The index page for the 1954 French flap section of this website is here.
End September 1954, Chartres, Eure-et-Loir:
Reference for this case: End-Sep-54-Chartres.
Please cite this reference in any correspondence with me regarding this case.
In a presentation of the author and ufologist Jean Sider by the Belgian ufology magazine Inforespace of May 1998, it is stated that he was born in 1933, had completed secondary studies, was retired from railway catering, and that in 1954, while serving in the military, he had seen a UFO phenomenon along with the other soldiers who accompanied him, and that this observation had sparked his interest in the subject. It is also said that in 1970, he also "experienced a mystical-type event."
In a presentation of the author and ufologist Jean Sider by La Gazette Fortéenne in 2003, it is said, without any further information on this matter, that he "observed a UFO in 1954."
It was only in 2022, in his preface to a book on the 1954 wave in France, that Jean Sider stated that the case dates from late September 1954, and that the location was Quartier Rapp in Chartres, when he was in the military.
He explained that he was in the courtyard with other conscripts, shortly after 6 p.m., and that he and this small group saw, in a large expanse of blue sky, a small bright sphere that perhaps reflected the sun, and which moved in successive regular meanders along a straight axis. He explains that this rules out it having been a natural object.
The thing then disappeared into a cloud or passed above that cloud.
Jean Sider explains that he had not been able to estimate its altitude because there were no reference points.
Much later, he had looked for possible corresponding reports in the press archives of the National Library, but there was nothing - he explains that there was only one local newspaper, which was affiliated with the Catholic establishment.
[Ref. ine1:] "INFORESPACE" UFOLOGY MAGAZINE:
Jean Sider was born in 1933. He completed secondary studies. He is now retired from railway catering. In 1954, while serving in the military, he witnessed a UFO phenomenon along with the other soldiers who were with him. This sighting sparked his interest in the subject. In 1970, he also had a mystical-type experience.
[Ref. gfe1:] LA GAZETTE FORTEENNE:
A presentation of contributors to this magazine indicates that the ufologist Jean Sider observed a UFO in 1954.
As of 2019, he had written 20 books devoted to UFOs; this observation likely sparked his interest in the subject.
[Ref. jsr1:] JEAN SIDER:
Jean Sider states that in 1954 he was a soldier at Quartier Rapp in Chartres, and that at the end of September, while he was in the courtyard with other conscripts, shortly after 6 p.m., he and this small group saw in a large expanse of blue sky a small bright sphere that perhaps reflected the sun, and which moved in successive regular meanders along a straight axis. He explains that this rules out it having been a natural object.
The thing then disappeared into a cloud or passed above that cloud.
Jean Sider explains that he had not been able to estimate its altitude because there were no reference points.
Much later, he had looked for possible corresponding reports in the press archives of the National Library, but there was nothing - he explains that there was only one local newspaper, which was affiliated with the Catholic establishment.
Jean Sider is a French ufologist writer, born in 1933 in Le Havre. He would have been 21 at the time of this observation.
Of course, the paradox here is that Sider, to my knowledge, never described what he saw in 1954...
Update as of May 1, 2026:
With [jsr1], details regarding the location have been clarified, along with an approximate date.
I do not have an obvious conventional explanation for what is reported, but crucial information is missing, such as the angular size of the object and the angular extent of its movement, which means that one could still consider that the “least inadequate” conventional explanation would be that it was a weather balloon.
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(These keywords are only to help queries and are not implying anything.)
Chartres, Eure-et-Loir, Jean Sider, multiple, soldiers, barracks, daytime, object, reflections, move, turns, ball, brilliant
[----] indicates sources that are not yet available to me.
| Version: | Created/Changed by: | Date: | Change Description: |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.1 | Patrick Gross | March 17, 2007 | First published. |
| 1.0 | Patrick Gross | January 9, 2009 | Conversion from HTML to XHTML Strict. First formal version. |
| 1.1 | Patrick Gross | December 14, 2019 | Addition of the Summary. |
| 1.2 | Patrick Gross | September 6, 2025 | Addition [ine1]. In the Summary, addition of the information from [ine1]. |
| 1.3 | Patrick Gross | May 1, 2026 | Addition [jsr1]. In the Summary, addition of the information of [jsr1]. Addition of the place and date. In the Explanations, addition of the "Update as of May 1, 2026" part. |
