France 1954 -> Home 

Cette page en françaisCliquez!

The 1954 French flap:

The index page for the 1954 French flap section of this website is here.

< Previous  All  Next >

Mid October 1954, Linzeux, Pas-de-Calais:

Reference for this case: Mid-Oct-54-Linzeux.
Please cite this reference in any correspondence with me regarding this case.

Summary:

An article in the regional newspaper Le Journal du Pas-de-Calais et de la Somme for October 27, 1954, reported the observation of a trader from the region and others between Erquières and Wail; the newspaper did not give a precise date for this observation.

The newspaper added that "a few days from" this observation, the same trader had seen "one of these objects with varying colors which are so much talked about and which he described to us very precisely" - description not given by the newspaper, which merely indicated that it had happened this time in Linzeux and that "several witnesses attest to this."

Reports:

[Ref. abt1:] NEWSPAPER "L'ABEILLE DE LA TERNOISE":

Scan.

Flying Saucers...

Like it or not, there is a problem with the flying saucers, the matter seems to be getting serious.

Whereas, at the beginning, many newspapers scoffed (and L'Abeille, like the others), it became obvious, even to the most skeptical "that there is something".

To take only examples close to here and officially noted by the gendarmeries and the security services of the territory, how to admit that in Hem-Hardinval, the mysterious craft which intrigued several farmers, known for their seriousness, and which frightened their horses, is a product of the imagination? At a distance of 100 meters, people still could not dream... As could not dream the inhabitants of Domart-en-Ponthieu who saw a saucer land near their car, and strange beings get out of it.

In the Ternois, people are more discreet, and if we know that some saw bizarre craft (a miner from Linzeux, a Buneville farmer woman, etc.) they were careful not to advertise too much what they saw.

Other residents of the Ternois also saw strange objects in the sky: an industrialist from Saint-Pol returning in the evening by car, farm workers returning from work. Monday evening a dozen Saint-Pol residents saw around 8:30 p.m. a luminous object, followed by a dazzling tail which took the direction of Ramecourt. The object was clearly seen by a city councilor, a doctor and various other personalities.

We also talked about strange objects seen in Frévent, in Auxi, in Wavrans, etc...

What should we conclude from this? It would obviously be very difficult to say.

Be that as it may, we find ourselves in the presence of two very distinct phenomena: luminous objects in the sky and objects of metallic appearance posed in the countryside, or landing there.

Some objections immediately come to mind. Why would the occupants of these objects come to land in hollow paths, in the deserted plains, etc. If they really come from other planets and are on an observation mission, it would make more sense for them to come near factories, big cities, ports. Given their power and the influence of their so-called paralyzing beam, what would they risk?

L'Abeille obviously does not claim to provide its readers with the solution to this problem which, to be honest, seems really frightening. However, we thought it would be interesting to publish extracts from a letter that a prominent Swiss personality, Mr. Alfred Nahon, professor of philosophy and psychology in Lausanne, just sent to the newspaper L'Express.

Here's what he writes:

"I was surprised the other day to find that you seem to deal with the so-called "flying saucer" issue lightly.

Studying the questions and information relating to "flying saucers", I have been perfectly aware for seven years, of everything that has been said or written on this matter. I am a member and general correspondent for Switzerland of the International Investigation Commission "Ouranos".

It follows from my information, intersected by the turn of certain important diplomatic facts, that these craft come from several planets and that their occupants have advised the main governments to have to stop their atomic and military policies in general.

It is a long time since the population should have been honestly informed of the truth: the extraterrestrial nature of these apparatuses, the peaceful mission of its other humanity, the possibility of several landings in the immediate future, details on the past landings in 1948 and 1952 in the United States, 1952 and 1954 in France, etc.

In recent days, identical phenomena multiplied, in France in particular, and the public, who once laughed, seems to be worried today.

This concern is not justified. It is due to the ignorance in which the population was kept on all the phases and particularity of these prodigious forewords to the interplanetary era.

Consequently, I think that it is necessary, without delay, to train the public in the idea of this reality, to inform them of all the historical aspect of the question, of our own preparations with a view to going to nearby planets and provide directions for contact or simple unsuccessful landing.

Alfred Nahon
Professor of Philosophy
and Psychology

Lausanne

[Ref. jps1:] NEWSPAPER "LE JOURNAL DU PAS-DE-CALAIS ET DE LA SOMME":

Scan.

"Saucers"
in the region
of Hesdin - St-Pol

It was rumored in Hesdin that a local trader had seen a saucer and Martians. Here are the facts as reported to us:

Having finished his delivery round, the merchant was driving in a van between Erquières and Wail, around 10 p.m., in the company of two passengers, when suddenly a blinding glare dazzled him. At the same time its brand new engine gave signs of failure in the same time as his headlights did.

The driver and one of the passengers were seriously shocked and are still wondering what could have happened to them, as there were no thunderstorms in the area that evening.

The same trader saw a few days from then one of these objects with different colors that are so much talked about and which he described to us very precisely. This was happening in Linzeux and several witnesses attest to this.

In Bouin, on the Hesdin-Montreuil road, around 8:15 p.m., residents saw on two consecutive days, an abnormally bright sphere above the forest.

Same observation and in the same place, by a resident of Huby-Saint-Leu and by another well-known person.

All these good people, renowned for their common sense and seriousness, must be believed without restriction. On the other hand, none of them saw a saucer land, and even less beings moving around it.

Their opinion is that this is a new secret craft.

[Ref. jdt1:] JEAN-PIERRE D'HONDT:

This ufologist indicates that between October 22 and October 25, 1954, between Erquières and Wail, the Pas-de-Calais, "At approximately 22 00, a tradesman of Hesdin who returned from a delivery round by car, accompanied by two passengers, was suddenly dazzled by a violent gleam. At the same time, the engine of his vehicle (although totally new) gave signs of failure, just like the headlights. The driver and one of the passengers were seriously contused and they were to wonder a long time what had happened to them, for no storm had burst that day."

"A few days earlier, in Linzeux, this same tradesman had seen an object with changing colors, of which he provides a description corroborated by the testimony of several other people."

The author comments: "(The first case - i.e. the second chronologically to be strictly accurate does not constitute a case of landing, but the effects on the engine and the headlights let suppose an immediate proximity of the source of these disturbances.)"

The sources are noted as "'Le Journal du Pas-de-Calais et de la Somme' of Boulogne, for 10.27.54. p.1 – LDLN 324 for December 1993, page 34."

Explanations:

Map.

The data in the newspaper which seems to be the only source of the time, are muddled (no date, no hour, description of "variant colors" which we do not know whether it was about this observation or a "generic" characteristic of the observations), and very poor.

Many explanations are therefore possible, the changing colors, if applies, might have been those of a low star in troubled air layers, for example.

So: no reported strangeness, totally insufficient information.

Keywords:

(These keywords are only to help queries and are not implying anything.)

Linzeux, Pas-de-Calais, tradesman, anonymous, colors, change, multiple

Sources:

[----] indicates sources that are not yet available to me.

Document history:

Version: Created/Changed by: Date: Change Description:
1.0 Patrick Gross July 9, 2010 First published.
1.1 Patrick Gross May 20, 2020 Addition [jps1], Summary. Explanations changed, were "Not looked for yet."
1.2 Patrick Gross June 22, 2020 Addition [abt1].

Valid XHTML 1.0 Strict



 Feedback  |  Top  |  Back  |  Forward  |  Map  |  List |  Home
This page was last updated on June 22, 2020.