UFO sightings in France

This is a list of alleged sightings of unidentified flying objects or UFOs in France.

815

 * 815, Lyons, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. The Carolingian archbishop, Agobard of Lyons, described in his De Grandine et Tonitruis ("On Hail and Thunder") of people who believe in a "certain region called Magonia from which ships come in the clouds, in which the fruits that are lost through hail and storms are transported to the same region, the aeronauts paying prizes to the weather witches and receiving the grain or other fruits." The tale goes on that this crowd of people tried to kill 4 victims: "Deluded by this folly so profound, we saw many in a human assembly present four people, three men and a woman, as prisoners who were supposed to have fallen from these ships. These kept them in bonds for several days, and finally, as I said, brought them forward in our presence to be stoned to death. But the truth prevailed, and after much discussion those who had presented them were put to shame according to the prophetic word, just as a thief is put to shame when he is caught." De Grandine et Tonitruis pp. 8-10: "Plerosque autem vidimus et audivimus tanta dementia obrutos, tanta stultitia alienatos, ut credant et dicant quandam esse regionem, quæ dicatur Magonia, ex qua naves veniant in nubibus, in quibus fruges, quæ grandinibus decidunt, et tempestatibus pereunt, vehantur in eamdem regionem, ipsis videlicet nautis aëreis dantibus pretia tempestariis, et accipientibus frumenta vel ceteras fruges. Ex his item tam profunda stultitia excoecatis, ut haec posse fieri credant, vidimus plures in quodam conventu hominum exhibere vinctos quatuor homines, tres viros, et unam feminam, quasi qui de ipsis navibus ceciderint :; quos scilicet per aliquot dies in vinculis detentos, tandem collecto conventu hominum exhibuerunt, ut dixi, in nostra præsentia, tanquam lapidandos. Sed tamen vincente veritate, post multam ratiocinationem, ipsi qui eos exhibuerant, secundum propheticum illud confusi sunt, sicut confunditur fur quando deprehenditur". (Translation: "However, we saw and heard many who were afflicted with such great folly and such great delusion that they believed and said that there was a region called Magonia, from which ships come in the clouds, in which the fruits that are lost through hail and storms are transported to the same region, the aeronauts paying prizes to the weather witches and receiving the grain or other fruits. Deluded by this folly so profound, we saw many in a human assembly present four people, three men and a woman, as prisoners who were supposed to have fallen from these ships. These kept them in bonds for several days, and finally, as I said, brought them forward in our presence to be stoned to death. But the truth prevailed, and after much discussion those who had presented them were put to shame according to the prophetic word, just as a thief is put to shame when he is caught.")

1952
October 17, 1952, Oloron-Sainte-Marie. Many people saw a cigar-shaped UFO accompanied by 30 disc-shaped objects. These smaller UFOs dropped a white siliceous cotton which covered tree branches and roofs. Some French skeptics thought that the UFOs were an optical phenomenon caused by the refraction of the sun's rays and the siliceous cotton was caused by a migration of field spiders.

1954

 * September 10, 1954, Quarouble, Nord. A railway worker witnessed two small beings boarding a UFO and flying into the sky. Strange things happened in the region in the following days. The case received notable media attention.

1965

 * July 1, 1965, Valensole, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence. An alleged UFO sighting and close encounter  by farmer Maurice Masse. According to Masse, he encountered two small beings near a spherical vehicle that had landed in a nearby field. Masse claims that he was paralyzed when one of the beings pointed a tube-like object towards him. Masse said he watched the beings looking at plants and making grunting sounds until they returned to the vehicle and flew away. According to his wife, Masse said he received some kind of communication from the beings, considered his encounter "a spiritual experience", and looked upon the site as "hallowed ground" that "should be kept in his family forever". UFOlogists consider Masse's claims significant and cite "landing gear impressions" found in the soil.
 * September 1965. Fort-de-France, Martinique. In late September 1965, at the harbour at Fort-de-France at 9:15 p.m., several hundred witnesses saw a ball or disk of light in the sky. It moved slowly from west to east and then looped around, leaving a glowing trail. The last part of its trajectory was observed through binoculars. It disappeared at 9:50 p.m. Reported by Michel Figuet, first timonier (helmsman) of the French fleet of the Mediterranean.

1967

 * August 29, 1967, Cussac, Cantal. Two young children, a brother and sister, declare to have been the witnesses of a meeting with a UFO and their occupants.

1976

 * November 5, 1976. Rives / Voreppe, Isère. Dr. S., a French physicist, saw a "luminous disk moving in the sky" while driving home near Voreppe towards Grenoble. It was "brighter than the full moon" and slightly flattened. Due to its movement between mountains, it is possible to estimate its distance between 9 and 36 km. This is GEPAN Case No. 76305443. The same phenomenon was seen by several people on a straight line over 250 km from Clermont-Ferrand to Grenoble. From this, it is possible to estimate that it was moving at an altitude of 1,500 to 2,500 ft.

1978

 * June 19, 1978. Gujan-Mestras, Gironde. Several people witnessed a UAP which tripped off the city lights of Gujan-Mestras. The case was investigated by the local police and by GEPAN.

1981

 * January 8, 1981, Trans-en-Provence, Var. The Trans-en-Provence Case is considered by UFOlogists to be one of the rare cases where a UFO left material traces. Critics say it was a joke, and the traces were tyres.

1982

 * October 21, 1982, Nancy, France. At 12:30 a.m. an ovoid object descended into a garden and hovered above the ground. After 20 minutes the object took off silently into the sky. The witness, a biologist, reported that when the UFO rose up, the grass under it stood up straight. In the afternoon, the witness noted that two amaranth plants located near the UFO had withered leaves. The witness called the Gendarmerie, which made an inspection in the garden and took some samples of the amaranth plants. The analysis of the samples made by GEPAN found that the plants had been dehydrated, but there was no evidence of radiation.