The article below was published in the daily newspaper Le Midi Libre, France, on February 19, 1978.
Ales. -- After a certain lull, the "UFO front" seems to wake up. Wednesday morning at 6:50 a.m., three witnesses, located in Alès, Salindres and Bessèges, observed a strange phenomenon: in a very clear sky, an ovoid-shaped object, from which a light beam was detached. The object was bright in front and orange where the beam came out. With the naked eye it could measure twenty centimeters, the beam five meters. On either side of the beam, arranged in flight position, were seven disks the size of a penny, bluish in color, leaving a luminous trail. Its dimensions, which because of the distance, and lack of precise bearing, means nothing, all the same allow a comparison between the objects and their luminous trail.
It goes without saying that the description provided by these witnesses differs according to the place where the phenomenon was seen. But there are constants that do not fail to be disturbing. The trajectory of these objects was straight, their speed comparable to jet planes, releasing a trail due to the condensation of gases. The phenomenon did not emit any noise.
This sighting aroused the interest of "VERONICA", a study group which endeavors to collect testimonies on UFOs which crossed the sky of the Cévennes and on any other phenomenon in the region, between the end of December and the end of January, particularly against Alès and Uzès. (Phone 52.23.50)
