[AERO CTR] BIARRITZ (64) 16.01.2001

The morning of 16 January 2001 began routinely for Emma in the Biarritz-Parme control tower. Dawn was breaking and the sky is clear. At about 7:45 a.m. the phone rings. It is her colleague José of the control tower of San Sebastian Fuentarrabia who observes a fixed luminous point above the sea and who seeks to know whether the observation is confirmed in Biarritz. Indeed the phenomenon is detected, although no radar detection is found. The observed light is flickering and faced with this puzzling phenomenon, the two controllers, who remain in telephone contact, each apply the security procedures prescribed in this case. José, the Spanish air traffic controller contacts Madrid air traffic control which confirms that there is no air traffic in the area, then the Bilbao military air traffic control which makes the same answer. However, a plot is recorded by the radar control of Torrejon. Is this the same phenomenon? Emma, for her part, is conducting equivalent investigations with the Bordeaux air traffic control, which has not observed anything, nor did the military authorities she also contacted. The phenomenon will disappear after about half an hour. All this information is transmitted the same day by fax to the SEPRA, which in turn contacts the CCOA of Taverny. Taverny did not detect anything particular but seeks confirmation of the unidentified radar detection reported by military personnel at Torrejón. They shortly afterward deny that such a detection occurred. Within the CNES, a check is launched to identify a possible launch of a balloon from the Aire-sur-Adour center. Again, the result is negative and the observation keeps its mystery. The decision was taken to investigate the matter on the spot and on 2 February 2001 the SEPRA official questioned the two witnesses, in Biarritz and San Sebastian, and they carried out a reconstruction and measurements, which, made with a theodolite, gave vital information. Indeed, the direction of observation of the phenomenon was identical seen from Biarritz and San Sebastian, which were about 40 km away. SEPRA concluded that the phenomenon was therefore very distant and could not be an aircraft. This case will be classified B by SEPRA: probable astronomical observation. CASE REVIEW: GEIPAN continues to publish all its archives on its public website www.geipan.fr. In its publications, there are older cases originally classified B and which are now under review, solely to improve the conclusions. This case of observation is included in cases classified "B" in 2001 by the SEPRA. Thanks to new technical (software) means and to the experience of investigation gained over the last few years, this review sometimes leads to new remarks or even to a change in classification in an investigation note. This case has good evidential support (two witnesses, both air traffic controllers), the description of the observed UAP is very precise. The sincerity and credibility of the witnesses were never questioned. The phenomenon described has many common characteristics (observation duration, shape, size, colour) with a perfectly known astronomical object: the star Capella, affected by exceptional scintillation due to special atmospheric conditions. GEIPAN attributes the misidentification to the witnesses’ interpretation under surprise, nighttime viewing conditions and unusual scintillation, rather than a fault in their visual perception. In the current GEIPAN classification, this case of low strangeness is classified as UAP A, an observation linked to a misidentification with the star Capella.