PANAZOL (87) 14.07.2023

On 14 July 2023 at 20:40, a family was dining outdoors in Panazol (87) when a witness saw an unfamiliar object passing silently. The source summary describes it as very bright, shaped like a large capsule and lacking a condensation trail. Only 1 account was collected. GEIPAN identifies a Boeing 738 flying from Bristol to Barcelona. At 20:40 local time, 18:40 UTC, it passed east of the witness on a generally north–south track; see the FR24 witness/aircraft-position document. Its altitude of 37,000 feet, 11.28 km, gives an elevation of 62°, compatible with the witness's successive estimates of 50° and 70°, given the difficulty of estimating angles without fixed landmarks. GEIPAN attributes the surprise to the absent contrail. Contrails are not always produced; their formation depends on pressure, temperature and humidity, particularly cold air. The source refers to the detailed example KANFEN (57) 12.07.2020. The case is classified A: observation of an airliner.