Bright object pursued by two military pilots over Orange in 1951

Summary

On 15 June 1951 at 11:30 a.m., a pilot from Orange-Caritat air base spotted a bright, circular or spherical object hovering at roughly 10,000 feet toward the Pelvoux massif. He alerted his superior, who also observed it. As the pilots tried to close in, the object appeared to grow larger, took on an elongated shape, and moved along a slightly ascending trajectory for about six minutes before vanishing on the horizon.

The contemporary investigation confirmed both witnesses' credibility. A stratospheric balloon was considered but ruled out, as the object's rapid retreat when the aircraft approached is incompatible with such a device. Classified D1 — unidentified strange phenomenon.