HOUILLES (78) 23.08.2018

Early in the evening of 23 August 2018, a couple on their terrace saw a black object flying from northwest towards La Défense to the southeast. It appeared round and fairly high, but they could not estimate its distance. It moved fairly quickly, taking just over 1 minute to reach the direction of La Défense. It was silent and followed a straight path, sometimes seeming to rotate on its axis without changing course. A drone had recently flown over them twice, but they considered this object different. GEIPAN rates evidential support as fairly good: there are 2 witnesses but no photograph. The investigation concluded that a balloon was very probable (see the investigation report). The description of a rectangular or elongated round shape fits a balloon fairly well. It may have been black or dark, with that impression strengthened by backlighting at sunset. A briefly seen red light could have been a temporary reflection of sunset light from its envelope. Its path also matched the wind direction very well. GEIPAN classifies the case A: very probable observation of a balloon.