ALSACAT-2009-02-27-HAUTRHINA35-1
On November 8, 2012, "gelix" published his testimony on the UFO website "Réseau National Civil de Surveillance du Ciel" ("National Civilian Network of Sky Surveillance") (RNCSC).
He explained that on Friday, February 27, 2009, around 10:30 p.m., he left Mulhouse to reach Ribeauvillé, and thus drove on the A35 motorway. Having left the outskirts of Mulhouse, he saw in the distance in front of him to the North "like a quite bright star." He looked around, found that the sky was clear, since he saw the stars. The moon was not visible.
He quickly found that this "star" was weird. It was as if there were two very bright stars, like the star of the Shepherd, almost glued to the point that they could be confused as one at first. He found that as he was driving, he was getting closer, so it was not a star.
While continuing to approach, he saw at one moment on his right, about to the East, a brighter and more "white" light, but he could only see it twice between the trees and the embankments bordering the highway, and he did not see it anymore. He had not been able to see if this source of light was moving, since he had just caught a glimpse of it, but it was bright and it was not a star since it was no longer there later.
He continued, refocusing on the first light, noting that it was still in the same spot, though being closer. He continued on his way until he reached its level. The object was then about 50 - 100 meters to the left of his road, to the west, and at a height that he estimated at 50 meters. He says that the object was actually static, it did not move at all.
He was able to guess the mass of the object in the sky, but estimate of its size was difficult. He thinks it was about the order of a big car. He could not describe an exact shape, considering that it was not round but closer to the rectangle.
The object had two south-facing lights, the ones he had seen when he was leaving Mulhouse, but also less bright lights at the four corners, and a light in the center of the opposite side of the two main lights, which would be the back if we consider that the first two lights were in front of the object.
The two lights in the front were much brighter and bigger than the others, but they were not headlights lightening the ground. The other lights were like "position lights". Being color-blind, he cannot define their colors, but the lights in the front were less "white" than the others. All the lights were static, none were flashing.
He opened the glass of his vehicle to check for a possible noise but heard nothing but the sound of the air hissing on the car and its engine, which he says could very well have hidden the noise of a rotor or other engine at this distance.
After only a few seconds at its level, the object was visible in its rearview mirror. It would have been risky to stop in the middle of the night on the highway, so he drove on, peeping in his rearview mirror, observing the still static object, always in the same place. He took exit 31 (to Ensisheim) to turn around and get back on his way. There, he saw a plane flying at low altitude and quite quickly, faster than a passenger plane, but of comparable size, though he could not tell what kind of aircraft it was. This plane was coming from the Northeast, curving over the highway, and clearly heading towards the object he had observed.
He points out the presence of nearby Air Base 132 and thinks that the plane might very well have come from there.
Taking the exit 31, he lost sight of the plane and the object the time to cross the bridge and to return on the highway in the direction North-South this time. He then observed the plane with its flashing lights goin along the highway in the direction of the object. But he could not see the object anymore, explaining that since he had looked at the plane he had not been paying too much attention to the object.
He accelerated, but until exit 32 to Sausheim he saw only the plane, disappearing in the brightness of Mulhouse to the South Southeast.
He then turned around and did not observe anything on the way back to Ribeauvillé.
He added that under the object, there were only fields. He regretted not having his camera in the car, otherwise he would have stopped on the emergency lane to try to take a snapshot.
He had felt nothing special during the observation, but the next day he did the same route at about the same time to go home, and found the sky very different, darker, while the weather was the same, with a starry sky without a moon. He says he had not been under the influence of any drugs or alcohol.
He did not testify to the gendarmerie. He did a search on the Internet and in the local Press, but to no avail. He cannot explain the phenomenon. He doubted it was a helicopter, because there would be no reason for a helicopter to be in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night. When he was closest, it was almost certain that it was not a helicopter, as the shape and lights did not match to what can be seen on a helicopter flying at night, including flashing lights. He thought of a weather balloon, because the object actually seemed to float in the air, but the shape and the lights by their number or power and their setting, did not match according to him, although he specifies never having observed a weather balloon.
As the object was clearly visible from the highway, he thinks that other motorists must have seen it, the road traffic having been normal. He contacted the newspapers L'Alsace and Les Dernières Nouvelles d'Alsace to find out if something similar had been reported to them; L'Alsace answered in the negative, Les Dernières Nouvelles d'Alsace did not answer.
He found a testimony with similarities to his own but for which the description of the object is not the same, he said - it is a testimony explainable as an airliner approaching the airport of Basel-Mulhouse 4 years earlier.
| Date: | February 27, 2009 |
|---|---|
| Time: | 10:30 p.m. |
| Duration: | 10 minutes. |
| First known report date: | March 5, 2009 |
| Reporting delay: | 1 week. |
| Department: | Haut-Rhin |
|---|---|
| City: | Mulhouse |
| Place: | On the A 35 highway from the exit of Mulhouse to the exit to Ensisheim. |
| Latitude: | 47.854 |
| Longitude: | 7.394 |
| Uncertainty radius: | 200 m. |
| Number of alleged witnesses: | 1 |
|---|---|
| Number of known witnesses: | 1 |
| Number of named witnesses: | 0 |
| Witness(es) ages: | Adult. |
| Witness(es) types: | Local man. |
| Reporting channel: | By the Web to the RNCSC UFO Web board. |
|---|---|
| Type of location: | Fron car driving on highway in fields. |
| Visibility conditions: | Night. |
| UFO observed: | Yes. |
| UFO arrival observed: | No. |
| UFO departure observed: | No. |
| Entities: | No. |
| Photographs: | No. |
| Sketch(s) by witness(es): | No. |
| Sketch(es) approved by witness(es): | No. |
| Witness(es) feelings: | Puzzled. |
| Witnesses interpretation: | UFO. |
| Hynek: | NL |
|---|---|
| ALSACAT: | Unidentified. |
[Ref. rnc1:] "RESEAU NATIONAL CIVIL DE SURVEILLANCE DU CIEL":
02/27/2009 - 1030 p.m. - Haut-Rhin (68) - Object with its lights
Date: 02/27/2009
Hour: 10:30 p.m.
Location: Highway A35 (Haut-Rhin - 68)
Observer: gelix
Reported on: 03/05/2009
REPORT:
Quote:
Name or pseudonym: Gelix.
City: on the highway A35, South of Mulhouse, between exits 32 and 31 (traffic flow in the SOUTH => NORTH direction).
Department: Haut Rhin.
Region: Alsace.
Date of the observation: February 27, 2009.
Hour of the start of the observation: approximately 10:30 p.m..
Duration of the observation: 10 - 15 minutes.
Number of witnesses: I alone, but other people must have observed it from their vehicle on the highway.
Type of "phenomenon": Observation of a static object in flight and luminous (I think that thus it is called "UFO").
Full report of your observation:
Friday, February 27, 2009, I left Mulhouse about 10:30 p.m. to reach Ribeauvillé north.
So I used the A35. Once out of the vicinity of the town, I saw in the distance like a quite bright star in (the North). So I looked around and I noticed that the sky was clear, since we saw the stars. No moon however.
Soon enough I found that this "star" was odd:
It is as if it were two very bright stars (like the evening star approximately), but almost glued such that one could confuse them at first.
Advancing, I found that I approached the light source and therefore it was not a star.
While continuing to approach, I saw at one time on my right (east approximately) a brighter and more "white" light, but I could see it only twice between the trees and embankments bordering the highway before I saw it no more. I was unable to see whether this source of light moved, since I just had glimpses at it, but the light was bright and it was not a star, since I no longer saw it there afterwards.
So I continued, and I refocused on the first light I had seen. I found that it was still in the same location while being closer (since I was nearer).
So I continued to get closer until arriving at its level (see map).
The object was approximately 50 - 100 meters to the left of my road (West) and at an estimated height of 50 meters. The object was actually static... it was absolutely not moving.
When I was exactly at its level, I was able to guess the mass of the object in the sky... however it is difficult to estimate its size, however I would say it was like a large vehicle (type 4-wheel-drive or minivan... sorry for the risky comparative), but on the other hand, I am unable to describe the shape, it was not... not round like a saucer, it would be closer to a rectangle to give a rough definition.
The object was equipped with 2 lights directed towards the South (those I had seen since the exit of Mulhouse), but also less bright lights in the 4 corners and a light in the center of the opposite side of the 2 main lights (at the back if it is considered that the first 2 lights were in the front of the object).
The 2 lights at the front were much brighter and larger than the other, yet this was not headlights lighting up the floor. The other lights were like "parking lights". As of the colors, it would be hard to say because I'm color blind, though the lights in the front were less "white" than others. All the lights were static, none was blinking.
This moment lasted only a few seconds because I was on the highway by night, I did not stop, and after I had it in my rearview (I can confirm at this point that the other lights were less bright since I could not see the 2 at the "front", but the 3 at the "back").
So I continued my journey while glancing in my rear view mirror, always observing the static object, in the same place. I undertook to take exit 31 (Ensisheim) to turn around and retrace my steps. There I saw a plane flying at low altitude and relatively quickly (faster than a passenger aircraft, but of comparable size, and I cannot tell what kind of plane it was) coming from the Northeast, passing in a curve over the highway and clearly heading to the object I observed.
I specify for informational purposes only that close (very close proximity) is the Air Base 132 (see map) that is on the banns of the town of Meyenheim... and the plane could come from there. That's what I think.
So I took the exit, losing sight of the plane and the object I observed the time to cross the bridge and get back on the highway in the North-South direction this time.
I then observed the airplane (with its flashing lights) going along the motorway in the direction of the object... but I could not see the object, but after watching the plane the first time I no more paid much attention...
So I accelerated, but until exit 32 toward Sausheim I have observed only the plane, disappearing in the brightness of Mulhouse to the South East, but no trace of the object.
So I again made a U-turn at this place and I did not see anything anymore on the way back to Ribeauvillé.
I want to clarify that at the vertical of the object, there was nothing, just the fields! No houses, no roads (apart from the A50 motorway - 100 meters away). I regret not having had my camera in the car, or else I would have stopped on the emergency lane to try to take a picture (I also regret very much not having stopped to observe the object until its departure).
I also specify that when I went next to the object, I opened the window to see if I heard something... but nothing except the wind noise, and my engine very well could cover the noise of a rotor or engine at that distance.
I felt nothing special that night, but the next day (28 February), I followed again the same route around the same time to go home, and I found the sky was very different. It was darker, while weather conditions were the same, with a starry sky without Moon.
I specify of course that I was under the influence of no drugs or alcohol.
Finally, I looked on the Internet and in local newspapers if I found out more about this phenomenon, but so far I found nothing. Also, I did not report to the gendarmes.
I cannot explain this phenomenon. I thought about it and for a static object, I thought of:
- A helicopter, but what would a helicopter do in the middle of nowhere at night. Also, when I was the closest I'm pretty sure it was not a helicopter in shape... and the lights did not match to what we can be seen on a night flying helicopter (with 1 or 2 static lights and flashing lights).
- A weather balloon: actually, when I was the closest, the object seemed to really float in the air... but the shape, and the lights with their quantities and their seeting, did not correspond to this type of object (although I have never observed one).
I see no other explanation, and this is why I am contacting you. I remember that because of the position of the craft, I think there are other witnesses. One could hardly miss the object from the highway, especially from the South, but I do not see where and how to launch a call for witnesses.
Of course I remain available to answer any other questions.
Quote:
Following research done on your board (I had already searched and found nothing else), I found these two testimonies [actually one sighting, an airliner in landing approach] that are quite disturbing by their similarity and geographic proximity:
However the description of the object is not the same as what I saw.
Other news:
I contacted the two local newspapers by email (DNA and Alsace).
I just asked them if they had heard of any particular phenomena in the night of February 27 to 28 between Mulhouse and Colmar.
L'Alsace answered to me:
"Hello,
Sorry, but after asking around with colleagues who could have heard about it, nobody at the newspaper was informed of such a phenomenon.
cordially
Jean-Marie Stoerkel"
No news from DNA currently.
The next day, the witness adds:
I allowed myself to take 3D images posted by petit matthew in the post that I mentioned earlier and take them to stick with what I observed.
When I approached the object:
When I arrived at its level:
The form is given as an indication ... I put a gray variant because when I was close enough, I could see that there was something behind those lights... one saw that there was an object... but as I said before, impossible to describe the shape...
As of the size, it was pretty much it I think!
[Ref. spa1:] UFOLOGY ASSOCIATION "SPICA":
| City | Date and hour of observation | General shape Identification |
General color Hypothesis |
Conclusion |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MULHOUSE | Friday 27 February 2009 at 22:30 | Luminous dot Unidentified |
white None |
Unsolved -lack of info |
|
Since we are talking about planes, I want to specify the location of air installations:
|
From North at the top to South at the bottom, we have the Colmar-Houssen airfield 25 km north of the place of observation (the red line), the Air force Base 132 called "Meyenheim base" 4 km to the North-North-East of the observation site, the Rixheim / Habsheim airfield 15 km to the South-South-East of the observation site, and the Euro-Airport international airport near Saint-Louis and Basel at 30 km south-south-east of the place of observation.
A few things to note. Since July 2009, there is no longer an Air Force operational unit at Air Base 132. Of course this does not mean that no aircraft may have used the base strip. The UFO in any case is right in the axis of the runway of the air base, as if it had just taken off for the Southern direction. It should also be noted that there were no air shows at BA 132 or in the aerodromes of the region in February 2009.
On the other hand, we have the Air Detachment of the Gendarmerie of Colmar at the base, which has had an EC 135 helicopter since April 2010. We cannot therefore exclude a helicopter flight from the base in February 2009. (The UFO was probably not an EC-135, fitted with a single headlight at the front.) In February 2009, there could still be takeoffs of Mirages F1, because the installations of the base were still used for the maintenance of some of these aircraft relocated to Reims. The former BA 132 facilities are sometimes used for maneuvers involving helicopters (in November 2021 there was a simulation of the capture of an airport, involving Tiger helicopters, for example).
The witness gives in his report as one of the reasons why he excludes a helicopter: he wonders what a helicopter would do "in the middle of nowhere, in the middle of the night". On this I disagree; there may very well be a helicopter flight there and in the middle of the night, for example an emergency medical transport helicopter to the Mulhouse hospital. I think what the witness meant was that the anomaly was that a helicopter was hovering there in the middle of the night; indeed that would not make much sense. For me, the best reason to discard an explanation by a helicopter is the complete lack of flashing lights.
I should note that further south, south of Mulhouse, driving in the direction of Basel towards Mulhouse on the same A35 highway, one can very easily drive facing very low-flying airliners in landing approach to the Euro-Airport, and the illusion is easily made: the impression of a stationary object which one approaches. On the other hand, when the plane arrives at the height of the automobile, it is just as easy to see that it is not a stationary object, and the flashing navigation lights are obvious. North of Mulhouse, where the witness is, we are not in this usual axis of low planes on approach. Most motorists of the area know this.
Let's see the journey of the witness, very well indicated in the particularly clear story and by his maps.
The observation started as soon as he left Mulhouse. For me, one has to understand it was at the exit from the Mulhouse suburb, towards "Ile Napoléon". This places us at the level of Sausheim or Baldersheim, towns located to the left of the witness, to the west of the A35. The start of the sighting is somewhere on the green portion of the line. In my opinion, at the northern end of the green line, after the ring road which must have held his driving attention. The object is seen to the North of the witness who is approaching it on the blue portion of the line. At the closest object is seen from the portion in red; then he watches it in his rearview mirror for part of the purple section of the line. The U-turn at the end of the story is on the next ring road, with the D2, the place at the top of the purple line.
|
The distance traveled by the witness during the observation is therefore a maximum of 8 km and a minimum of 4 km.
It takes 6 minutes to travel 8 km at a speed of 80 km/h; 2 minutes 40 seconds to travel 4 km at a speed of 90 km/h; 2 minutes 24 seconds to travel 4 km at a speed of 100 km/h.
For an airplane, a minimum speed is required to avoid stalling. Considering a small plane (Cessna type), you must fly at least 87 km/h.
The witness wrote "The object was indeed static. It absolutely did not move" but that "lasted only a few seconds." One cannot therefore in my opinion totally exclude that the object, whereas it seemed stationary, was not.
So, if one absolutely insists that the UFO was an airplane or a helicopter, that would be the "least worst" prosaic explanation; but I don't really subscribe to it, due to the lack of flashing lights.
Even ultralight planes must be equipped with navigation lights, position lights, strobe/anti-collision lights and beacons.
I therefore leave the case as "unidentified", without going any further.
Probable airliner in landing approach.
* = Source is available to me.
? = Source I am told about but could not get so far. Help needed.
| Main author: | Patrick Gross |
|---|---|
| Contributors: | None |
| Reviewers: | None |
| Editor: | Patrick Gross |
| Version: | Create/changed by: | Date: | Description: |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.1 | Patrick Gross | March 18, 2018 | Creation, [rnc1]. |
| 1.0 | Patrick Gross | March 18, 2018 | First published. |
| 1.1 | Patrick Gross | January 25, 2023 | Addition [spa1]. |
