The index page for the 1954 French flap section of this website is here.
Reference for this case: 18-Nov-54-Clarbec.
Please cite this reference in any correspondence with me regarding this case.
The local newspapers Le Trait d'Union, of Saint-Pierre-sur-Dives, on November 24, 1954 on page 2 and Le Pays d'Auge-Tribune, of Pont-L'Eveque, on December 24, 1954, page 3, wrote on an observation probably of November 18, 1954 between 1:15 a.m. and 1:30 a.m., near Clarbec, in the Calvados.
Henri Wuillème, director of a large industrial firm in the Pays d'Auge, drove in a "traction avant" car ("front-wheel drive") on the journey from Saint-Pierre-sur-Dives to Pont-L'Evêque, with his wife and a relative as passengers.
Arrived at the crossroads of La Haie Tondue, he took the road from Caen to Rouen, and then the three people distinguished a fire on the road at a long distance.
They first thought of lights on the roadways to signal roadwork, but the reddish color of this glow suggested that it was more like a broken road convoy, with its warning light.
Mr. Wuillème drove atabout 90 km / h in the straight line, and he began to slow down. The witnesses were then amazed to see that the road was completely blocked by a machine in the shape of an inverted saucer whose dome emitted a magnificent dark pink light which illuminated intensely the trees and hedges along the national road.
The glow was bright but not blinding. The machine occupied the full width of the road, exactly between the barn of the farm operated by Georges Barassin, and the crossroads of La Queue Levée.
Henri Wuillème braked and prepared, like his passengers, to examine the craft very closely, but when the car was no more than fifty meters from the machine, it took off very gently and silently, vertically.
Having reached the level of the double, electric and telephone, lines that borders the roadway, the machine tilted to the side to be able, because of its large diameter, to pass unhindered between the two networks of wires. At this time the profile of the craft was shaped like a spindle or cigar.
The height of the wires exceeded, the machine whose glow illuminated the neighboring countryside took again its horizontal position and marked a pause which allowed the amazed motorists to note that no crutch or other landing gear appeared below the fuselage.
Then the machine seemed to quiver at its ends like a plane that "flaps its wings" to announce that it will land unexpectedly and suddenly rose into the sky, always vertically and without any noise. It was lost from sight of in a few seconds, leaving in the direction of Lisieux.
No trace was found on the roadway at the site that Henry Wuillème, who knew the area well, was able to locate exactly.
The witnesses saw no one aboard the craft, but as it had precisely avoided the power and telephone lines, they were convinced that it was not an unmanned aircraft and that an experienced pilot likely performed the maneuver.
[Ref. pae1:] NEWSPAPER "LE PAYS D'AUGE - TRIBUNE":
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Following information that we published relative to the landing of a flying saucer in Clarbec, an inhabitant of Surville - who wishes to preserve anonymity - reported to us that in the night from August 26 to 27, whereas he watched for the passage of the Tour de France Automobile, he suddenly heard, towards 1 hour 10 of the morning, an indefinable noise - a sort of whoosh - which went on decrescendo during a few seconds.
The person who reported this fact to us went at the window of his dwelling located at the edge of the road from Caen to Rouen.
But the intense fog which reigned then did not allow him to see the craft of which he heard the noise. According to what this earwitness specified to us, "the craft must have descended at a very low altitude above the railway line, then after this "sliding" it would have moved towards Saint-Benoit-in Hérbetot, while producing a rattling sound. Let us specify that towards the end of the summer an owner in Hotot-en-Auge, heard - also towards 1 hour of the morning - a gentle rattling, comparable with that produced by a metallic scarecrow - the ones used in the bean plantations - when it is shaken by the wind. Intrigued, the farmer stood up and observed, dissimulated behind his window - and during more than one quarter of hour - a bulky craft in the shape of a saucer from where he had not seen coming out any living being.
The craft had then taken off vertically and had disappeared at a vertiginous pace without producing sound.
In one and the other of the cases, we deal with honorable people whose good faith cannot be doubted.
"Tribuna da Imprensa" reports that the mysterious craft are made of an unknown substance which has the effect of narrowing like "sorrow skin" [French expression, meaning shrinkage.]
A villager of Campinas (State de Sao-Paulo) [Brasil] had seen in the sky, three days ago, three conical objects of which one left behind itself a luminous trail. He collected a piece of an incandescent substance which had fallen into his garden and entrusted it to the chemists of a nearby factory.
After examination, the specialists stated that this substance consisted of tin under a concentration unknown until now. They specified that the proportion was 88,91 percent of pure tin and 11,09 percent of oxygen. No magnesium or antimony, lead, nor iron trace was detected.
The most curious is that the volume of this substance which seems to disintegrate decreases constantly in a manner perceptible to the eye.
COBALT (Ontario). -- The police forces announces that they investigate into the statements of 6 people who claim to have seen evolving during five hours in the area of Lake Temiskaming, an object which seemed to be a flying saucer of triangular shape.
A night watchman at the Agaunico mine, Willis Saint-Jean, stated that the object had passed above him, and shone so much that he had been almost blinded by it.
A journalist of the "North Bay Nugget", John Hunt, and Mrs Hugh Montgomery, confirmed his statement and claimed that they would never forget the display.
[Ref. jsr1:] JEAN SIDER:
French ufologist and author Jean Sider made a synthesis of two newspapers articles, "Le Trait d0Union" of Saint-Pierre-sur-Dives for November 24, 1954 on page 2 and "Le Pays d'Auge-Tribune", of Pont-l'Evêque for December 24, 1954, on page 3. One reveals the name of the principal witness and the other does not. Jean Sider indicates that the second source locates the observation as of December 1, "which is obviously erroneous, since the first dates it of November 24..." [unless the two sources are both of November 24, instead of one on November 24, and the other one month after, the same 24th but of December, which seems weird.]
Jean Sider dates the case as of November 18, 1954, the time as between 01:15 a.m. and 01:30 a.m., and the location as near Clarbec, in the department of Calvados.
Henri Wuillème, director of an important industrial company of the Pays d'Auge, his wife and a relationship, travelled by car on the road which starts from St Pierre-sur-Dives to Pont-l'Evêque. Mr. Wuillème was driving his front traction car.
At the moment when they arrived at the crossroads of Haie Tondue, the car was engaged on the road from Caen to Rouen, and the three travelers distinguished at a rather long distance, a light placed on the roadway.
They first thought that it was lights laid out by the Highways Departments to announce road works, but thereafter, the reddish color of this gleam made them rather suppose that they were in the presence of a halted road convoy of which they saw the side lights.
Mr. Wuillème who had travelled at approximately 90km/h in the straight line, started to slow down. At this point in time the witnesses were amazed to see that the roadway was completely barred by a machine in the shape of a reversed saucer and which dome emitted a splendid dark pink light which intensely lit the trees and the hedges bordering the national road.
This bright gleam was not dazzling. The apparatus was posed across the road, which it occupied over all its width, exactly between the barn of the farm exploited by George Barassin, and the crossroads of Queue Levée.
Henri Wuillème slowed down and prepared, just like his passengers, to examine the machine at very close sight, when suddenly, whereas the car was not any more than about fifty meters of the apparatus, this craft rose very gently and silently, vertically.
Arrived at the level of the double powerlines and telephone which border the roadway, the saucer bent on the side to be able, because of its large diameter, to pass through the two wires networks. At this exact time, the profile of the machine presented the shape of a spindle or a cigar.
When it passed the height of the wires, the apparatus, of which the gleam illuminated the close countryside, resumed its horizontal position and marked a downtime which allowed the amazed motorists to note that no landing crutch or any other gear appeared below the fuselage.
Then the machine seemed to tremble at its ends as a plane which "oscillates its wings" to announce that it will land in emergency and, suddenly, it climbed in the sky, still vertically and without any sound.
It was lost of sight in a few seconds, leaving in the direction to Lisieux. No traces were found on the roadway at the place that Henri Wuillème, who knew the area well, had been able to locate exactly.
The witnesses did not see anyone on board the craft. However, due to the precision with it avoided the power and telephone lines, they remained convinced that it was not a radio-controlled apparatus and that an experienced pilot probably ensured the operation.
[Ref. rlt1:] RENAUD LECLET:
08/27/54 [sic] Clarbec (14) : object flying above the railway, a clatter is heard
Note: no source is given; the author suggests that helicopters are the explanation for this type of cases.
[Ref. lhh1:] LARRY HATCH - "*U* COMPUTER DATABASE":
4402: 1954/11/18 01:20 2 0:08:00 E 49:15:00 N 3333 WEU FRN CLV 8:8
N/CLARBEC,FR:3/CAR:10M DOMED SCR/ROAD:^+TILTS/AVOID WIRES:SLNT:^^:/LDLN#325
Ref#217 Jean SIDER: Le DOSSIER 1954 (2 vol.) Page No. 130 : ROAD+RAILS
[Ref. lcn1:] LUC CHASTAN:
Luc Chastan indicates that in the Calvados in La Haie Tondue on November 18, 1954 at 01:15 hours, "Three people are in a car coming from St Pierre sur Dive towards Pont l'Evêque. At the crossroads of La Haie Tondue he take the road of Caen and observe at long distance a fire placed on the roadway. Thinking of works then to a stalled convoy the driver slowed down. The three amazed witnesses note that it is an object having the shape of a reversed saucer whose dome emits a splendid dark pink light. This light lights without blinding the hedges and the trees which border the road. The object entirely bars the road between a farm and the crossroads of the Raised Tail. The driver slows down arrived at about fifty meters of La Queue Levée. Then the latter rises very gently in silence vertically. It avoids the powerlines and telephone lines by tilting, then takes again its horizontal position marking a pause. The object seems to tremble at its ends and goes up suddenly vertically in the sky disappearing in a few seconds."
The source is indicated as "Lumières dans la Nuit".
[Ref. uda1:] "UFODNA" WEBSITE:
The website indicates that on 18 November 1954 at 01:20 in Clarbec, France, "10m diameter domed disc on road. Rises and tilts to avoid power lines. Silent. Ascends vertically."
The website adds: "An object was observed. It departed by rapidly flying straight up until lost to sight. One domed disc, about 40 feet across, was observed by three witnesses on a road for two minutes. No sound was heard."
The source is indicated as "Hatch, Larry, *U* computer database, Author, Redwood City, 2002".
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There is not much choice: either this was an extraterrestrial craft, or it was a helicopter.
(These keywords are only to help queries and are not implying anything.)
Clarbec, Calvados, Henri Wuillème, multiple, car, road, night, light, red, saucer, machine, object, dome, cigar, pink, gleam, landing, takeoff, manoeuvers, stationary, tremor, vertical, silent
[----] indicates sources that are not yet available to me.
| Version: | Created/Changed by: | Date: | Change Description: |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.1 | Patrick Gross | December 15, 2005 | First published. |
| 1.0 | Patrick Gross | May 25, 2009 | Conversion from HTML to XHTML Strict. First formal version. Additions [lcn1], [uda1]. |
| 1.1 | Patrick Gross | December 1, 2018 | Additions [rlt1], [lhh1]. |
