The index page for the 1954 French flap section of this website is here.
Reference for this case: Beg-Nov-54-Palavas-les-Flots.
Please cite this reference in any correspondence with me regarding this case.
The ufologist and author Jean Sider annouced in his 1997 book "Le Dossier 1954 et l'Imposture Rationaliste" that he found a case from the beginning of November 1954 in Palavas-les-Flots in the Hérault, on page 2 of the supplement of the newspaper Midi Libre of Montpellier of November 7th, 1954:
"A few days ago, a very honorable and worthy of faith resident of Palavas going to his work saw at 06:00, a blue disc, but it is especially the blue color, at such an early hour of the morning and in a rather intense fog which intrigued him. He approached slowly holding his bicycle with the hand. At a few meters of this light it he had the clear impression that somebody had just passed in front of him, then, in one second the gleam disappeared. At the same time he saw an object in the shape of a cigar, which went up vertically at a tremendous speed. He was very astonished and even a little distressed. He came back in the morning to see whether there were traces, but there was absolutely nothing. We repeat that this sympathetic Palavasian is worthy of faith, that he is very balanced and enjoys the general esteem."
[Ref. jsr1:] JEAN SIDER:
Jean Sider indicates a case of the beginning of November 1954 in Palavas in the Hérault which the source is page 2 of the supplement of the Midi Libre of Montpellier for November 7, 1954, saying:
"A few days ago, a very honorable and worthy of faith resident of Palavas going to his work saw at 06:00, a blue disc, but it is especially the blue color, at such an early hour of the morning and in a rather intense fog which intrigued him. He approached slowly holding his bicycle with the hand. At a few meters of this light it he had the clear impression that somebody had just passed in front of him, then, in one second the gleam disappeared. At the same time he saw an object in the shape of a cigar, which went up vertically at a tremendous speed. He was very astonished and even a little distressed. He came back in the morning to see whether there were traces, but there was absolutely nothing. We repeat that this sympathetic Palavasian is worthy of faith, that he is very balanced and enjoys the general esteem."
[Ref. lhh1:] LARRY HATCH - "*U* COMPUTER DATABASE":
4345: 1954/11/03 06:00 3 3:56:00 E 43:32:00 N 3323 WEU FRN HRL 7:7
PALAVAS,FR:TRUSTED OBS:THICK FOG:BLU DISK HVRS:SHOOTS^^ XFAST:NO TRC:/LDLN#325
Ref#217 Jean SIDER: Le DOSSIER 1954 (2 vol.) Page No. 223 : COASTLANDS
[Ref. tgn1:] THIERRY GAULIN, OVNI-LANGUEDOC:
1954 in the Hérault:
[...]
In November, it is Palavas where the display is witnessed: a U.F.O of bluish colors is approached within a few meters. First described as a disk, it is seen as cylindrical on take off.
[...]
[Ref. djn1:] DONALD JOHNSON:
Donald Johnson indicates that on November 3, 1954, at 6:00 a.m. a reportedly reliable witness encountered a thick fog in Palavas, Herault, France. Inside was a hovering blue, disc-shaped UFO. It stayed stationary a short while, and then shot straight up at an extremely fast speed.
Donald Johnson indicates that the source is "Larry Hatch, U computer database, case 4122, citing Jean Sider, Dossier 1954 et l'Imposture Rationaliste, p. 223."
[Ref. lcn1:] LUC CHASTAN:
Luc Chastan indicates that in the Hérault in Palavas les Flots at the beginning of November 1954, at 06:00 hours, a witness circulated by bicycle when he observed a strange blue gleam through the fog. He went down his bicycle, walked with the bicycle at hand for better seeing. Arrived at a few meters, it seemed to him that somebody passed in front of the gleam in the space of one second space and almost at once, he saw an object having the shape of a cigar go up vertically at a vertiginous speed. Checking the place later, he found no trace.
The source is noted "Lumières dans la Nuit".
[Ref. uda1:] "UFODNA" WEBSITE:
The website indicates that on 3 November 1954 at 06:00 in Palavas, France, there was fog, mist, vapor, a reliable witness, a thick fog, a blue disc hovering and shooting straight up extremely fast until lost to sight. It was on the shore and it lasted for over three minutes.
The source is indicated as "Hatch, Larry, *U* computer database, Author, Redwood City, 2002."
[Ref. nip1:] "THE NICAP WEBSITE":
*Nov. 3, 1954 - At 6:00 a.m. a reportedly reliable witness encountered a thick fog in Palavas, Herault, France. Inside was a hovering blue, disc-shaped UFO. It stayed stationary a short while, and then shot straight up at an extremely fast speed. (Source: Larry Hatch, U computer database, case 4122, citing Jean Sider, Dossier 1954 et l'Imposture Rationaliste, p. 223).
[Ref. jgz1:] JULIEN GONZALEZ:
The author indicates that there was a close encounter of the third kind in Palavas, Hérault, at the beginning of November 1954, at 6:00 a.m.:
An anonymous resident was on his way to work when he saw a blue disc despite the rather heavy fog. He approached the object very slowly, holding his bicycle in his hand. A few meters from the light, he had the distinct impression that someone had just passed in front of him, then for a second, the glow disappeared. At the same time, he saw a cigar-shaped object, which was ascending vertically at breakneck speed. When he returned to the scene in the morning, there was absolutely no trace left.
Julien Gonzalez indicates that his sources are Le Midi Libre for November 7, 1954 and "Le dossier 1954 et l'imposture rationaliste" by Jean Sider, pages 223-224.
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I see no good prosaic explanation for this sighting report. However, this is only an uninvestigated Press report with a certain lack of data.
(These keywords are only to help queries and are not implying anything.)
Palavas-les-Flots, Hérault, blue, disc, cylinder, landing, occupant, fog
[----] indicates sources that are not yet available to me.
| Version: | Created/Changed by: | Date: | Change Description: |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.1 | Patrick Gross | December 2, 2008 | First published. |
| 1.0 | Patrick Gross | December 22, 2008 | Conversion from HTML to XHTML Strict. First formal version. Additions [jsr1], [djn1], [lcn1], [uda1]. |
| 1.1 | Patrick Gross | October 19, 2014 | Addition [nip1]. |
| 1.2 | Patrick Gross | December 4, 2018 | Addition [lhh1], Summary. Explanations changed, were "Not looked for yet." |
| 1.3 | Patrick Gross | September 16, 2021 | Addition [jgz1]. |
