to land in Mont-de-Marsan. The craft made him think it would crash before."
We are far from the thesis of the explosive meteorite when it enters the atmosphere. An assumption that Mrs. Renee Fonsegrive of Capbreton does not want to believe. "With my son, we distinguished the contours of this thing, they were shining, we also heard some noise, like spitting sounds like a sound from a Moped".
In Saint-Paul-l s-Dax, St phane Penicaut brings his testimony: "The lights were flashing, there were more white than red, I felt that this thing was diving. It disappeared towards Mont-de-Marsan." Indeed.
