The 1954 French flap:

In Wittenheim too...

On the night from Wednesday to Thursday, at 11:20 p.m., Wittenheim residents saw a red ball that came from the direction of Thann, at a short distance from the ground, paused over the city shortly to, little later, disappear northwards.

At midnight and 50 minutes, the globe reappeared. It moved along the Vosges mountains and appeared to head for Thann. The silence was absolute. The color of the vehicle did not change.

A flying saucer made an extraordinary demonstration in the sky of Wittenheim

We reported in our last issue on the one hand the triple appearance of a red globe on Thursday night at 06:40 p.m., 07:30 p.m. and after 08:00 p.m. and on the other hand, the double passing, the day before, of a ball of same color above Wittenheim, at 11:20 p.m. and 00:50 a.m.

Then, on the night from Friday to Saturday, a phenomenon occurred, which is an absolutely irrefutable testimony by the sharpness of the appearance and also by the number of people who observed it.

It was 11:10 p.m.. Many spectators had left the "Palace" movie theater. Some of them went to the Zimmermann-Thomas cafe to chat and eat before returning home. Suddenly a man burst into the room. Deeply moved, he said to the stunned people: "you who do not believe in it, get out! Come and see! "It was a general rush. And the sight that met not only the consumers but also the countless cyclists and pedestrians who at that time were on the road or even in Wittenheim, or in Jeune Bois, was both shocking and compelling. The man who had thus attracted the attention of consumers was Mr. Eugène Stattner, living in Wittenheim-Jeune Bois and working in the service of the municipal administration of Mulhouse. He had also been at the movie. At the end of the show he got into his car and all lights on, drove to the Jeune Bois district. It was 11:10 p.m., when he suddenly saw what he calls himself a flying saucer. Then he rushed into the coffee shop to come out soon with the hope that in the meantime the phenomenon had not fainted. Not only the saucer had not disappeared, but it gave an extraordinary demonstration to say the least.

The craft coming from the direction of the Anna mine was heading towards the Jeune Bois district. Whereas the race was slow, the saucer turned briskly on itself in a double rotation, and - the sky being very clear - it was clearly visible: first the saucer was spinning like a carousel, on its edges around a central core perfectly still, on the other hand, the craft was on a rotation on itself in successive and frequent reversals, always around a central core.

What makes - and the importance of this finding is significant - in the first case of rotation, the apparatus had the appearance of a large plate and in the second case, an extended spindle, or if is preferred, a cigar. This would be a simple explanation and perfectly valid as to the form of aerial vehicles designated by the names of flying saucer and flying cigar.

The saucer apparently measured 1 m in diameter. But according to Mr. Stattner it was flying at about 500 m altitude. If these figures are accurate, the actual dimensions of the craft would be considerable.

The craft, which, in the words of Mr. Stattner seemed to frolic in the sky, used about ten minutes to go to the Anna mine well to the Theodore mine well through Jeune Bois. The observation was therefore particularly easy. The silence was absolute. The outer edge of the saucer went from red to brown to bright red, while the core was glowing, surrounded by a shower of sparks. A fire reflection illuminated the landscape.

Suddenly, while the saucer was above the Theodore mine, and still in the most absolute silence, a tremendous acceleration occurred at an incredible speed, the machine disappeared in the sky. These are the facts. It is not up to us to comment on them but hearing it leaves us wondering. This is, in any case, one of the most accurate report we had, to date, to report here.

Like everything, a priori, that arouses disbelief, the "saucer" theme can be open to irony and even joking. We had also indulged in this aspect of the matter. It must be recognized that a significant amount of courage is needed today to a single person that chance made a witness to one of those strange apparitions that occur for some time in the sky, to publicly tell his adventure. This courage, recently, came to L'Alsace readers. The good faith of the railwayman of Jettingen-Berentzwiller was not in doubt for those who knew him, and for us. That of the farmer of Dornach was equally. Their testimony, marked by good sense and the most scrupulous honesty, now find in what several hundred people at once saw, a striking confirmation.

On the night from Wednesday to Thursday, at 11:20 p.m., Wittenheim residents saw a red ball that came from the direction of Thann, at a short distance from the ground, paused over the city shortly to, little later, disappear northwards.

At midnight and 50 minutes, the globe reappeared. It moved along the Vosges mountains and appeared to head for Thann. The silence was absolute. The color of the vehicle did not change.