COGNAC (16) 20.08.2021

On Friday 20 August 2021 at about 17:00, a witness at home in Cognac (16) was watching an airliner heading north when something suddenly crossed its flight path. It was traveling due south, almost along the airliner's track in the opposite direction; the French summary describes its speed as very high. The object was roughly rectangular and light gray, compared by the witness to an aircraft made almost white in appearance by clouds beneath it. Within 1 second, he saw it slow rapidly to a complete stop, remain fixed in place and then move backward for a fraction of a second without turning, as though reversing. It then set off at 90° due west, reaching its cruising speed almost immediately. Only 1 account was collected. The remote investigation did not provide enough evidence for GEIPAN to propose an explanation. It describes the reported phenomenon as very unusual and unlike anything known, particularly its movement incorporating a stop, a brief reversal and a 90° turn, the main unusual feature for the witness. The roughly rectangular, pale gray appearance, without lights or any other identifiable structure, was also considered notably unusual. GEIPAN asked the witness for further information to characterize the trajectory and speed, but received no reply. An on-site inquiry might have resolved uncertainties or produced new evidence, but could not be completed because the witness declined any further contact about the case. GEIPAN considers the missing information too significant to allow the case to be assessed and characterized, despite its apparently high unusualness. The case is therefore classified as C: the substantial lack of substantiated data prevents a conclusion on the available evidence.