The 1954 French flap:

Luminous fireballs in the sky of Bagnols and Connaux (Gard)

Bagnols (C.P.).

Worthy of faith observers reported to us that they have observed Thursday evening, around 9 p.m., in the sky of Bagnols and Connaux, luminous phenomena of which they give the following description.

It was a blue flame, of a blue approaching the flame of combustion of hydrogen observed with welders. The phenomenon which moved at high speed from East to West left behind itself a short red trail. Its passage above Bagnols lasted 5 seconds approximately it suddenly disappeared.

The observations are concordant, two people having made us statements were place of Perières, the third in the yard of the boys school.

Another person observed a similar phenomenon with Connaux about the same hour.

A WEIRD OBJECT IN THE SKY OF BESSEGES

Bessègues (C.P.).

Yesterday Friday, at 8 p.m., Mr. Albert Rivière, radio-engineer, 28 street of the Republic, in Bessègues, returned from Molières-sur-Cèze by car with a friend, when, in the hamlet of Revesty [sic, Revety], his attention was drawn by a definitely visible gleam in the sky, in the direction of Malbosc. During half an hour the witnesses observed the phenomenon.

The mysterious object, of an orange color drawing on the red with a large volume - several times that of a star - became suddenly smaller, while taking a bluish color. It also appeared to change altitude with a disconcerting ease.

Let's report that in a district of the Travers, about fifteen people stated to have seen at the same hour a luminous disc evolving in the sky. Their observations match exactly those of Mr. Rivière and his fellow traveler.