The 1954 French flap:

Abundant flying saucers

Six months after Easter a bell is still flying in the air

Louviers, October 12. -- A craftsman and his apprentice claimed to have seen, on the Evreux-Louviers railway track, while riding a motorcycle, around 3 in the morning, a bell-shaped machine, 2.50 m. to 3 meters high, which was one meter above the ground. The bottom of the craft was shaped like a ring. The object emitted sparks with greenish and reddish reflections. It first jumped 10 to 12 meters, while an orange glow sprang from its base.

A farm worker joined the two men to observe the phenomenon. All three state that the "bell" remained visible for almost an hour. Then the orange glow became brighter, and the craft rose vertically very quickly, heading east.

A math teacher took measurements

Lisieux, 13. -- Mr. Bon, professor of mathematics at Lisieux, saw at the beginning of the afternoon at Saint-Germain de Livet, 200 or 300 meters from the road, above a wood, a silver disc of a diameter of 7 to 8 meters, which rose suddenly in the sky, without noise.

The disc was in rotation movement. After having dived towards the ground from an altitude of about 800 meters, it suddenly left horizontally at a dizzying pace.

On the sides of the mushroom fair...

La Roche-sur-Yon, 13. - Mrs. Drouillard, residing in La Roche-sur-Yon, said he saw in the sky, on Monday evening, around 11:30 p.m., a luminous machine resembling a mushroom, which moved quickly without noise.

Nevers, 13. -- Two residents of Clamecy (Nièvre), MM. Henri Gallois and Louis Vigneron, fairground merchants, said that they had seen a cylindrical craft in a meadow near Corbigny.

They state that while they were about 50 meters from the craft, they felt an electric shock while the engine of their truck stopped and the headlights went out. When the craft was gone, the headlights came on again, but they had to restart the engine.

Lyon, 13. -- Doctor Durand, general councilor of Belleville-sur-Saône, and Mr. Bourgeois, bartender in Saint- Georges de Reneins, saw a flying saucer above La Chapelle de Brouilly.

Also, Monday evening, around 7:30 p.m., two athletes, MM. Dubuis, rugby player, and Coulon, swimming champion, saw, flying at low altitude, towards Montgelas, a ball of fire which changed color several times.

Giant rocket in the sky of Toulouse

It left traces on the ground

Toulouse, 13. - Two residents of the Toulouse suburbs, MM. Pierre Vidal and his nephew Angel Hurle, were able to see Tuesday morning, at dawn, barely a hundred meters from their home, a giant rocket which, starting from a field, quickly disappeared in the sky causing a clarity of rare intensity.

The two men then went to the place where they located the starting point of the mysterious object. There they found that the grass had been flattened on a circular surface of 5 meters in diameter. In the center of this area, they discovered in the ground, four footprints appearing to have been left by the feet of a heavy craft.

The grass was covered with droplets from the condensation of fatty vapor and which smelled of petroleum.

The police went to the scene.

The saucers chronicle

LOUVIERS. -- A craftsman and his apprentice claimed to have seen on the railway from Evreux to Louviers, as they drove a motorcycle, at about 3 a.m., a craft shaped like a bell, 2 m. 60 to 3 meters high, which was at one meter above the ground. The craft emitted sparks shimmering in greenish and reddish. First it rose a good 10 to 12 meters, while gushing from its base an orange glow.

The lower part of the apparatus had the shape of a ring.

A farm worker joined the two men to observe the phenomenon. All three state that the "bell" remained visible for about an hour. Then the orange glow became brighter, and the object rose very fast vertically, taking the direction of the east.

Lisieux. -- Mr. Bon, professor of mathematics at Lisieux, saw early in the afternoon in Saint-Germain-de-Livet, 2 or 300 meters from the road, over a wooden area, a silver disc with a diameter of 7 to 8 meters, which rose suddenly in the sky, without noise.

The disc was animated of a rapid movement of rotation. After diving to the ground from an altitude of about 800 meters it suddenly left horizontally at a tremendous speed.

LA ROCHE-SUR-YON. -- Mrs. Drouilard, residing in La Roche-sur-Yon, said she saw in the sky Monday night around 11:30 p.m., a luminous machine resembling a mushroom, moving silently and rapidly.

Nevers. -- Two residents of Clamecy (Nièvre), MM. Henry Gallois and Louis Vigneron, stallholders, stated to have seen in a meadow near Corbigny, a cylindrical craft.

They say that while they were about fifty meters from the object, they felt an electrical shock, while the engine of their truck stopped and the headlights went out. When the craft was gone the headlights came on again but they had to restart the engine.

LYON. -- Dr. Durand, general counsellor of the Township of Belleville-sur-Saône and Mr. Bourgeois, cafe owner in Saint-Georges de Reneins saw over the chapel of Brouilly, a flying saucer.

On the other hand, around 7:30 p.m. Monday night, MM. Dubois, rugby player and Coulon, swimming champion, saw, flying at low altitude, in the direction of Montgelas, a ball of fire that changed color several times.

TOULOUSE. -- Two residents in the Toulouse suburb, Mr. Pierre Vidal and his nephew Angel Hurle, saw yesterday morning at dawn, a hundred meters from their house, a giant rocket, fly away from a field and disappearing into the sky while producing a clarity of rare intensity.

The two men then went to the place where they thought the starting point of the mysterious craft was located. There, they found that the grass had been trampled on a circular area with a diameter of 6 meters. In the center of the area they found in the ground, four prints appearing to have been left by the feet of a heavy machine.

The grass was covered with droplets of fat steam condensation and smelled of oil.

The police went to the scene.

CHATEAUBRIANT. -- A 13-year-old boy, young Gilbert Lelay, said he saw on Tuesday night around 10:30 p.m., a mysterious craft in a field some 600 meters from his parents' home in the village of Sainte-Marie en Erbray near Chateaubriant.

The child claims to have spent ten minutes looking at ten meters this craft that was shaped like a phosphorescent cigar.

A passenger, a man wearing a suit and a gray hat, wearing boots, reportedly told him in French, "Look but do not touch." He put the hand on his shoulder, while with the other he held a ball launching purple lights. He climbed into the craft through a door that slammed. On what could have been a dashboard, there were several colored buttons.

Still according to the child, the machine rose slowly vertically, throwing light in all directions, flew two rounds in the air and suddenly disappeared.

Abroad

VIENNA. -- Harald Kreutzberg, the Austrian Serge Lifar, living in Seefeld in Tirol, observed while he was in his garden, a flying saucer that flew over the small town for a few seconds before heading north and disappearing behind mountains.

Several residents of Seefeld also observed the phenomenon and tried unsuccessfully to photograph the mysterious craft.

SAUCERS (continued)

The military governor of Metz studies the report of Commander Cottel, who saw a luminous craft caught in a spotlight beam

(From our special correspondent Henry Pignolet)

METZ, October 13 (by telephone).

The military governor of Metz, General Navereau, commander of the 6th region, is this morning awaiting the report from Commander Cottel, a specialist in ground-based anti-aircraft forces, regarding the presence last Sunday in the city's sky of a mysterious craft that remained for three hours in the beam of a powerful army spotlight.

It's easy to imagine the caution with which the commander of the A.A.G.F. (Anti-Aircraft Ground Forces) drafted this report. Commander Cottel was in charge of the radar station installed at the army booth at the Metz trade fair, which had just closed. The station had a powerful spotlight that, throughout the duration of the fair, scanned the city's sky. About ten men were around the device when, on Sunday evening, the beam suddenly froze on a motionless globe in the sky, "sparkling," the commander told me, "like a Christmas tree ornament."

The beam was vertical. The "thing" appeared to be at 10,000 meters. At least, that's what the experts said. No one panicked, to be fair.

- "It's a weather balloon," suggested one of the spotlight operators.

- "Impossible, 'that' must be fifty meters in diameter."

Everyone agreed.

But then?

The radar detected nothing

So, not wanting to believe in flying saucers, they decided to clean the lenses and even replace the carbon rods in the spotlight. When they turned it back on, the balloon was still there.

The onlookers, who had gathered around the spotlight, also saw the "Christmas tree ornament." They watched it until around 11 p.m., when the spotlight was finally turned off. They weren't the only ones; residents of the suburbs of Sablon and Queuleu also reported witnessing the phenomenon the next day.

The radar, however, whose beam had continuously swept the skies, detected nothing.

- "The 'thing'," explained a technician, "was not metallic. It is not detectable by radar."

The day before yesterday, the Metz fair, which had drawn over 600,000 visitors, closed. No more spotlight, no more radar, no more mysterious sphere. All that remained were the testimonies of about fifteen people - spotlight operators, an officer from the army's geographic service, and Commander Cottel - whose report, eagerly and curiously awaited at the military governor's palace, will determine this chapter in the history of flying saucers.

Three "little beings" in an electric saucer

NEVERS, October 13. ("France-Soir" dispatch). -- Two shopkeepers from Clamecy, Mr. Louis Vigneron and Henri Gallois, who were driving their van to the Corbigny fair early yesterday morning around 6 a.m., saw in a field about fifty meters from the road a cylindrical-shaped craft of considerable diameter.

At that moment, the van's engine stopped and the headlights went out.

- "I was breathless," said Mr. Gallois. "My body felt a sort of electric shock. I could clearly see the craft, which looked like a saucer."

"I saw, moving around the machine, three small beings that seemed oddly shaped. We were immobilized inside the vehicle and unable to move. Only after the craft flew off at incredible speed were we able to resume our journey."

Mr. Vigneron confirmed his companion's account, as did a third witness, Mr. Henri Chameau, a cartwright in La Carie, a village near Clamecy.

A boy meets a "Martian" who speaks French

CHATEAUBRIANT, October 13 (A.F.P.). - A 13-year-old boy, young Gilbert Lelay, claims to have seen last night around 10:30 p.m. a mysterious craft in a meadow about 600 meters from his parents' home in the village of Sainte-Marie-en-Erbray, near Châteaubriant.

The child said he observed the object from about ten meters away for ten minutes. It was shaped like a glowing cigar. A passenger, a man dressed in a suit and gray hat and wearing boots, reportedly said to him in French:

"Look, but don't touch." He put a hand on the boy's shoulder while holding a ball emitting violet lights in the other hand. He climbed into the craft through a door that slammed shut. On what appeared to be a control panel, there were several multicolored buttons.

According to the child, the craft then rose vertically, slowly, emitting lights in all directions, circled in the air twice, and suddenly vanished.

The Austrian Serge Lifar saw one too...

VIENNA, October 13 (A.F.P.) - Mr. Harald Kreutzberg, known as the Austrian Serge Lifar, living in Seefeld, Tyrol, observed a flying saucer while in his garden. It flew over the small town for a few seconds before heading north and disappearing behind the mountains.

A GIANT ROCKET, taking off from a field, was seen by Mr. Pierre Vidal, a cook living in Croix Daurade near Toulouse, and his nephew, Angel Hurle. It disappeared in an orange and pale green luminous trail. At the presumed location of the rocket, the grass was covered with an oily vapor smelling of petroleum.

A MATHEMATICS TEACHER from Lisieux, Mr. Bon, saw in Saint-Germain-de-Livet, above a forest, silver discs about seven to eight meters wide, which rose silently into the sky while spinning. After diving from an altitude of about 800 meters, it flew off horizontally at dizzying speed.

A COUNTY COUNCILLOR, a café owner, a rugby player, and a swimming champion saw a flying saucer resembling a ball of fire above the chapel of Brouilly heading toward Montgelas (Rhône).

MR. GEORGES LEROUX, 33 avenue de la Motte-Picquet, Paris, who, according to some reports, was said to have seen a flying chamber pot in the Rambouillet area, informs us that he has never seen any mysterious craft. Case closed.

Flying saucers continue their raids

PARIS. -- The "flying saucers" continue their mysterious rounds. Reports of strange craft continue to come in from all directions.

A MYSTERY IN METZ

It has been learned that the military governor of Metz has requested a detailed report on a curious incident that occurred at the Metz Fair.

Commander Cotel, an expert in ground-based anti-aircraft forces, reported witnessing a mysterious object in the sky over the city on Sunday. The object remained in the beam of a powerful army searchlight for three hours.

Commander Cotel was in charge of the radar station set up at the army's booth at the Metz commercial fair, which has just ended. The station operated a powerful spotlight that scanned the skies during the fair. About ten men were present when, on Sunday evening, the light beam suddenly stopped on a stationary globe in the sky, "twinkling," according to the commander, "like a Christmas tree ornament."

The beam was vertical. The "object" appeared to be at an altitude of 10,000 meters, or so the experts claimed. No panic ensued, it's worth noting.

Not wanting to believe it was a flying saucer, the team decided to clean the lenses and even replace the projector's carbons. When the light was turned back on, the object was still there.

Onlookers who had gathered around the projector also saw "the Christmas ornament globe." They observed it until about 11 p.m., when the light was finally switched off. And they were not the only ones; residents of the Sablon and Queuleu suburbs also reported seeing the phenomenon the next day.

The radar, however, had picked up nothing.

- Mr. Bon, a mathematics professor in Lisieux, spotted, in the early afternoon at Saint-Germain-de-Livet, 200 to 300 meters from the road above a wooded area, a silver disk with a diameter of 7 to 8 meters. The object suddenly rose silently into the sky, spinning rapidly.

After diving from an altitude of about 800 meters, it suddenly shot off horizontally at an incredible speed.

AN OBJECT IN A FIELD IN THE NIEVRE

NEVERS. -- Two residents of Clamecy (Nièvre), Henri Gallois and Louis Vigneron, fairground vendors, reported seeing a cylindrical-shaped craft in a field near Corbigny.

They stated that when they approached within about fifty meters of the object, they felt an electric shock, their truck engine stalled, and the headlights went out. Once the object disappeared, the headlights came back on, but they had to restart the engine manually.

A COUNTY COUNCILLOR SAW A FLYING SAUCER

LYON. -- Dr. Durand, general councillor for the canton of Belleville-sur-Saône, and Mr. Bourjeois, a café owner in Saint-Georges-de-Renain, saw a flying saucer over La Chapelle-de-Brouilly.

Additionally, around 7:30 p.m., two athletes, Mr. Dubuis (a rugby second row with F.O.C.U.) and Mr. Coulon (a swimming champion), observed a fireball flying at low altitude toward Montgelas, which changed color several times.