The 1954 French flap:

A MYSTERIOUS CRAFT
landed, Monday evening
in Poncey-sur-L'Ignon (Côte-d'Or)

One of the witnesses assigns it the shape of a cigar

Very clear landing marks
have been found

(FROM OUR SPECIAL ENVOY CHARLES GARREAU)

From her bedroom window, Mrs. Thérèse Fourneret shows me the meadow stretching out at the bottom of a valley.

"It is there, to the right of the plum tree that I saw the thing. Distraught, I fled to my neighbor's, Mrs. Bouiller, taking my little Yves..."

In her haste, Mme Fourneret left the shutter and windows wide open; she barely took care to lock the door behind her.

The "thing" is indeed a strange apparition which surprised Mrs. Fourneret, a sympathetic young woman of 23, as she closed her shutters, Monday evening, around 8 a.m.

She lives with her husband in a house adjoining the asbestos factory in Poncey-sur-l'Ignon, where Mr. Fourneret works. The factory is extending

Continued on page 10, under the title
CRAFT

[Photo caption 1:] "It is above the wood that I saw the strange phenomenon", Mrs. Gainet explains, who, with her husband, her daughter and many neighbors, had seen on Saturday, a cylindrical luminous object.

Inset: Mr. François Bouiller, who saw the "cigar" on Monday as it flew off.

[Photo caption 2:] Mrs. Thérèse Fourneret shows the traces left by the craft where it landed. A surface of one square meter was stripped. On the edges of the imprint, the earth has been sucked under the grass, as shown by the position of our collaborator's hand. (Photo B. R.)

CRAFT

between the two wooded slopes of the hills, a few hundred meters from the village.

Monday evening, Mrs. Fourneret was alone. She was getting ready to put her toddler to bed, and opened the window.

What she saw nailed her on the spot.

At about twenty meters, a luminous body was swinging gently in the air at the height of the plum tree, as if it was preparing to land.

Its dimensions? "About three meters in diameter," Mrs. Fourneret told me.

That's all the precision she can give. She hardly remembers that the object was of an orange-yellow color, dimly illuminating the foliage of the nearby plum tree.

For an hour, Mrs. Fourneret and Mrs. Bouiller remained locked at home in double lock.

It is then that two neighbors arrived, MM. Girardot and Vincent. Informed, they armed themselves with their rifles and headed for the meadow.

TRACES IN THE EARTH

There was nothing left, neither craft nor marauding "Martian". But, less than three meters from the trunk of the tree, a very fresh imprint attests that Mrs. Fourneret has not been dreaming.

Forming a trapezoid, with quite irregular sides, of about 1.50 m. in height, 0.50 m. at its small base and 0.70 m. to the large, an entire area of the meadow has been stripped, exposing the land. On the fresh scratch, white worms are still stirring, cut in half.

The grass fell in clumps within a radius of three to four meters, following a vaguely ovoid line, which "roughly" follows the shape of the trace.

On its edges, the earth is "excavated" under the grass. It seems that this part of the meadow was sucked up with extraordinary violence, when the craft left, and that the lifted clods fell back in sheaves, like drops from a jet of water. Curious detail: a plant with deep roots remained, alone, in the center of the bare earth.

No traces of burns. No footprints around.

A SECOND WITNESS
SAW THE CRAFT GET AWAY

Yet the craft remained at least half an hour in the same place. Indeed, returning from his work, a young 18-year-old man, François Bouiller saw it as it was gaining altitude, heading south.

"I was terribly scared," young François said to me. "I saw this craft which sped in the night, taking on a greenish yellow hue as it moved away. It looked like a fuselage of a plane without wings."

François returned home, looking defeated. What he saw confirms Mrs. Fourneret's statements.

Other people in the area also saw the cigar when it left.

Alerted, the gendarmes of the Saint-Seine brigade came to carry out an investigation under the direction of Captain Millet, commander of the Semur section.

Photos and samples have been taken.

But will they make it possible to identify the object which in all likelihood landed on Monday evening in the meadow of the factory?

A PREVIOUS
SATURDAY EVENING

Would the region in turn be the target of the strange sky prowlers, which are reported everywhere every day?

We learned, during our investigation, that several reliable people, including the former mayor, Mr. Guainet had seen, on Saturday evening, a strange luminous apparition.

"I was finishing milking the cows, Mrs. Guainet told me. The dogs who usually stay with me had come out a few seconds earlier barking in the direction of the wood. One of them, Grignousse, came back to me, "all wrapped up", as I stepped out into the courtyard.

"A strange fact struck me: the courtyard was softly lit as by the moon in its waning.

"The moon is very odd tonight, I thought. Looking up, I saw, above the wood, a strange luminous craft, a kind of cylinder moving vertically and appearing to fly low. It was moving east at about the speed of a large airplane.

"Terrorized, I called my husband and my daughter Yvette. A neighbor joined us".

All of them saw the extraordinary apparition, the orange mass which was surrounded in green, slowly disappear behind the hill.

Several other residents witnessed the phenomenon, as well as Mr. Boucherot, who was in Pelbrey.

* * *

Mrs. Fourneret, who did not believe in "flying saucers", cannot explain what she saw.

But she hasn't changed her mind.

Mr. and Mrs. Guainet, on the other hand, who did not believe in saucers either, are now convinced of their existence.

Each his own truth!

A small "saucer" lands in the Côte-d'Or

Dijon. -- A resident of Poncey-sur-l'Ignon (the Côte-d'Or), Thérèse Fourneret, aged 23, came to declare to the gendarmerie of Saint-Seine-l'Abbaye that Monday night, around 7:30 p.m., she saw land in a meadow near the asbestos factory where she lives, a sort of spherical machine of orange color and it seemed to be "about the size of a large stove." Panicked, she took refuge with neighbors who, also frightened, remained caulked for nearly an hour before daring to show their face at the window. When they did, the craft had disappeared.

The police went to the location and found at the place indicated by Ms. Fourneret as that of the landing, clear marks on 1.50 meters ray; the grass of the meadow had been ripped in places and clods thrown to a distance of about 4 meters. Photographs were taken by the police.

There are the false saucers, but

A "POCKET CIGAR"
who landed in the Côte-d'Or
intrigues the investigators

[Photo caption:] These three saucers earned Garret Cashman (above) slight problems with the American justice system. He was launching sounding balloons which he tied together to a basket. They were mistaken for "real" saucers. Garret will have to answer for his antics. And about the way he got the balloons.

We laughed a lot about the flying pots and barrels, more or less "smoky" cigars that crisscrossed the sky, more or less hairy Martians who showed themselves to peasants of the Corrèze and showed to Brittany baker assistants a moving affection which is difficult to explain.

However, a simple "pocket cigar" of one meter in diameter which landed in Bour-

[Photo caption:] "What a pity," he said, "my saucers were so beautiful!" By his own admission, Mr. D'Oliveira, "Martian" of Portuguese origin, launched more than a thousand into the northern sky. They were paper hot air balloons with a flaming tow inside. The illusion was perfect. But one of the landing saucers almost set fire to a haystack. Which means that the manufacturer will be sued.

gogne and which did not leave the least Martian, shakes a little the skepticism of the official investigators. While they are not convinced, they are confused. Nothing more. Photographs were taken. It remains to examine them. Also disturbing the testimony of this engineer who claims to have seen a flying disc. He was an aviator and declared himself sure not to confuse a sounding balloon with the "flying wing" he observed...

The "saucers" file remains open.

*

(Read our information, on p. 7.)

Those who believe in it "triumph"

A "FLYING CIGAR" REPORTEDLY LEFT TRACES
in a meadow in the Côte-d'Or

IF the inhabitants of Poncey-sur-l'Ignon, in Burgundy, did not fool themselves, their testimony, supported by disturbing observations of the air police and the gendarmerie of Semur-en-Auxois, today brings to the supporters of the flying saucers an argument less questionable than conversations with more or less hairy Martians.

This time it is not a saucer, but a "pocket cigar". It was about a meter in diameter.

It was a young woman, Mrs. Fourneret, who first saw it on Monday at 8:30 p.m., when closing her shutters. The craft was posed in a meadow less than twenty-five meters from her house. Distraught, she took her baby and went to take refuge at a neighbor's.

The news spread. Ten minutes later, all the villagers, armed with rifles, went on a "cigar hunt". The craft was still there. When the hunters arrived in the meadow, the cigar had disappeared without any noise. An eighteen-year-old young man, François Bouillet, saw it take off.

- It went from orange to green, he said...

Photographed traces

The police found traces in the meadow. Over two square meters, the clods of lawn had been torn off and thrown several meters apart. These traces were photographed.

Investigators make no secret of the fact that they are surprised. There can be no question of a helicopter: the craft was posed at two meters of a plum tree; while flying, it would have animated the branches with the blades of the rotor. On the other hand, an airplane would not have enough space to land.

The testimony reproduced by our colleague from Coulommiers, "Le Pays Briard", is also disturbing. This is a letter from one of its readers, Mr. Farnier, former commissioner of the Aéro Club de France, aviator, member of the Society of Civil Engineers.

Mr. Farnier declares that he saw above his estate "Les Cailles", in Jouy-sur-Morin, a large disc of eight to ten meters in diameter, which was spinning on the spot, letting out red purple gleams.

A circular flying wing

"It was, says Mr. Farnier, about 400 meters high and it hovered over twenty minutes above me. It then disappeared in the direction of Coulommiers."

Mr. Farnier adds: "I was not the victim of a hallucination and this craft was not a sounding balloon, but exactly a thick, circular wing, hovering on the spot and then moving at very high speed by taking gradually height."

"My son-in-law, a polytechnician," concludes Mr. Farnier, "saw, he said, in the Grenoble region, an identical machine."

What finally to think of the "flying tureen" that arose - probably at dinner time - on the property of Mr. Garreau. farmer in Chaleix (Dordogne)?

Two men got out of it and shook hands with Mr. Garreau, spoke to him in an unknown language and caressed his dog before climbing back into their craft which flew silently away at a dizzying pace. At the place indicated by Mr. Garreau, the grass had been trampled.

We are starting to be a bit jaded about the apparitions of more or less quirky Martians, giant or lost, helmeted or wrapped in cellophane. But these were, according to the witness, perfectly normal men, dressed in khaki overalls...

Hallucinations, illusions, optical phenomena or reality, flying saucers, luminous cigars and other pots continue to "patrol" everywhere: in the Loire, the Eure-et-Loir, the Isère, the Côtes-du-Nord, the Calvados.

On the Spanish border

The Spanish border was yesterday particularly watched by mysterious craft. A Béhobie customs officer distinguished one from which a long green trail escaped. An officer from the Biarritz police force had observed one two hours earlier (4 a.m.); it was a round craft with two nozzles from which a yellow glow and a pink glow escaped; finally, at 9:30 a.m., a painter from Biarritz, Mr. Dimitri Ziko and two of his friends saw an oval-shaped object that left a trail of brown smoke...

In Hong-Kong thousands of Chinese, massed on the roofs, spied on a flying saucer which flew over the city. It was just a weather balloon.

A "FLYING BELL" MADE
THIS WOMAN WITH HER BABY FLEE...

"I saw the saucer, said Mrs. Fourneret. It looked like a bell! It was shining in the meadow "au Natole." I was so afraid that I ran away with the little one." All Poncey-sur-Lignon believes in the saucer which, the other evening, landed in the meadow of the mayor, Mr. Anatole Cazet. The "bell-saucer" - or the cigar - has left its mark. And in front of these traces, inexplicable so far, the investigators wonder. In the early hours, the police smiled skeptically. But after making a number of observations, they lost their good confidence. It is the first time, in France, that the "saucers" - if they are them - leave traces.

(Read on page 5 the article by our special envoy Charles DAUZATS.) (Photos Dorka.)

UNDER THE "NATOLE" PLUM TREE, THE MAYOR...

I SAW THE TRACES LEFT BY
PONCEY'S "BELL-SAUCER"

Unless they admit the complicity of an entire village, the police must recognize the strangeness of the phenomenon

(From our special envoy Charles DAUZATS.)

DIJON, October 8.

WHEN the "Natole", the mayor of Poncey-sur-Lignon, had, on Tuesday, around 7 p.m., called the gendarmerie of St-Seine-l'Abbaye on the phone to tell him about "his" saucer, the chef, on the other end of the line . hadn't seemed to take the story very seriously. He said, however, "We will go ..."

Later, he had indeed come. And the 140 inhabitants of Poncey, with the exception of Ms. Deschamps, who holds the coffee and the public telephone, and must, therefore, ensure the permanence of her cabin, everyone, seeing him arriving, had sighed of relief.

He didn't seem to believe it, in Poncey's saucer! We had brought him to the meadow of "Natole", next to the plum tree, where Mrs. Fourneret, the first, had seen in the night a mysterious machine which had left traces ... When he arrived in front of the rectangle of living earth - a hollow of 1 m. 50 by 0 m. 60 regularly weeded, as if scalped - when he had finally seen, within a radius of four meters, patches of grass 30 centimeters in diameter, which seemed to have been caught by a giant vacuum cleaner, then rejected, he had dropped, scratching the edge of the cap:

"There is still something out of the ordinary there."

And the 140 people of Poncey looked at each other with a look of victory:

- Huh! We knew very well... Shortly after the chief called Captain Millet, from Semur-en-Auxois:

- Captain, strange things happened in Poncey... A saucer...

A jovial laugh had greeted his declaration... But when the captain had also arrived in the meadow "au Natole", he had in his turn, called commander Viala in Dijon. And the commander in turn had laughed...

Today, Commander Viala is awaiting the reports of his investigators. These reports trace the story in detail. They are complemented by photos taken by the gendarmerie.

The case begins on Saturday evening. Madame Gainait, in her stable, milks the cows. When she takes out, in the middle of the night, a bucket of milk at the end of her arm, she sees in the sky "something round and red above the woods, in a tender green halo:

- I thought of the moon first, Ms. Gainait told us yesterday. I thought it was funny, though, this straight stick wrapped in light, so I called my husband...

And the husband came, then the daughter, then the son, then a neighbor. The "thing" was still shining there...

- It was like a hundred-liter barrel, says Gainait. A fireball on a rectangular veil with green and sometimes rainbow reflections. It moved noiselessly at the speed of a large plane... There is no denying it: it was chic...

On Sunday, in Poncey, one only talked about "the saucer at Gainait's". It even gave ideas to some... At the other end of the country, the son-in-law of Bouiller, a somewhat joking soldier, told all the women around the asbestos factory, who leavec alone at dusk, in the great silence of the valley:

"You will see the Martians!

You will see the Martians! They may come one day!..

This story of Martians, in a village at the bottom of his bowl, ended up impressing everyone. Mrs. Fourneret, in particular, whose husband, after working at the factory, regularly leaves to help farmers until nightfall. But she didn't want to let anything of her apprehensions appear.

Monday, one thought everything would be forgotten. Only here... Around eight o'clock in the evening, when Fourneret and the potato harvesters were having dinner with the mayor, Mr. Anatole Cazet, Bouiller's son-in-law had arrived, gasping, on his bike: "Fourneret. Come quickly, Yvette, your wife, is afraid..."

- You told her nonsense again!

No! She saw "something luminous" under the plum tree... I wanted to come into your house with my little stepfather, saying: "We are the Martians!..." And, in your house, no one was there! The Yvette, terrorized by a machine - a real machine, you know - is at a the neighbor's house: she is crying... And I'm not quiet either!

A bell or a cigar?

- It's true, said Mrs. Fourneret: when I closed the shutters, I suddenly saw something shine in the meadow "au Natole": it was like my cooker; it was a bit like a bell... I took my boy and went away leaving everything open!

Ten minutes later, at the Bouillers' home, a hundred yards away, the son, a strong, red-haired 18-year-old boy, also returned, capsized:

- Up there: a cigar... like an airplane fuselage... green, with yellowish reflections... Come see!..

He was trembling... All of this, of course, might have been just hallucinations, nonsense from women and kids. During the night, the Poncey farmers nonetheless took their rifles, to find out...

- Where did you see it, Yvette, your saucer?

[Photo caption:] Here are the traces left by the saucer-bell: two square meters of meadow where the grass seems to have been uprooted by a suction pump. The clods of earth (below) have been cut with perfect regularity.

She was showing the plum tree over there. And, under the plum tree, we were going to find the famous traces which, today, intrigue the investigators: a regular rectangle, hollowed out in the meadow as by a kind of formidable aspiration, which would have been "scalped" of whole patches of grass, then rejected within a radius of four meters.

No tillage implement could have done this scraping job. Boars or other beasts would not have scalped the ground as regularly.

3 WITNESSES
3 VERSIONS.

[Photo caption:] A BELL-SAUCER says Ms. Fourneret

[Photo caption:] "FLYING CIGAR" says Mr. Bouiller

[Photo caption:] A LUMINOUS BARREL assures Ms. Gainait

Is it a hoax? Several merry locals have been interrogated. They were far from the landing point, it is proven.

- Finally, specifies Mr. Fourneret, a detail struck me: we arrived on the ground after the departure of the craft. On the ground there were white worms twisting everywhere. The weather was cold: the white worms would not have withstood the temperature for long. The rectangle had therefore just been made, all at once, before our arrival, as by a giant suction cup...

Is it a natural phenomenon, a kind of wisp bursting in the first mists of autumn?

- The land does not lend itself to it, replies Mr. Fourneret. And besides a wisp leaves no trace...

It makes sense. So? In front of the rectangle, as in front of the basket of clods of grass torn off by the mysterious Poncey craft and collected as exhibits, everyone, today, loses his French, including a doctor from Dijon who came last night, to take, for analysis, some soil from the field "au Natole" and a young aeronautical engineer, from whom an examination has been ordered.

Discs, globes, cigars all over France

One saw, yesterday again, everywhere in France, squadrons of saucers, cigars, luminous globes and flying discs: in Corbigny (Nièvre),  in Montlevicq  and Saint-Plautavie [sic], near Châteauroux,  in Orthez,  in Saint-Bihy (Côtes-du-Nord),  in Chalette and  Dordives (Seine-et-Marne).  In Puymoyen (Charente) one discovered, at the place where a saucer had landed, twelve small heaps of ash in the middle of a circle of 'a meter fifty in diameter and, among the ashes, sticks. The gendarmes of Angoulême believe that these sticks are strips of tubular powder used in artillery.

THE "FLYING BELL" OF PONCEY

Three hypotheses:
saucer, hoax or
natural phenomenon

"We will have to clear up this matter..." said the gendarmerie commander

(From our special envoy Charles DAUZATS.)

DIJON, October 9.

"SEND the minutes relating to the mysterious traces of the Poncey-sur-l'Ignon phenomenon to Dijon, as a matter of urgency": such is the order sent yesterday by Major Viala to the investigators responsible for clarifying the enigma of the Côte-d'Or "flying bell".

- We need to clear this up, says the commander. Brigade reports will be forwarded to various authorities, the solution may depend on them. If one considers the facts reasonably, if one refers to the testimony of good people who, unfortunately, sin by their imprecision, or who, on the contrary, have formed an opinion after the fact, and mistook bladders from lanterns, we must, indeed, consider three possibilities:

"The first is this: one actually saw objects in the sky, but they could be helicopters. In our region, movements of such craft are not uncommon.

"Second possibility: the flying bell of Poncey, and its traces, are the work of pranksters. This hypothesis, I admit, hardly satisfies me.

"Finally, we must consider the hypothesis of an appearance of an extraterrestrial object."

At the Dijon Weathe stationr, the technicians saw nothing but very normal in the sky during the nights of Saturday and Monday.

Negative scientific reviews

At the Faculty of Science in Dijon, one submitted to Jaeger [sic, Geiger] a clod of grass taken from the meadow of Poncey-sur-l'Ignon where the bell-saucer was posed. No trace of radioactivity. No trace of metals either in another clod entrusted to the Institute of Geophysics.

The last word could remain with the airmen. General de Chassey, who commands the base in Dijon, received us.

"I have never seen a flying saucer, he tells us. But I know, from having tried the experiment, that it is possible to make very trained men believe in the presence of mysterious celestial things. One day, returning from Paris by plane, I saw under my aircraft a very curious optical phenomenon, due to the refraction of a pond on a cloud of mist. This mirage looked so much like a saucer turning in the atmosphere at 400 meters high that I alerted my mechanic who had not seen anything yet: "Look, slightly below us..." He remained dumbfounded for a moment, but, the plane passing vertically of it, he realized that he had been the toy of an illusion...

"Let's go back to the facts. Are these extraterrestrial craft? If they are piloted by beings from another world, these individuals are very little interested in knowing what is happening with us: each time we arrive, they leave. Their journey, then, is no longer understandable!

"New craft?... I affirm that if engineers had succeeded in developing them, that would be known in certain spheres at least.

Saucer psychosis

"Regarding the strange objects reported these days, I don't want to make any final judgment.

"I believe that in Côte-d'Or today there is a saucer psychosis, as in 39-40 there was, in France, a rocket psychosis.

"Certainly, there are some rather disturbing facts, in particular the case of three aviators from the 5^th brigade, in Orange, who all saw a saucer, chased it until it disappeared behind the mountain.

*

Near Mulhouse, an SNCF employee, Mr. René Ott, who went to work early in the morning, said he had seen in a field a hemispherical dome lit inside. It was three meters from the road and one meter from the ground, Mr. Ott, going away - he was only half reassured - had time to see a door open in the "bell" that followed him for eight hundred meters.

The gendarmes did not find any traces in the field. They discovered, on the other hand, near Reims where a mechanic, Mr. Joseph Roi, saw a "cigar" or a flying gun shell. He was going home on the night of Wednesday to Thursday when he saw a bright gleam before him; he thought they were car headlights. Suddenly, the light went out and at the spot where he had seen it Mr. Roi distinguished at the edge of the road an odd object more than 3 meters long having the shape of a large gun shell pierced by portholes; at the front stood a vague silhouette which he could not define. The traces noted by the gendarmes will be examined.

Luminous globes were seen yesterday in Bournel (Lot-et-Garonne), in Montpezat-d'Agenais, in Cherbourg, in Orthez. A baker from Marcillac-de-Blaye saw a reversed funnel that flew at 70 meters.

Martians are normal men:
they pet dogs...

Limoges, 7. -- A farmer from Chaleix (Dordogne), Mr. Garreau said on honor that he had seen a "flying soup tureen" land on his property. Mr. Garreau stated that two perfectly normal men, dressed in khaki overalls, got out, shook his hand, and spoke to him in an unknown language. Mr. Garreau, amazed, did not respond. The two men petted his dog and climbed back into their craft; which flew away silently at a dizzying pace.

At the place indicated by Mr. Garreau, it was found that the grass had been trampled.

... and have fun swinging...

La Rochelle, 7. -- A mason living on the Ile de Ré, Mr. Simonetti, said he saw a luminous sphere of 12 meters in diameter approximately which oscillated at about fifty meters from the ground.

The sphere, he said, turned red, turned blue, and rose vertically very quickly.

Two other residents of the Ré Island said they had witnessed the same phenomenon.

Two Parisians on vacation in the town of Mouchamps Mr. and Mrs Laroche, claimed to have seen, at nightfall, a incandescent sphere.

... and tear off the lawn

Dijon, 7. -- Mrs. Thérèse Fourneret, 23 years old, living in Poncey-sur-l'Ignon (Côte d'Or), saw, Monday evening, a craft land in a meadow not far from her home. She said that she was frightened and had been careful not to observe this phenomenon any longer and had taken refuge with neighbors. The gendarmerie revealed very clear traces on the ground at the indicated place. Clods of earth were allegedly torn off and thrown off on a four-meter radius.

Fantastic ray

Rouen, 7. -- Mr. Landrin, a water attendant in Duclair (Seine-Inférieur) who was walking with his wife, was blinded by a beam of light. When he opened his eyes, he said, he saw a ball that disappeared a few minutes later.

Things are flying...

Finally, saucers, cigars, discs, crowns, balls, lights, luminous streaks of various colors and all other objects were seen in Saint-Etienne, in several villages of the Eure et Loir, in Heyrieux (Isère), Dieulanvallon (Côtes du Nord), Ajort (Calvados) and in Biarritz.

A denial for
some observers
official

The flying saucer is not (always) a weather balloon

Melun, 7. -- Mr. E. Farnier, member of the Society of Civilian Engineers of France declares to have seen, above his property in Jouy-sur-Morin, a large disc of 8 to 10 meters in diameter "rotating on the spot letting red-purple gleams escape, with a hissing sound reminding a bit of the arrival of a jet plane. The craft was about 400 meters high and hovered more than 20 minutes above me, said Mr. Farnier, so I had the opportunity to examine it carefully. The craft then disappeared in the direction of Coulommier."

Mr. Farnier specifies: "Former commissioner of the the Aero-Club of France, having served in aviation, I was not the victim of a hallucination and this machine was not a sounding balloon but a thick circular wing hovering on the spot and moving at very high speed gradually increasing its height."

In the sky of the Oise

SAUCERS IN
TECHNICOLOR

and numerous appearances
throughout France

If they sometimes include scathing denials for those who believe in the existence of "saucers" - such as this joker from the Nord who confessed to having thrown more than a thousand... in paper - the file of the unknown craft is growing, on the other hand with new and disturbing testimonies, both as regards our department and the rest of France.

This is how in Bethisy-Saint-Martin Mr. Etienne Docolo, declared to have seen in the sky a luminous and glowing disc slowly moving in space and in La Chapelle-aux-Pots, twelve people claim to have seen saucers, last Sunday, around 11 p.m. 30.

The agreement was not made however as regards the color of the apparatuses which moved they say noiseless in direction North-West. Mr. Yves Quelcelin, residing in Marivaux, hamlet of Hodenc-en-Bray affirms, in fact, that the saucers were red while the person who accompanied him declared to the gendarmes of the Coudray-St-Germer brigade, that the gear was green.

Elsewhere, in our department, we report a rush of the - armed - inhabitants of Saint-Aubin-sur-Erquery to a place where the saucers seemed to move. But it was only a reflection of the headlights of a tractor.

Continued on page 10

MANY
SAUCERS
REPORTED

Continued from the 1^st page

Finally yesterday, Thursday at 8:30 p.m., in Crépy-en-Valois, four people saw a saucer heading towards Duvy.

In the rest of the country, said they saw saucers or other "cigars, barrels, or flying crescents": a mason, Mr. Simonnetti, on the island of Ré, as well as two other inhabitants of the island; two Parisians on vacation in the near town of Mouchamps; Mr. and Mme Landrin, in Duclair (Seine-inferieure) and various witnesses in Saint-Etienne, in several villages of the Eure-et-Loir, in Heyrieux (Isère), Dieulanvollon (Côtes-du-Nord), at Ajort (Calvados) and Biarritz.

In Poncey-sur-l'Ignon (Côte-d'Or), Mrs. Thérèse Fourmeret claimed to have seen Monday evening, a weird craft land in her meadow. The investigation by the gendarmerie revealed that at this location clods of grass had been torn up and thrown within a radius of four meters. As for Mr. Garreau, a farmer from Chaleix, he claimed to have seen a "flying soup tureen" land on his property in Chaleix (Dordogne).

Two beings dressed in khaki suits got out of it, shook my hand and spoke to me in an unknown language, adds Mr. Garreau, who specifies that after having stroked his dog they went back into their craft which flew away noiselessly at a dizzying pace.

The accounts of encounters with the passengers of saucers are legion, currently, but that of Mr. Garreau presents an unexpected originality: the passengers, he says, looked like any human being.

THE CHRONICLE OF THE SKY

LIMOGES, October 7.

A farmer from Chaleix (Dordogne), Mr. Garreau, said on his honor that he saw a "flying tureen" land in his property. Mr. Garreau stated that two perfectly normal men, dressed in khaki overalls, got out, shook his hand, and spoke to him in an unknown language. Mr. Garreau amazed did not respond. The two men petted his dog and climbed back into their craft, which flew away silently at a dizzying pace.

At the place indicated by Mr. Garreau, it was found that the grass had been trampled.

LA ROCHELLE, October 7.

A mason living on the Island of Ré, Mr. Simonnetti, said he saw a luminous sphere of about 12 meters in diameter which was oscillating about fifty meters from the ground.

The sphere, he said, turned red, turned blue, and rose vertically very quickly.

Two other residents of the Island of Ré said they had witnessed the same phenomenon.

Two Parisians on vacation in the town of Mouchamps, Mr. and Mrs. Laroche, claimed to have seen, at nightfall, an incandescent sphere.

DIJON, October 7.

Mrs. Thérèse Fourneret, 23, living in Poncey-sur-l'Ignon (Côte d'Or), saw, Monday evening, a craft land in a meadow not far from her home. She said that she was frightened and had been careful not to observe this phenomenon any longer and had taken refuge with neighbors. The gendarmerie recorded very clear traces on the ground at the place indicated. Clods of earth had been torn off and thrown within a radius of four meters.

ROUEN, October 7.

Mr. Landrin, a water attendant in Duclair (Seine-Inférieur) who was walking with his wife, was blinded by a beam of light. When he opened his eyes, he said, he saw a ball that disappeared a few minutes later.

***

Finally, saucers, cigars, discs, crowns, balls, lights, streaks of various colors and all other objects were seen in Saint-Etienne, in several villages of Eure and Loir, at Heyrieux (Isère), Dieulanvallon (Côtes du Nord), Ajort (Calvados) and Biarritz.

The Chronicle of the Saucers

If one were to draw conclusions from the saucer appearances that have been multiplying for some time, at least one would appear with obviousness: the "Uranids" seem to ignore taylorization!

Of all the nacelles used by them that landed on Earth in the sight of various witnesses, not one is like the others. Some are mounted on crutches, others

(Continued on 5^th page)

The chronicle of the 'flying saucers'

(Continued from the first page)

do not have a landing gear. Their shape varies, from the pot to the cigar, through the traditional saucer, and their diameter is never the same, ranging from 1 m 50 to 12 and 15 meters.

As for the occupants of these pods, they are often very different in appearance: covered with hair say some, tiny, very tall, similar to humaans. Enough to get lost!

Here is a new list of appearances that will once again show our readers the diversity of interstellar craft and the multiplicity of faces of their passengers.

PERIGUEUX. -- A farmer from Chaleix (Dordogne), Mr. Garreau, said on his honor, to have seen a "flying soup bowl" land on his property. Mr. Garreau stated that two perfectly normal men, dressed in khaki suits, came down, shook hands with him and spoke an unknown language. Mr. Garreau, stupefied, did not answer. The two men stroked his dog and climbed back into their craft, which flew away noiselessly at a vertiginous pace. At the place indicated by Mr. Garreau, it was found that the grass had been trampled.

LA ROCHELLE. -- A mason living on the island of Ré, Mr. Simmonetti, said he saw a luminous sphere some 12 meters in diameter that oscillated about 50 meters from the ground.

The sphere, he said, turned red, turned blue and rose very quickly vertically. Two other residents of the Island of Ré claimed to have witnessed the same phenomenon.

Two Parisians on holidays in the commune of Mouchamps, Mr. and Mrs. Laroche, have said they saw, at dusk, an incandescent sphere.

DIJON. -- Mrs. Thérèse Fourneret, 23-year-old, living in Poncey-sur-Lignon (Côte d'Or), saw, Monday evening, a craft land in a meadow not far from her home. She said that, scared, she had been careful not to observe this phenomenon any longer and had taken refuge at neighbors'. The gendarmerie revealed very clear marks on the ground at the indicated place. Clods of grass had been torn off and thrown on a radius of four meters.

ROUEN. -- Mr. Landrin, a water officer at Duclair (Seine-Inférieure), who was walking in the company of his wife, was blinded by a beam of light. When he opened his eyes, he said, he saw a ball that disappeared minutes later.

CHAUMONT. -- Mr. André Narcy, 48, roadmender in Mertrud (Haute-Marne) was going Wednesday morning to work on a motorcycle when near Voillecomte, at 7:15 a.m., when he noticed in a field at the place called "la Vieille Tuile", an orange object. As he approached, he found that he was in the presence of a craft unkown to him.

The roadmender stopped his machine, and by foot came a hundred yards from the object. It was then that he saw near it a small creature about 1m20 tall, dressed in a fur coat covered with hair.

Mr. Narcy was very frightened and lay down on the ground, then he called the individual. The latter, after turning to him, rushed into his machine that flew away vertically to get lost in the clouds.

According to Mr. Narcy, the craft was spherical in shape, about 10 meters in diameter. Under the sphere was a sort of spindle and the porthole through which the being entered the craft was just between the spindle and the body of the craft. At the departure of the latter, a kind of flame came out of the spindle while a large vaporous swirl occurred under the machine.

Mr. Narcy immediately went to work where he told his adventure to his comrades. With two of them, MM. Riel and Henry, he returned to the place where he found that the dew no longer existed on a certain surface.

The grass had a slightly milky hue and was crushed on a square about three meters apart. In addition, twelve parallel tracks resembling round footprints were spread out over a distance, suggesting that the apparatus had landed with a series of jolts.

Finally saucers, cigars, disks, crowns, balls, glows, luminous trails of various colors and all other flying objects were seen in Saint-Etienne, in several villages of Eure-et-Loir, in Heyrieux (Isère), Dieulanvollon (Côte du Nord), in Ajort (Calvados) and in Biarritz.

A roadmender from the Haute-Marne
reportedly saw a "flying
saucer" and its pilot

Chaumont, 7. -- Mr. André Narcy, 48, roadmender in Mertrud (Haute-Marne), was on his way to work by motorcycle when near Voillecomte, at 7 a.m. there he noticed in an path, at a place called "la Vieille Tuileries", an orange object.

As he got closer, he noticed that he was in the presence of an object unknown to him. The roadmaker stopped his machine and walked to about a hundred meters from the object.

It was then that he saw nearby a small being about 1.20 m. tall and dressed in a coat covered with hair. Mr. Narcy was very scared and lay down on the ground, then he called the man. The latter, after turning to him, rushed into his machine which immediately flew vertically to get lost in the clouds.

According to Mr. Narcy, the object was spherical, about ten meters in diameter. Under the sphere was a kind of spindle and the porthole through which the being entered the craft was right between the spindle and the body of the craft. At the start of the latter, a kind of flame came out of the spindle while a large vaporous eddy occurred under the craft.

Mr. Narcy went immediately to his work where he told of his adventure to his comrades. With two of them, MM. Riel and Henry, he returned to the place where he noticed that the dew no longer existed on a certain surface. The grass had a slightly milky hue and was crushed on a square about three meters aside. In addition, 12 parallel tracks resembling round footprints were spread over a certain distance, suggesting that the craft had landed by a series of small jolts.

Limoges. -- A farmer from Chaleix (Dordogne), Mr. Arreau, said on his honor that he saw a "flying tureen" land in his property. Mr. Garreau stated that two perfectly normal men, dressed in khaki overalls, got out, shook his hand and spoke an unknown language to him. Mr. Arreau, amazed, did not respond. The two men petted his dog and climbed back into their craft, which flew silently away at a dizzying pace.

At the place indicated by Mr. Garreau, it was found that the grass had been trampled.

La Rochelle. -- A mason living on the Island of Ré, Mr. Simonetti, saw a luminous sphere of about 12 meters in diameter, which oscillated at a fifty meters from the ground.

The sphere, he said, turned red, turned blue and rose vertically very quickly.

Two other inhabitants of the Ile de Ré have witnessed the same phenomenon.

Two Parisians on vacation in the town of Mouchamps, Mr. and Mrs. Laroche, claimed to have seen, at nightfall, an incandescent sphere.

Dijon, 7. -- Mrs. Thérèse Fourmeret, 23 years old, living in Poncey-sur-l'Ignon (Côte d'Or), saw a craft land in a meadow not far from her home. She said that, frightened, she had been careful not to observe this phenomenon any longer and had taken refuge with neighbors. The gendarmerie noted very clear traces on the ground at the place indicated. Clods of grass had been torn off and thrown within a four-meter radius.

Rouen. -- Mr. Landrin, attendant of the Waters at Duclair (Seine-Inférieure), who was walking with his wife, was blinded by a beam of light. When he opened his eyes, he saw a ball which disappeared a few minutes later.

Finally saucers, cigars, discs, crowns, balls, glow, luminous trail of various colors and all other flying objects were seen in Saint-Etienne, in several villages of Eure-et-Loir, in Heyrieux (Isère), Dieulanvollon (Côtes du Nord), in Ajort (Calvados) and in Biarritz.

In the Dordogne, a farmer
claims to have been approached
by two passengers
of a "flying tureen"

LIMOGES, October 7. -- A farmer from Chaleix (Dordogne), Mr. Garreau, said on his honor that he had seen a "flying tureen" land in his property. Mr. Garreau said that two perfectly normal men, dressed in khaki overalls, got out. They shook his hand and spoke to him in an unknown language. Mr. Garreau, amazed, did not answer. The two men petted his dog and climbed back into their craft; which flew away without a noise, at a dizzying pace.

A "saucer" and its pilot seen in Haute-Marne

CHAUMONT, October 7. -- Mr. André Narcy, 48, roadmender in Mertrud (Haute-Marne), was driving to work by motorcycle yesterday morning when near Voillecomte at 7:15 a.m., he noticed in a field, at the place called "La Vieille Tuilerie", an orange object. When he got closer he noticed that he was in the presence of a craft unknown for him.

The roadmender stopped his machine and, by foot, reached a hundred meters from the object. This is when he saw nearby, a small being of 1.20 m. tall and dressed in a mantle covered with hair.

Mr. Narcy was very frightened and lay down on the ground, then he called the individual. The latter, after turning to him, rushed into his craft which immediately flew vertically to get lost in the clouds.

According to Mr. Narcy, the object was spherical, about ten meters in diameter. Under the sphere was a kind of spindle and the porthole through which the being entered in the craft was between the spindle and the body of the craft.

Continued on second page under the title:
THE SAUCERS

THE SAUCERS

(Continued from the 1^st page)

At the start of the latter, a kind of flame came out of the spindle, while a large vaporous eddy occurred under the craft.

Mr. Narcy immediately went to work where he told his comrades of his adventure. With two of them, MM. Riel and Henry, he returned to the place where he noticed that the dew no longer existed on a certain surface. The grass had a slightly milky hue and was crushed on a square about three meters aside. In addition twelve parallel traces resembling imprints of round feet, were distributed over a certain distance, suggesting that the craft had landed by a series of small jolts.

Other "apparitions"

A mason living on the island of Ré, Mr. Simonnetti, said he saw a luminous sphere of about 12 meters in diameter which oscillated at about fifty meters from the ground.

"The sphere, he said, turned red, turned blue and rose vertically very quickly."

Two other residents of the Island of Ré said they had witnessed the same phenomenon.

Two Parisians on vacation in the town of Mouchamps, Mr. and Mrs. Laroche, said they saw, at nightfall, an incandescent sphere.

Mrs. Thérèse Fourmeret, 23, living in Poncey-sur-l'Ignon (Côte-d'Or), saw, Monday evening, a craft landing in a meadow not far from her home. She declared that, frightened, she had been careful not to observe this phenomenon any longer and had taken refuge with neighbors.

The gendarmerie noted very clear traces on the ground, at the place indicated. Clods of grass had been torn off and thrown within a four-meter radius.

Mr. Landrin, water attendant at Duclair (Seine-Inférieure), who was walking with his wife, was blinded by a beam of light. When he opened his eyes again, he said, he saw a ball that disappeared a few minutes later.

Finally, saucers, cigars, discs, crowns, balls, lights, luminous streaks of various colors and all other flying objects were seen in Saint-Etienne, in several villages of the Eure-et-Loir, in Heyrieux (Isère), Dieulanvollon (Côtes-du-Nord), Ajort (Calvados) and in Biarritz.

After the cigars and the saucers...

The flying soup tureen makes its appearance

Limoges, October 7. -- A farmer of Chalaix (the Dordogne), Mr. Gareau, claimed on his honor, to have seen a "flying soup tureen" come to land on his property. Mr. Gareau stated that two perfectly normal men covered of khaki suits came out of it, shook hands with him and spoke a language unknown to him. Mr. Gareau, amazed, did not answer. The two men caressed his dog and went up in their apparatus that flew away without noise at a vertiginous pace. At the place indicated by Mr. Gareau, it was noted that the grass had been pressed.

A red sphere

A mason, residing on the Island of Ré, Mr. Simonetti, has stated to have seen a luminous sphere of approximately 12 meters in diameter, which scintillated at about fifty meters from the ground.

The sphere, he said, became red, turned blue and rose vertically very quickly.

Two inhabitants of the Island of Ré stated to have been witnesses of the same phenomenon. Two Parisian on holiday in the community of Mouchamp, Mr. and Mrs. Laroche, claimed to have seen, at the fall of night, an incandescent sphere.

Blinded by a beam of light

Mrs. Thérèse Fourneret, 23 years old, living in Poncey-sur-Lignon (the Côte d'Or) saw Monday evening, a machine come to land in the meadow not far from her residence. She stated that, frightened, she had taken refuge at neighbors'. The gendarmerie noted very clear traces on the ground at the indicated place. Turfs had been torn off and projected in a radius of 4 meters.

Mr. Landrin, employee with the Waters in Duclair (the Seine Inférieure) who was wandering in company of his wife, was blinded by a beam of light. When he reopened the eyes, he said, he saw a ball which disappeared a few minutes later.

Finally, saucers, flying cigars, crowns and all other objects were seen in St Etienne, in several villages of the Eure et Loir, in Heyrieux (the Isère), Dieulanvallon (the Côtes du Nord), Ajot (the Calvados) and in Biarritz.

RAIN OF FLYING SAUCERS IN FRANCE

Testimonies on the flying saucers seem to become increasingly precise. Various people in the same area announce the same phenomenon and one can say that one has assisted for a few days to a true rain of flying saucers, cigars or discs on the entire France. A farmer of Chaleix (Dordogne) Mr. Garreau affirmed on his honor to have seen a flying soup tureen land in his property. Mr. Garreau declared that two perfectly normal men covered of kaki suit descended, shook hands with him and spoke a language unknown to him. Amazed, Mr. Garreau did not answer, the two men caressed his dog and went up in their apparatus which flew away without noise at a vertiginous pace. A luminous sphere 12 meters in diameter was seen in the Island of Ré by a mason, Mr. Simonetin. The sphere, he said, became red after having hovered within 50 meters of the ground, it changed to blue and rose very quickly vertically. The craft was also observed by two Parisian on holiday. Mrs. Thérèse Fourmeret, 23 years, inhabitant of Poncey-sur-l'Ignon (Côte d'Or) saw Monday evening a craft land in a meadow not far from her residence. She declared that frightened, she had taken great care not to observe this phenomenon longer and had taken refuge at neighbors'. The gendarmerie noted very clear traces on the ground at the indicated place. Turfs had been torn off and projected in a radius of four meters.

In Duclair (Seine-Inférieure) Mr. Laudrin, employee of the water supplies who was walking with his wife, was dazzled by a ray of light, when he reopened the eyes, he saw a ball that disappeared a few minutes later.

A roadmender of Mertrud (Haute-Marne), Mr. André Narcy, claims to have approached within less than one hundred meters a flying saucer posed in a field close to Voillecomte. He saw near the machine a small being, high of approximately 1,20 meters who was dressed of a kind of cape covered with hairs. Mr. Narcy challenged the strange character who did not answer him and threw himself in his machine which flew away vertically. According to Mr. Narcy, the machine was of spherical shape, of a diameter of ten meters approximately. Under the sphere was a kind of spindle and the porthole by which the being returned in the machine was just between the spindle and the body of the apparatus. At the start of the latter, a kind of flame came out of the spindle while a large vaporous movement occurred under the machine. On the spot he noted that the dew did not exist any more on some surface. The grass had a slightly milky color and was crushed on a square of approximately three meters side. Moreover, twelve parallel traces resembling prints of round feet were distributed at a certain distance, letting think that the apparatus had landed with a succession of small sudden starts...

Landing traces were found in France

LA ROCHELLE, 8. - A mason inhabiting the island of Ré, Mr. Simonnetti, said he saw a luminous sphere 12 meters in diameter which hovered at about fifty meters from the ground.

The sphere, has he said, became red, turned blue and rose very quickly vertically.

Two other Ré Island residents said they witnessed the same phenomenon.

Two Parisians on holiday in the town of Mouchamps, Mr. and Mrs. Laroche, claimed to have seen, in the dark, a glowing sphere.

Thérèse Fourmeret, 23, inhabitant of Poncey-sur-l'Ignon (Côte-d'Or), saw a craft to land in a field near his home. She declared that frightened she had been careful to observe this phenomenon longer and sought refuge with neighbors. The gendarmerie noted very clear traces on the ground where indicated. Turfs had been torn off and projected within four meters.

A Duclair, near Rouen, Mr. Landrin, attendant to the waters, who was walking with his wife, was blinded by a light beam. When he opened his eyes, he said, he saw a ball that disappeared a few minutes later.

Finally saucers, cigars, discs, rings, balls, lights, bright streaks of various colors and all other flying objects have been seen in Saint-Etienne, in several villages of Eure-et-Loire, Dieulanvollon (Côtes-du Nord), in Heyrieux (Isère), in Ajort (Calvados) and Biarritz.

A farmer of Chaleix (Dordogne), Mr. Garreau said on his honor that he saw a "flying soup tureen" arise in his property, Mr. Garreau said two perfectly normal men, dressed in khaki suits are down, shook his hand and him spoke an unknown language. Mr. Garreau stunned did not respond. The two men patted his dog and went up in their apparatus which flew away without noise at a vertiginous pace.

At the place indicated by Mr. Garreau, it was found that the grass had been trampled.

TRACE OF A LANDING.

PONCEY-SUR-L'IGNON (Doubs)

Mrs. FOURNERET: -- It landed there! Mrs. Fourneret wasn't laughing [?] the other night. She was shaking with fear! Closing her blinds, she had seen in the meadow, under her windows, a yellow-orange "ball". The time to alert her neighbors and for the men returning from the fields to go on a search, the craft had disappeared. But in its place, this broad [?] in the grass! The saucer's business card.

La Bourgogne Républicaine (Dijon), October 7: The landing of Poncey (Côte - d'Or), investigation (with photos) by Charles Garreau, regional correspondant of the C.I.E. OURANOS.

INVESTIGATION REPORTS

Poncey-sur-L'Ignon (C. d'Or. - France) - October 4, 1954 - Landing.

Investigator: Mr. Charles GARREAU, Member of the Studies Committee, Regional Correspondant C.I.E.O.

It was approximately 8 o'clock in the evening. For one hour the night had fallen. An inhabitant of PONCEY-sur-l'Ignon, Mrs. FOURNERET, a young woman aged 23, was on the point of closing the shutters of her bedroom.

She lives together with her husband in a house contiguous to the asbestos factory of Poncey, where her husband works. The factory extends between two wooded slopes from the hills, at a few hundreds of meters of the village.

On Monday evening, Mrs. Fourneret was alone. She was on the point of getting her young child to sleep, and opened the window.

What she saw nailed her on the spot. At some twenty meters, a luminous body was gently wobbling in the air with height of the plum tree, as if it prepared for landing.

Its dimensions? "Approximately three meters in diameter ", specifies Mrs. Fourneret for me.

That is all that she can provide as precisions. Hardly does she remember that the object was of yellow orange color, slightly illuminating the foliage of the nearby plum tree.

During one hour, Mrs. Fourneret and Mrs. Bouiller remain locked at home.

At this point in time two neighbors arrive, Misters Girardot and Vincent. Informed, they are get their rifles and move towards the meadow.

There is nothing left, neither machine nor "Martian" on the prowl. But, within less than three meters of the tree's trunk, a very fresh print attests that Mrs. Fourneret did not dream.

Forming a trapezoid, with rather irregular sides, of 1 m 50 approximately of length, 0 m 50 at its small base and 0 m 70 at its large base, a whole surface of pre like was like pickled, exposing the ground. On the very fresh abrasion, white worms are still agitated, cut in two.

The grass fell down in mounds, in a radius of 3 to 4 meters following to a vaguely ovoid contour, which roughly speaking follows the shape of the tear.

On its edges, the ground is "excavated" under the grass. It seems that this part of the meadow was sucked up with an extraordinary violence, at the moment of the departure of the machine, and that the raised mounds are repercussions in sheaf, like the drops of a water fountain. An odd detail: a plant with deep roots has remained, alone in the center of the naked ground.

No traces of burns. No prints in the neighborhoods.

And yet the machine remained at least half an hour in the same place. Indeed, returning from his work, François Bouiller, a 18 year old young man, saw it when it gained altitude, directing to the south.

"I was terribly frightened, young François tells me. I saw this machine which slipped by in the night, taking a greenish yellow color as it moved away. One would have said a plane's fuselage without wings."

François returned at his place, making a frightened face. What he saw comes to confirm the declarations of Mrs. Fourneret.

Other people of the area also saw the cigar when it went away.

Alerted, the gendarmes of the brigade of Saint-Seine came to carry out an investigation under the direction of captain Millet, in command of the squad of Semur.

Photographs were made and samples were taken.

I for myself carried out sampling of the ground, which I subjected to various scientific organizations of Dijon and Paris. Negative results with the Geiger counter.

The investigation lead by the gendarmerie of Dijon and the police force of the air could not establish with certainty the nature of what had landed. But it concluded to the reality of a landing after having drawn aside any possibility of a staged hoax or mystification.

The very next day, in Paris, I met Mr. Decker, chief engineer, director of the service of the special Machines of the Air Force. I told him of the strange story. Very disturbed, and without being able to decide, he also rejected any idea of trickery, admitting as "highly probable" the landing of an unknown machine.

Charles GARREAU

On October 4, 1954 at 8 p.m., a spacecraft landed in Poncey-sur-Lignon (Côte-d'Or). Our investigator Charles Garreau went to the scene and carried out meticulous investigations which made it possible to establish in a formal way that a landing had indeed occurred. His investigation report, clear, precise, without embellishments, did not fail to impress the authorities to which it was subjected:

- It was around 8 p.m. For an hour night had fallen. A resident of Poncey-sur-Lignon, Mrs. Fourneret, a young woman of 23, was about to close the shutters of her bedroom. (She lives, with her husband, in a house adjoining the Poncey asbestos factory, where her husband works. The factory extends between the two wooded slopes of the hills, a few hundred meters from the village). What she saw nailed her on the spot: about twenty meters away, a luminous body was gently swaying in the air at the height of a plum tree, as if preparing to land.

- Its dimensions? About three meters in diameter, Mme Fourneret told me. That's all she could give as precision. She barely remembered that the object was orange in color, (1) faintly illuminating the foliage of the neighboring plum tree. Distraught, Mrs. Fourneret took refuge, with her child, at Mrs. Bouiller's, who carefully locked the door twice! It was then that two neighbors arrived: MM. Girardot and Vincent. Informed, they armed themselves with their rifles and headed for the meadow: the craft had taken off. But less than 3 meters from the trunk of the tree, a fresh imprint showed that Mrs. Fourneret had not dreamed.

"Forming a trapezoid, with rather irregular sides, about 1.50 m. long, 0.50 m. at its small base and 0.70 m. at the large one, an entire surface of the meadow has been stripped, putting bare earth. On the very fresh "scratch", white worms were still moving about, cut in half! The grass fell in a clod within a radius of 3 to 4 meters following a vaguely ovoid line, which roughly skecthed the shape of a tear. On the edges of this, the earth is excavated under the grass. It would seem that this part of the meadow was sucked up with extraordinary violence, at the moment of the departure of the craft, and that the raised clods fell in sheaves, like drops from a water sprout. (2) Odd detail: a plant with deep roots remained alone, in the center of the bare earth. No burned traces around, no footprints around. Yet the craft had remained at least half an hour in the same place. Indeed, returning from work, an 18-year-old young man, François Bouiller, saw it as it was gaining altitude, heading southeast.

- I had a terrible scare! said young Francois to me. I saw this craft speeding through the night, taking on a greenish tint as it moved away. It looked like an airplane fuselage without wings.

"François returned home looking defeated. What he saw confirms Mrs. Fourneret's statements. Other people in the region, too, saw the machine when it left. Warned, the gendarmes of the Brigade of Saint-Seine carried out an investigation under the direction of Captain Millet, Commander of the Section of Semur-en-Auxois. (1) Photos and samples were taken. I myself carried out a sample of soil, which I submitted to various scientific organizations in Dijon and Paris. Negative result with the Geiger counter. (It should also be noted that no magnetic afterglow was recorded after this landing. My colleague Aimé Michel, author of Lueurs sur les Soucoupes Volantes (Mame), however, observed such an afterglow at the location where a lenticular spacecraft had landed. Afterglow - deflecting a compass needle by 20°! - generated by the powerful magnetic field of the spacecraft!)

(1) Color frequently observed in these ground-based spacecraft.

(2) See (chapter 6) the precise explanation of these effects given by Captain Jean Plantier.

- The investigation, continues Charles Garreau, carried out by the Dijon gendarmerie and the Air Police could not formally establish the nature of what had landed. But it concludes to the reality of a landing after having ruled out any possibility of staging or mystification. The very next day I saw, in Paris, M. Decker, Chief Engineer and Director of the Special Engines Department of the Air Force. I told him the strange story. Very troubled, and without being able to decide, he also dismissed any idea of ??deception, admitting as "highly probable" the landing of an unknown craft".

Signed: Charles Garreau.

This "high probability" is equivalent to certainty for us. We have, during our investigations, collected such a number of testimonies relating to landings that the slightest doubt is no longer allowed to us. A day will come when these spacecraft will land in a city, in a large public square, in order to no longer test the reactions of an isolated witness but to observe the reactions of a large number of people. Once the experiment has been carried out, the spacecraft will take off, to start its "test" again in another city. It is not ridiculous to portray the next phase of Uranian activity in this way. This new series of "tests" will probably precede the long-awaited official and public contact.

(1) I personally had a long interview with Captain Millet who made me aware of the gendarmerie's investigation report and showed me the photographs of the revealing traces. Captain Millet did not hide from me that the witnesses, still very impressed during his investigation, seemed sincere to him.

"On a surface of 1,50 meters long, 70 centimeters broad at its base and 50 at its end, the ground seemed to have been sucked up. On the very fresh abrasion, white worms were still agitated. The torn off ground was widespread all around the hole in mounds of 30 centimeters in diameter on a radius of 4 meters approximately. On the internal edge of the hole, mounds hung towards the inside: the ground had been eroded underneath, so that at half of its average depth, the surface of the hole was larger than on the level of the ground. But, more astonishing, no trace of instrument explained the extraction of this mass of ground. Even better (and it is that especially which could never be explained): the small roots and rootlets of this fertile Burgundian soil were intact on all of the internal surface of the hole; none was cut, as if it would have been the case if one had dug the excavation with any known means. A detail struck everyone: in the medium of the hole, a plant with deep root was laid down, attached to the ground at its bottom by the end of its root, rootlets in the air, without any damages. In short, all happened as if the ground mass spread in the grass around the hole had been sucked by a gigantic vacuum cleaner. Same characteristics on the mounds scattered around in the grass: neither cut roots, nor traces of instrument, no burns, no prints. Many people tried to reproduce the phenomenon since. With no success."

OBSERVATIONS 1954

October 4

[... other cases...]

08:00 p.m.: Poncey-sur-L'Ignon (Côte-d'Or): Lum.Ooj.lenticular/trace/ground

[... other cases...]

October 4, 1954: Poncey-sur-L'Ignon (6 km ISL at the NNW of Saint-Seine-l'Abbaye--Côte-d'Or): Mrs. Yvette Fourneret and François Bouillet (lenticular UAP + earth torn off in a rectangle of 1,50 vy 0,50 m)

It was about 8 p.m. on 4 October, 1954. The place Poncey-sur-Lignon, France. "About twenty yards from the house, in M Cazet's meadow, a luminous body was balancing itself lightly in the air, to the right of the plum tree, as if preparing to land. As well as I was able to judge, this object was about three yards in diameter, seemed elongated, horizontal, and orange coloured. Its luminosity threw a pale light on the branches and leaves of the tree." The witness had made a noise which seemed to disturb the strange vehicle, for it had immediately taken off "forward and upward at prodigious speed, leaving a gaping hole in the ground over which it had hovered." Over an area, a yard and a half long, 27 inches wide at one end, 20 inches at the other, the ground appeared "to have been sucked up."

"On the fresh soil of this hole, white worms wriggled. The earth that had been torn out was scattered all round the hole, in clods ten or twelve inches across, over a radius of about four yards. On the inner edge of the hole, similar clods hung down; the earth had been pulled out in such a way, that about half way down, the hole was wider than at ground level. In short, it looked just as if the mass of earth spread over the surrounding grass had been sucked out by a gigantic vacuum."

In Poncey-sur-l'Ignon, in 1954, the ground itself was like sucked up. This "impossible hole" was gazed in amazement by the constabulary, the air force and many investigators.

Another landing which does not involve operators of any kind but which, nevertheless, is one of the most interesting of all those recorded in the files of UFO buffs, took place at 8 P.M. on October 4 at the village of Poncey-sur-l'Ignon. On the evening of the 5th, the mayor called St.-Seine and reported that a flying saucer had landed the night before, that many people had seen it, and further, that it had left unexplainable marks.

This sort of case, as well as the "flying balance" incident, is the type with which UFO buffs love to confront the skeptics, for it is not easily explainable by any stretch of the most agile imagination.

But back to Poncey-sur-I'Ignon. At 8 P.M. M. Fourneret and some potato pickers were at Mayor M. Cazet's house when a villager rode up on his bicycle, obviously agitated and out of breath. He told Fourneret that his wife Yvette had seen something in the field in front of the house and that she had become terrified and had run next door to the home of the Bouillers. Within a matter of minutes a fair-sized crowd was gathered at the Fourneret place where Yvette Fourneret, her young son, the Bouillers, and two other neighbors, M. Girardot and M. Vincent, were excitedly talking over what had happened.

Mme. Fourneret told her story to the police chief of St.-Seine, Captain Millet of Semur-en-Auxois, Commander Viala of Dijon, and Mr. Charles Garreau, also of Dijon, who is a collaborator of Aime Michel's. Civil air authorities of Dijon, elements of the French Air Force, a professor at the University of Dijon, and General de Chassey, commanding officer of the Air Force contingent at Dijon, all were involved in the investigation. Michel himself made tests at the Radium Institute in Paris.

Briefly, the story is this: Mme. Fourneret had been in the house and had started toward the window to close it when she saw a luminous body balancing itself in the air near a plum tree and it seemed about to land. She estimated its diameter as about three yards, it was elongated and orange-colored. The light from the object illuminated the branches and leaves of the tree.

Terror-stricken, Mme. Foumeret grabbed her son, ran to the Bouillers' house where she and Mme. Bouiller closed the door. Girardot and Vincent arrived, and after hearing the story, got their shotguns and ran toward the meadow, but when they got there the object was gone.

But it had left traces. An area measuring twenty-seven inches wide at one end, twenty inches at the other, and extending about a yard and a half, appeared to have been "sucked up" out of the ground. Wiggling white worms were found in the fresh soil, and the earth that had been tom out was scattered around the hole, the clods ten or twelve inches across and spread over a radius of about four yards. On the inner edge of this hole other clods hung down; it appeared that the earth had been sucked out in such a manner that about halfway down in the hole it was wider than it was at the top.

No one was able to explain how the hole had been made. Attempts -were made later to duplicate the hole but to no avail. Tests for radiation revealed nothing, and examination of the dirt itself yielded nothing unusual.

Michel, as a part of his report on the Poncey-sur-l'Ignon incident, theorized what could have caused the hole to be made in such a peculiar way, and it is related to the theory of Jean Plantier (La Propulsion des Soucoupes Volantes, Paris, 1955), which is gone into to some extent in Michel's first book, The Truth about the Flying Saucers.

194) 4 Octobre 1954, 08:00 p.m., Poncey-Sur-l'Ignon (France):

Mrs. Fourneret, housewife, flee at the sight of a circular orange object 3 meters in diameters, balancing itself in the air and which landed close to her farm. When Mr. Girardot and Mr. Vincent arrived with their rifles, they found that the ground "had been sucked up" on the surface of a quadrilateral. Mr. François Bouillier confirmed to have seen a luminous object in flight. An investigation was carried out by the Gendarmerie and the French Air Force. (Franc-Tireur, l'Aurore, Libération, 7 Oct,; France-Soir, Paris-Presse, 8 oct. 1954. Anatomy 71)

[Sketches caption:] (Investigation by J. TYRODE - Sketches from photographic documents taken on October 6, 1954. Object drawn by the witness, who saw it from her window, on the other side of the plum tree).

Poncey-sur-l'Ignon, France (8.00 p.m., October 2, 1954

Mme. Guainet was milking her cows in the byre, when her dogs, which usually stayed near her while she milked, rushed out towards the woods, baying. she followed, and saw a vast illuminated "cigar" craft flying low.

Aimé Michel: Flying Saucers and the Straight Line Mystery, p. 109.

When hovering, the saucer often wobbles (Contay September 7, 1954) or sways (Poncey October 4, 1954).

Oct 04, 1954

075 2000

FRANCE, Poncey-sur-Lignon. Mrs. Fourneret ran away as an orange, circular object 10 ft. in diameter swung in mid-air and landed near her farm. When two other arrived with rifles, they found that the earth had been sucked up over a quadrilateral area. François Bouiller confirmed he had seen a luminous object in flight. (Vallee III)

10/041954 Poncey sur l'Ignon (Côte d'Or)

Case already reported. Around 8 p.m., Mrs. Fourneret saw a luminous body swaying gently in the air as if preparing to land... (A. Michel)

10/04/1954 Poncey sur l'Ignon (Côte d'Or)

Around 8 p.m., Madame Fourneret saw a luminous body which swayed gently as if to land. She fled. Neighbors armed themselves with guns and went to the scene. There was "nothing left..., but there was still a very fresh trace. On a surface 1.50m long, 70cm wide at the base and 50cm wide at its end, the ground had been sucked up. On fresh scratch, grubs were churning around. The torn earth was spread all around the hole in clods of 30cm on a radius of 4m. On the inner edge of the hole, clods were hanging inwards, the earth had been scoured from below, so that halfway up its depth, the surface of the hole was larger than at ground level... The rootlets had not been severed... no burning, no footprint..."

Relying on Plantier's theory, Aimé Michel comments on this case as follows: "Suppose that Plantier's craft stops one meter from the ground of a meadow by creating an antigravitational field equal to gravity... It neither rises nor descends... It can therefore be slightly swayed by the lift that its field creates in the ambient atmosphere... (the craft was swinging) At one point, the "pilot... decides to start, it will increase the intensity of the vertical force field... We must imagine two cases: either it increases its force field slightly and starts slowly... without leaving traces or in lifting a few twigs caught in his field. Or, it suddenly creates an enormous field... and it starts up at lightning speed. But in this case, at the same time, all the space neighboring the craft undergoes the effects of the field. One meter below him, the ground tends to fly away. It falls upwards...... (M.O.C. pages 224 to 232)

We do not share this opinion. By reaction, the force field of the "Flying Saucer... can only push back the ground below the craft. Moreover, the force fields envisaged by Plantier have the form of spheres or concentric ovoids of decerasing intensity. In any case they could not have produced a hole of such a geometric structure. At most they could have "teared out"... a space of earth having the shape of a spherical cap. We believe Poncey's hole is a deliberate action. The "occupants" of the "Flying Saucer" were "looking" for something. This hole is the result of a work. It was produced by a tool... A non-human tool perhaps acting on a structured force field, but in no case can it be the result or the consequence of the lifting force field. There are many other traces whose cause cannot be explained by a propulsion system, however complex it may be.

October 4th. Poncey, France. (8:00 p.m.)

"Fourneret, come quickly!"

The mayor of Poncey, M. Cazet, had invited several villagers to dine at his home the evening of October 4th. The men were eating and socializing when they were rudely interrupted at 8:00 p.m. as a messenger arrived with bad news for one of the mayor's guests, a M. Fourneret, who learned his wife had suffered a bad fright and had fled to a neighbor's house. "Fourneret, come quickly," pleaded the messenger who was panting violently after a frantic ride on his bicycle. There was a mad scramble to M. Fourneret's neighbors, the Bouillers, as the mayor and the other men around the table dropped their silverware and ran after Foutneret who was doing his best to get home as fast as possible. When the men arrived at the Bouiller's, they met some other people from the village that had gathered to render aid and comfort: M. Girardo, M. Vincent, and Mme. Strasdot. M. Fourtneret found his wife Yvette, terrified but otherwise O.K. Yvette's story follows:

"It was about 8:00 p.m. Night had already fallen. I walked over to the window to close the shutters and it was then that I saw the 'thing' I happened to glance outside.

"About 65 feet in front of the house, in M. Cazet's field, a luminous body was swaying lightly in the air near the plum tree, as if getting ready to land. As near as I could judge it was about 10 feet in diameter, was an elongated form in a horizontal position and was of orange color. It glowed rather feebly, but enough to light the branches of the nearby trees.

"Scared to death, I took the little one and we ran to Mme. Bouiller's my neighbor, where we closed the door. M. Girardo and M. Vincent arrived by chance. Seeing our fright they asked what had happened. After we told them they armed themselves with rifles and ran toward the field. There was nothing there. But on examining the ground they found a fresh track proving that I had not been dreaming." 46.

We have to make one correction here. The "track" left by the object was much more than that, it was a huge hole, a hole impressive enough to attract investigators from all over the country!

The crowd at the Bouiller's house went to the site of the supposed landing, and while they stood around talking, the Bouiller's 18-year-old son ran up bursting to tell what had happened to him moments earlier. Ignorant of the excitement at the Fourneret's, the youth exclaimed that a "luminous machine" of a greenish color had zoomed passed him as he approached the village on his way home. 47.

• 46. Michel, Aime. "Flying Saucers in Europe." Fate. December 1957. Vol.10, No.12. Issue #93. ed. Mary Fuller. Evanston, 111. p.34. (press account quoted)
• 47. Ibid, p.35.

3969: 1954/10/04 19:30 20 4:46:00 E 47:30:00 N 3333 WEU FRN CDO 9:A

PONCEY-SUR-l'IGNON,FR:3M SCR LANDS/FARM:1M3/SOIL SUCKED UP+CAST ASIDE:NOT DUG

Ref# 2 VALLEE:UFOS IN SPACE:Anatomy/phenon. Page No. 98 : FARMLANDS

"Two days later, in the same small village, on Monday, October 4, at 19h30, Mrs. Fourneret, while she was going to close the shutters, saw, at 50 m, as posed at the top of a plum tree in the nearby field, a disc flattened at both ends which emitted a soft orange light. Frightened, Mrs. Fourneret took her baby and fleed at a neighbor's where they locked themselves up during an hour while waiting for their husbands. Armed with rifles and equipped with flashlights, the latter checked the location. They would discover a rectangular surface of 1,50m X 0,60m in the field, regularly weeded and the ground as rammed. On a ten meters circumference, in circle, lumps of earth were torn off then scattered. Oddly, the perennials plants such as the dandelions and the grass remained rooted. Two other inhabitants, who had not seen the machine, noted that the ground had been sucked up. During 4 years nothing grew in this place. Did the previous craft return and land, (which would explain the vacuum cleaning of the rectangular surface)? No one will never know! In this October 1954, other observations were made in the area: on 10 in Epoisse, on 11 in Lacanche, on the 14 in Meursanges, on the 16 in Saulieu."

October 1954

Monday October 4: in Poncey, Mrs. Fourneret and her son see a lengthened body emitting an orange light, 3 m broad, land at 18 m of their house. They flee. A little later armed neighbors invest the place and discover a large hole, very recent, whose appearance lets think that the ground was sucked up. One finds the missing ground nowhere.

A case which was carefully investigated and later documented in Aime Michel’s excellent book Flying Saucers and the Straight Line Mystery (New York, Criterion Books, 1958) bears considerable resemblance, at least where the physical traces are concerned, to the Rosmead incident.

October 4, 1954:

On October 4, 1954, Madame Yvette Fourneret of Poncey, France, walked toward a window to close it. The time was approximately 8 p.m. and, she saw, about 20 yards from the house in the Cazet's meadow, a luminous body which appeared to be balancing lightly in the air to the right of a plum tree, as if preparing to land. She estimated that the object was about 3 yards in diameter, elongated, horizontal, and orange-coloured. The glow from the object threw a pale light on the branches and leaves of the plum tree. Frightened, she seized her son and ran next door to a friend's house where they tightly closed the door. At that point, two neighbours arrived, and seeing how frightened the women were, asked and were told what had happened. Armed with shotguns, the men ran toward the meadow, but when they arrived there, they found no object, but rather a very strange hole.

Mr. Fourneret had been at a meeting at the Mayor of Poncey’s house and was sent for. The men then went about examining the hole in Mayor Cazet's meadow. What they found was strange indeed. An area measuring 27 inches wide at one end and 20 inches at the other appeared to have been "sucked up". White worms wriggled on the fresh soil of the hole, and the earth that had been torn up was scattered all around the hole in clumps 10 to 12 inches across over a radius of approximately 4 yards. On the inner edge of the hole, similar clods hung down, and the soil had been pulled out in such a manner that about halfway down, the aperture was wider than at ground level. There was no trace of any instrument which could account for the extraction of the earth and also the tiny roots and rootlets in the soil were intact everywhere on the surface of the hole. None had been cut, as would have been the case had an excavation taken place.

Another detail was outstanding: in the centre of the holes lay a plant with a long root which was still attached by the end of the root to the soil at the bottom of the hole with all its rootlets exposed to the air and completely undamaged. It appeared that the mass of earth spread over the surrounding grass had been sucked out by a gigantic vacuum. The same was true of the earth which was strewn about on the grass. There were no cut roots, no trace of an implement, no evidence of burning, and no impressions in the ground. Many attempts were made to duplicate the hole but were met with no success.

During the next few days, it was learned that many of the citizens in the area had seen a luminous object rise on one side of Poncay and shoot off into the southeast at 8 p.m., indicating that they had likely seen the same object that Mrs. Fourneret had seen hovering above the ground in Mayor Cazet's meadow.

Many have theorized that the phenomenon at Poncey and the incident at Rosmead, South Africa were the result of a craft utilizing an anti-gravity method of propulsion, i.e., when the craft comes in contact or close to the ground, some of the earth is attracted to the object, and when it elevates and ascends into the air, the suspended earth material drops off. Of course, no exacting theory can be proposed until the mystery of the actual propulsion is solved. Until then, speculation is about the best that we can do.

On this Day

October 4

[...]

1954 - Mrs. Fourneret, a housewife, ran away as an orange, circular object 3 meters in diameter that swung in midair and landed near her farm in Poncey-sur-Lignon, France. When Messrs. Girardot and Vincent arrived with rifles, they found that the earth had been "sucked up" over a quadrilateral area. Francois Bouiller confirmed he had seen a luminous object in flight. Extensive investigation by French Air Force and police. (Sources: Liberation, October 7, 1954; Aime Michel, Flying Saucers and the Straight Line Mystery, p. 134; Jacques Vallee, Anatomy of a Phenomenon, p. 71; Jacques Vallee, Passport to Magonia: A Century of Landings, p. 217).

[...]

Monday, 4 October 1954

[...]

20:00 In Poncey-sur-l'Ignon (France), Mrs. Fourmeret (housewife) flees at the sight of a lengthened body (circular?) emitting an orange light, 3 m in diameter, swinging itself in the airs and which lands at 18 m of their farm. They flee. When neighbors, Misters Girardot and Vincent arrive with their rifles, they find a large hole, as if the ground had just been "sucked up" on the surface of a quadrilateral. Mr. François Bouiller will confirm to have seen 1 luminous object in flight. An investigation will be carried out by the Gendarmerie and the French Air Force. The missing ground will be nowhere to find.

[...]

[...Other cases...]

Poncey-sur-l'Ignon: a hole for nothing

Let's temporarily leave aside the question of the UFO photographs, and come to our first category of physical traces, primarily represented by the traces. If one limits oneself to France, it is possible to enumerate some two or three hundred cases of this kind, more or less richly documented. A few tens of examples of traces of unspecified origin are added to it, one does not know if it is necessary to allot their origin to the UFO phenomenon or to some other unknown (and possibly, natural) causes.

Among the most remarkable cases, one can quote a small number of incomprehensible cases of excavations. The extraordinary UFO flap of the second half of 1954 provided an excellent example, with the hole of Poncey-sur-l'Ignon, appeared on October 4, little after 8 p.m., following an observation, by several people, of a UFO moving very close to the ground.

In his excellent book A Propos des Soucoupes Volantes (3), Aimé Michel provides a precise description of the "hole of Poncey":

"On a long surface of 1 m 50, broad at its base of 70 cm and its end of 50, the ground had been like sucked up. On the very fresh abrasion, white worms were still moving. The torn off ground was spread all around the hole in packs of 30 cm in diameter, on a radius of 4 m approximately. On the internal edge of the hole, packs of ground hung towards the interior: the ground had been eroded under, so that at middle height of its average depth, the surface of the hole was vaster than on the level of the ground. But most astonishing is that no trace of instrument explained the extraction of this ground mass. Even better (and it is that especially what was never explained): the small roots and rootlets (...) were intact on all the internal surface of the hole; none was cut, as it would have been if one had dug the excavation with any known means (...) In short, all occurred as if the ground mass spread in the grass around the hole had been sucked up by a gigantic vacuum cleaner."

Gendarmes (captain Millet, of Semur-en-Auxois, then major Viala, of Dijon, noted the fact, just as a professor of the university of Dijon and general of Chassey, of Air Force, did. No satisfactory explanation could be found. Unless wanting at all costs to deny the existence of the UFO phenomenon, it must be admitted that the only possible cause is the saucer, luminous, of orange color and approximately 3 m in diameter, observed the same evening by Mrs. Fourneret above the site of the hole, and a few moments later by François Bouiller and several other people. The hole of Poncey, like the photograph of Los Angeles, is the proof of the reality of the UFOs.

But a proof has effect only if it is known, if it is taken into account. An ignored, or occulted, proof, is a proof without effect. And silence fell, very quickly, on the Poncey case like on a good number of other UFO cases. As of the days which followed the discovery of the trace, the major press was of an exemplary discretion on this business, which undoubtedly was a bit too solid.

In 1979, a book - which I do not recommend the reading to anybody - was published, which claimed to discard the 1954 French flap. This book [Barthel and Brucker's "La Grande Peur Martienne"] (a subtle mix of libellous untruths and innuendo) does not even mention the Poncey-sur-Lignon case. There are silences say a lot!

(3): book published first by B. Arthaud (1958), Présence Planète (1966) and Seghers (1977)

[...Other cases...]

*Oct. 4, 1954 - At 8:00 p.m. Mrs. Fourneret, a housewife, ran away as an orange, circular object 3 meters in diameter that swung in midair and landed near her farm in Poncey-sur-Lignon, France. When Messrs. Girardot and Vincent arrived with rifles, they found that the earth had been "sucked up" over a quadrilateral area. Francois Bouiller confirmed he had seen a luminous object in flight. Extensive investigation by French Air Force and police. (Sources: Liberation, October 7, 1954; Aime Michel, Flying Saucers and the Straight Line Mystery, p. 134; Jacques Vallee, Anatomy of a Phenomenon, p. 71; Jacques Vallee, Passport to Magonia: A Century of Landings, p. 217, case # 194).

October 4 1954. 2000hrs.

PONCEY-SUR-L'IGNON (COTE D'OR : FRANCE)

Mrs Yvette Fourneret (23) went to the window to close the shutters and saw, about 20m from the house, in Mr Cazet's meadow, an elongated luminous orange object, about 3m in diameter, hanging in the air by a plum tree, asi f about to land, its luminosity illuminating the leaves and branches of the tree. Terrified she grabbed her son and ran to a neighbour. When Messes Giragot and Vincent arrived with rifles, along with other villagers, the object had gone, but they found an area 1.5m long, 68cm wide at one end, 50 at the other, in which ground appeared to have been sucked up and earth torn out and scattered in clods 25-30cm wide, over a radius of 4m. Similar clods were found inside the hole, which was wider half way down, than at ground level. Roots in this hole remained intact. Francois Bouiller (19) independently observed a luminous wingless fuselage climbing to the south east, becoming greener as it did so. There were intensive investigations by the Air Force and police.

• Michel 1958b p132
• Vallee Case 194 citing Franc-Tireur + L'Aurore + Liberation all of 7 October 1954. + Paris Presse + La Soire both of 8 October 1954.
• Garreau and Lavier 1975 p41)

"The map n.° 7, established by Aimé Michel, which holds thirty points of observations for the 2nd of October 1954, shows a infinity of lines, with nine ortothenical lines that cross on Poncey, a little village in the northeast of the center of France. And, one more time, as Aimé Michel noticed, a great "luminous cigar" was observed in the intersection, at Poncey, on the evening of October 2. An organized program of exploration by extraterrestrial intelligence seems to be a reasonable interpretation of such an extraordinary geometric circumstance."