The 1954 French flap:

If you see landing
a SAUCER
bring us the Martians

- Oh! A saucer!

- No, it's a balloon.

- And I tell you it's a saucer!

... I would have liked him to be right, because, you will believe me if you want, I have never had the chance to see a single saucer, a flying saucer of course. But alas, it was really a balloon.

It gets really annoying, everyone sees flying saucers, or at least cigars imbued with indecisive gleams, everyone... except us, the journalists!

And they come to me at the newsroom.

- I, Sir, saw last night around nine o'clock, near the door of Bethune, "something that emitted a red glow"...

- You're lucky, I wish it was me...

- Laugh, laugh, don't you believe me?

- But I just want to believe, show me your "something" with its "red glow", so I also can see what it looks like.

- You can imagine that "it" is gone, since Sunday evening, but I can introduce you to someone who saw the occupants come out of the "thing".

- Huh! ...

And here we go, going to the witness'.

The "witness" saw nothing, but it was his son... This boy returned to the local school, telling that the teacher had seen, Sunday evening, a saucer land, from where came out little men no higher than that, dressed in shiny spacesuits...

All this, of course, is the kid's say.

But I will end up believing, me, in these saucer stories! If you find one, bring it to me, we have it examined and if you find it too heavy, at least bring the Martian.

The next day, we will make you a paper like that, in the newspaper and with a convincing photo, moreover.

A SAUCER
ON JEUMONT

Fashion is with flying saucers and cigars. These mysterious craft disturb the most balanced minds and often fanciful comments mark the appearance of these flying "machines."

In the evening from Saturday to Sunday, two residents of Jeumont wishing to remain anonymous, but whose good faith cannot be doubted for those who know them, stated to have seen while they were driving on rue de Solre-le-Château, in Jeumont, a strange-shaped craft in the sky; this saucer-shaped object, after having moved for a few seconds above the city, went up to vertically and was soon out of sight.

... AND IN
THE CAMBRESIS

Sunday, around 8:30 p.m., Miss Anne-Marie Pérut, 20, saw from her bedroom window in Cambrai, above the Couillet wood, a large fireball accompanied by another smaller one below.

She warns her father, a gendarme at the Marcoing brigade, who was very incredulous.

Shortly after, having left the house, he saw the same phenomenon which could be examined by his colleagues, their families and passers-by.

Originally, the fireballs had a spherical then elliptical shape. After a quarter of an hour, they disappeared, came back to disappear definitively in the form of a crescent.

Note that the same phenomenon was observed, at the same time, between Iwuy and Escaudoeuvres.

A GILDED HALF-MOON
IN
ARMENTIERES

Sunday, around 9:30 p.m., a mysterious machine was seen a few kilometers from Armentières.

The object appeared in the form of a golden half-moon, crossed in the center by a greenish line. It hovered above rue Fleury, at la Chapelle d'Armentières.

It was widely observed by the inhabitants of this district, one of whom provided himself with binoculars to better examine the contours of the "saucer."

But, soon, the luminous form disappeared in the direction of Fleurbaix (Pas-de-Calais).

A kind of beehive
posed on the road,
near Abbeville,
and a disturbing
dwarf spacesuit

Two young people, Bernard Devoisin and René Condette, domiciled in Vron, working at the Enterprise Delpierre, had just left Friday around 6:45 p.m. a building site in Lugescourt [sic] and returned home by bicycle.

Four kilometers from Lugescourt, they saw about 150 meters in front of them, placed on the tarmac road, a mass of orange color in the shape of a hive, with a pointed roof, which could be two meters high and which held the entire width of the road, about three meters.

Devoisin, who pedaled head on, even saw something moving on the left. He took it from afar for an animal, but which seemed to be clothed in a diving suit. It happened very quickly, and we can understand that in their turmoil, the young people did not have time to realize.

In any case, at their approach, the mysterious being, small in size, disappeared from their sight by circumventing the saucer, which set off immediately about 70 meters from the cyclists.

The craft disappeared quickly, without noise, and the two witnesses returned upset "pale as sheets" a mechanic said. Add that these are serious young people, well regarded by all, and their teacher considers them incapable of bluffing.

Multicolored half-moon
in Armentières

The sky of the Armentières region has also been visited by a flying saucer.

The thing happened on Sunday between 9 p.m. and 9:20 p.m. A flying object, a sort of golden half-moon, marked in its center by a greenish bar, stopped above rue Fleury, at Chapelle-d'Armentières.

All the inhabitants observed at length "the thing". It was, moreover, one of them who, using binoculars, was able to specify its shape. Suddenly the saucer moved away, after gaining altitude, in the direction of the Pas-de-Calais.

Almost everywhere

Also, it is reported in Beauchamp that the saucers were seen as red disks moving above the forest of Eu and above the wood of Auxi-le-Château.

***

In addition, an industrialist from the Vimeu, returning from a hunting trip in the Pas-de-Calais, also saw, an orange disc that he was able to follow for a while.

***

Finally, on Saturday evening, two residents of Jeumont who remain anonymous but whose good faith cannot be doubted saw a bizarre saucer-shaped object above the city before climbing vertically and disappearing.

Mysterious craft
crisscross the sky
of our region

Flying saucers, flying cigars, other mysterious craft continue to appear everywhere. During the last weekend, the presence of strange craft was reported in the skies of Côte d'Ivoire, in the Finistère, in the Deux Sèvres and in the Indre.

Many people, including the officers of the High Mountain School, said they saw for more than an hour a brilliant machine moving between Mont Lachat and Mont Blanc.

The pilot Guiron indicated that, flying at an altitude of about 2,000 meters, he saw a craft which, he said, said, had no resemblance to a normal plane. Moreover, the direction followed at high speed by this craft excluded the hypothesis of a sounding balloon.

Our region has not been spared either, and there were numerous reports of bizarre craft.

Weird object in the Somme...

Bernard Devoisin and René Condette, 18 years old, two young men from Vron, in the district of Abbeville, saw a mass right in the middle of the roadway.

Rolling at full pedals, to cover the few 150 meters that separated them from the apparatus, they saw it fly away while they were still 70 meters away.

Bernard Devoisin, who was pedaling at the head, saw a man dressed like a sort of diver, who bypassed this craft, which left immediately.

As for the orange "saucer", it was shaped like a beehive, with a pointed roof. It was about the width of the road, about three meters.

... and above Jeumont

In the evening from Saturday to Sunday, two residents of Jeumont stated that they had seen, while driving around Solre-le-Château, a saucer-shaped object which, after having moved a few seconds above the City, rose vertically and disappeared.

Many witnesses near Cambrai

Miss Anne-Marie Perut, 20 years old, whose father is a gendarme at the Marcoing brigade, a few kilometers from Cambrai, told the following story:

"Sunday around 8:30 p.m., going to the window, I saw two large luminous balls: a large one and below a smaller one. It seemed slightly swinging from right to left, like a balloon basket.

"I called my father who laughed at me. I insisted and, finally, he came to see and it was then that he alerted the other gendarmes present in the barracks. The families joined us and so around twenty people could see what we had seen.

"For a quarter of an hour we saw this luminous appearance comparable to the moon, but larger. Round, the object took the form of a cigar, then a crescent. It set off towards Villers-Pouich, then came back to disappear for good."

The gendarmes who confirmed this fact to us declare that this luminous ball could be at an approximate altitude of 6 to 700 meters.

Appearance near Armentières

Sunday, between 9 p.m. and 9:20 p.m., a craft, in the shape of a golden half-moon, barred in the center by a greenish line, hovered above rue Fleury, in La Chapelle d'Armentières. All the residents observed the craft for a long time. One of them used binoculars to better define its contours, then suddenly the saucer disappeared in the direction of Fleurbaix.

Landing of a cigar
near Lille

Sunday was the ducasse in Chéreng, a small town not far from Lille. At 07:20 p.m., a few locals saw a cigar landing on the Marque footbridge. The landing, preceded by a shower of sparks, was made without noise, but the craft disappeared before the arrival of the witnesses. With the joyous atmosphere of the party suggesting a joke, many people did not believe the witnesses' story - but the confirmation was made on Monday.

A saucer on the plate
of Lorette

Sunday around 9:30 p.m., several people were aware of the presence of unknown type of craft on the Lorette plateau.

Mr. Lecoq J-Bte. of Liévin, distinguished in the sky around the lighthouse of Lorette, a luminous craft having the shape of a crescent which oscillated slightly. He stopped several people to make them note this apparition. From this oblong-shaped craft, the lower part was detached and descended towards the ground and came to resume shortly after its position against the upper part. The saucer then descended into the valley.

A flying pot
in Ablain-Saint-Nazaire

A saucer was seen in Ablain-Saint-Nazaire, on Sunday evening, by Mr. Louis Lherbier, general insurance agent, rue Marcel Lancino. The latter being in his yard, was intrigued by the presence of a small reddish ball seeming to move in the air. He called his wife, as well as Mr. Robert Mairesse, an employee of the mines and his wife. The four people saw very well the thing which ultimately took the form of a pot turning on itself. Then after a few minutes, this strange object rose quickly in the air and disappeared.

Mysterious craft
crisscross the sky of our region

Flying saucers, flying cigars and other mysterious craft continue to appear everywhere. During the last weekend, the presence of strange craft was reported in the skies of Ivory Coast, in the Finistère, in the Deux-Sèvres and in the Indre.

Many people, including officers from the High Mountain School, said they saw for more than an hour, a brilliant craft moving between Mount Lachat and Mount-Blanc.

Pilot Guiron indicated that, flying approximately 2,000 meters above Faverges, he saw a craft which, he said, had no resemblance to a normal aircraft. In addition, the direction followed at high speed by this craft excluded the hypothesis of a sounding balloon.

Our region has not been spared either, and there have been numerous reports of bizarre craft appearing.

ODD MACHINE IN THE SOMME...

Bernard Devoisin and René Condette, 18 years old, two young people from Vron, in the district of Abbeville, returning from their work by bicycle, saw a machine in the middle of the road.

Rolling with all pedals, to cover the 150 meters that separated them from the craft, they saw it fly away while they were still about 70 meters away.

Bernard Devoisin, who pedaled at the front, saw a man dressed like a kind of diver, who bypassed his craft, which left immediately.

As for the orange-colored saucer, it was shaped like a beehive, with a pointed roof. It was about the width of the road, about three meters.

... AND ABOVE
JEUMONT

In the evening from Saturday to Sunday, two Jeumont residents stated that they had seen while driving on rue de Soire-le-Château, a saucer-shaped object which, after having moved a few seconds above the city, rose vertically and disappeared.

MANY WITNESSES
NEAR CAMBRAI

Miss Anne-Marie Perrut, 26 years old whose father is a policeman at the Marcoing brigade a few kilometers from Cambrai, told the next story:

"Sunday, around 8:30 p.m., going to the window, I saw two large luminous balls: a large one and below a smaller one. It seemed to move slightly from right to left, like a gondola balloon.

"I called my father who laughed at me. I insisted and, finally, he came to see and it was then that he alerted the other gendarmes present in the barracks. The families joined us and so around twenty people could see what we had seen.

"For a quarter of an hour we saw this luminous appearance comparable to the moon, but larger. Round, the object took the form of a cigar, then a crescent. It set off towards Villers-Plouich then came back to disappear forever."

The gendarmes who confirmed this fact to us declare that these luminous balls could be at an approximate altitude of 600 to 700 meters.

APPEARANCE
NEAR ARMENTIERES

Sunday, between 9 p.m. and 9:20 p.m., a craft, in the shape of a golden half-moon, crossed in the center by a greenish line, hovered above rue Fleury, in La Chapelle d'Armentières. All the residents observed the object for a long time. One of them brought binoculars to better define its contours, then suddenly the saucer disappeared in the direction of Fleurbaix.

LANDING OF A CIGAR
NEAR LILLE

Sunday was the ducasse in Chéreng, a small town not far from Lille. At 07:20 p.m., some residents saw a cigar which landed on the Marque footbridge. The landing, preceded by a shower of sparks was made without noise, but the craft disappeared before the arrival of the witnesses. With the joyous atmosphere of the party suggesting a joke, many people did not believe the accounts of the witnesses - but the confirmation was made on Monday.

A SAUCER
ON THE PLATEAU
DE LORETTE

Sunday, around 9:20 p.m., several people were able to realize the presence of unknown type of vehicles on the Lorette plateau.

Mr. Lecocq J.-B., of Liévin, distinguished in the sky around the lighthouse of Lorette, a luminous machine having the shape of a crescent which oscillated slightly. He stopped several people to make them notice this apparition. From this oblong-shaped craft, the lower part detached and descended towards the ground and came to resume shortly after its position against the upper part. The saucer then descended into the valley.

A FLYING POT
IN ABLAIN-SAINT-NAZAIRE

A flying saucer was seen in Ablain-Saint-Nazaire, on the evening of Sunday, by Mr. Louis Lherbier, general agent of insurance, rue Marcel Lancino. The latter being in his yard, was intrigued by the presence of a small reddish ball seeming to move in the air. He called his wife, as well as Mr. Robert Mairesse, an employee of the mines and his wife. The four people saw very well the thing which ultimately took the form of a pot spinning on itself. Then after a few minutes, this strange object rose quickly in the air and disappeared.

There was a very recent time when two people could not meet without talking about the endless rain that spoiled the whole season. The topical subject is otherwise interesting, since it is... you can probably imagine... saucers, cigars, mushrooms, wings and other abnormal craft which take their frolics in our skies of France. Very little elsewhere it seems.

But here, this is a bouquet! A small fireworks display, an uninterrupted carousel, and as soon as you have a newspaper in hand, it's to be interested in who has seen a flying cigar or a "Martian"...

***

Opinions are very divided on this. Some - such as my sympathetic neighborhood police inspector - admit this, to say the least, abnormal thing as scientifically impossible: he would like to see in order to believe. Many others are shaken by this avalanche of apparitions across the country.

I resolutely side with them. It is impossible that we do not witness tests of new machinery. Let's wait some more time to find out where they might come from, because we will one day know, what the hell! The Minister of Air will give us an explanation following the interpellation he is going to be the subject of these days, in the House.

***

Superstrong all the same those who designed these curious craft whose speed, I was told, would reach 13.000 kilometers per hour! This explains the concordance of the visionaries when they tell, like a well-learned cliché, that the craft suddenly moved in the air at very high speed... And we would like to know the rest of the information of a great illustrated weekly relating that one of these famous "saucers" would have been captured in Chicago, with inside, the small beings or robots who operate these weird machines, which, according to our colleague, do not have anything which recalls an engine. All this would work, it seems, thanks to the magnetic rays alone...

Strange really as much as strange, despite the "experiences" of a facetious Beuvry resident which our colleagues from Bethune attended, and wo appears below the practical truth. Thus, this brave baker from Loctudy (Finistère) said he saw a saucer three meters in diameter land at his side while he was drawing water from the well. A gnome got out of it, who came familiarly to meet him, tapped him on the shoulder, uttering incomprehensible sounds to our unhappy Breton. The baker returned to his bakery, where in the light, he noticed that his "visitor" had a hairy face and eyes the size of a crow's egg...

It was all told over the radio on Wednesday morning. Finally, the last visions of cigars, tops, discs, tails or flying wings are located in Tulle, in Paris (ah! Ah! ... the Parisians who took the people of the Nord for jokers when the guy from Quarouble announced his first encounter with the "Martians"...) in the Poitou, in Berck-Plage, in Marseille (but go believe these merry jokers...) in Concarneau, in Clermont-Ferrand (this saucer smelled of nitro-benzol), finally in Limoges, near Belfort, in the Somme, in Saint-Jean d'Engely [sic], in the Côtes-du-Nord, the Aude, Bergerac, in Nevers... Don't throw any more! But we must admit that never as much as recently, did we scrutinize the sky with so much interest. Were it not for the bad season, we would gladly spend the night on the balconies...

***

After what Robert Romain had seen three weeks ago in Maubeuge, other people from our region "saw"... For example, ask this taxi driver from Aulnoye who Sunday, around 8:30 p.m., with five people on board, saw on the road to Taisnières, a brilliant saucer, moving at high speed... His adventure was told to Police inspector Dusuel.

And what about our maubeugois merchant from the Rue de l'Hermitage, in Sous-le-Bois who, driving at high speed on the road to Valenciennes, on the Boiscrète side, was enveloped in a beam of light, the origin of which he cannot explain...

In Jeumont lastly, something abnormal happened in the sky, two night wanderers claimed.

***

All this does not fail to be very odd... As seemed fabulous, at the time, the shells fired on Paris - 120 kilometers away - by the Big Bertha... How it seemed incredible, thirty years ago, the development of radio... Even more chimerical that of Television. And yet!

***

Good advice, and your fortune will be made. If you ever see a "Martian", give him a go and lock him up in a fairground hut, but never let him take you away! That's the last word that my friend Leon gave me tonight.

Jean MABUSE

Saturday October 2 [, 1954]

[...other cases...]

: Jeumont (Nord):lum.sph.

[...other cases...]

Editors' note - The four straight lines are about the network of October 2, 1954. The first includes the places of: Jeumont, Dijon, Louhans, Morestel (On this straight line are also located: Chevigny en Valière (on 10/14/54), and Le Pin (on 9/16/54).

10/2/1954 - JEUMONT 59 type 3

In the evening, two residents of Jeumont saw a strange saucer-shaped craft above the city before climbing vertically and disappearing.

(Archives GNEOVNI)

There exists in several books, including that of Aimé Michel, "M.O.C." Planète publishers 1966, a certain number of cases of observations from the nord and pas de calais which are not included in this catalog since there are still many doubts about their credibility. These are the following cases:

[...other cases...]

10/2/54 Jeumont nord

[...other cases...]