MAISONS-ALFORT (94) 05.07.2020

On 5 July 2020 at about 20:30, a witness looking through a window of his 3rd-floor apartment noticed a black line just below the Moon. Thinking it was a cloud’s shadow, he took several photographs. As he continued watching, the UAP moved slowly eastward out of the Moon’s bright halo. Reviewing his photographs then made him doubt his initial shadow explanation. Only 1 account was collected. Although there was only 1 witness, GEIPAN considers the evidential support very good because the account is complete and fairly precise and there are several photographs (see the investigation report). GEIPAN rates strangeness as low and identifies the shadow of the contrail from flight FR3919, Palermo to London. The shape and slow movement strongly suggest an aircraft contrail or its shadow. The positions of celestial objects in the photographs establish when they were taken. Flight FR3919 was in the indicated direction at the angular elevation of the UAP. Its contrail, well above the clouds and illuminated by moonlight, cast a shadow onto those clouds. GEIPAN classifies the case A: very probable misidentification of an aircraft contrail’s shadow.