The 1954 French flap:

SAUCERS (continued)

The guardian of a Penitentiary reportedly saw a "secret craft"

Low flying saucer activity over French territory in the past twenty-four hours. However, calm has not completely returned across the front, and some unidentified craft are still being reported.

The "saucer of the day" was seen by a guard at the Ecrouves penitentiary, Mr. Roger Thiriet, living in Blénod-les-Touls (Meurthe-et-Moselle). The jailer’s saucer is not exactly recent, since it allegedly appeared on October 10. But Mr. Thiriet remained silent for a long time, "fearing being mocked by his colleagues." Eventually, the secret became too heavy, and here is the account this level-headed man gave to the police:

- I was returning to the center on my motorcycle when, around 6:30 a.m., near the railway bridge close to Charmes-la-Côte, my headlight revealed through the fog an aluminum-colored saucer resting on the ground. The craft was 2 meters in diameter and 1.4 meters high. It was topped with a dome featuring two portholes.

"I immediately turned off my engine, but as I approached, the saucer rose silently into the air."

It turns out that on that same October 10, an identical craft was seen in Longwy, in the north of the department.

- It must be a secret weapon, commented Mr. Thiriet (who doesn’t believe in Martians), built by a foreign power. In my opinion, the craft comes from Antarctica.

A "flying scale"

Other craft were seen yesterday in various regions. A farmer from Villepinte (Aude) observed an orange disk for fifteen minutes heading west.

In Tréverec (Côtes-du-Nord), residents saw a saucer hovering over the sea. Near Aire-sur-la-Lys, a steelworker from the Isbergues foundry saw a luminous sphere slowly descend. When it touched the ground, the sky lit up. As for the mayor of Nexon (Haute-Vienne), he saw a very shiny metallic half-sphere flying at dizzying speed, without noise or smoke. A bright disk was even seen in Boulogne-sur-Scène by a dozen Renault workers. The phenomenon was observed in broad daylight for half an hour.

The prize, however, goes to two motorists from Royan, Mr. Labestière and his wife, who saw in the sky "a kind of scale swaying back and forth."

- The beam was dazzling green, the witnesses specified. One of the pans was red, the other orange. After remaining motionless, the two pans detached, landed in a field. Two little beings came out and, after crossing paths, switched pans. The "flying scale" then disappeared, pans included, in a blinding flash.

An Explanation for Flying Saucers: A Strange Phenomenon Observed After the Passage of a "Stratojet" Plane

VIENNE, October 20 (A.F.P.). -- A "Stratojet" plane, which flies daily over the Rhône Valley at an altitude of about 10,000 meters, was mistaken yesterday by some people for a flying saucer.

The president and instructor of the Vienna aero club quickly dissuaded the over-imaginative witnesses. But a strange phenomenon occurred after the powerful jet passed. In the sky, parachute-like shapes appeared, moving in bizarre ways and resembling light veils, which soon descended to the ground.

Witnesses seized this material, which was very soft to the touch and somewhat rubbery in consistency. Upon reaching the ground, it evaporated—likely due to the temperature.