Castres 2015, Object falls and returns to the sky

Summary

In September 2015, a witness in Castres observed an unusual aerial phenomenon from their terrace. First, they saw an object descending vertically at high speed, quickly disappearing. Shortly after, another object rapidly ascended toward the zenith, with a part detaching and descending horizontally. The witness heard no noise during the event and initially thought it might be a supersonic aircraft. However, the lack of precise data—such as angles, directions, or duration of each phase—made identification difficult. Although the most plausible hypothesis pointed to aircraft contrails, there was no conclusive evidence to confirm this.

The case was classified as "C," meaning the phenomenon could not be identified due to insufficient information. The GEIPAN concluded that while the contrail hypothesis was the most likely, there was no definitive data to support it. This case highlights the complexity of interpreting aerial events without detailed observations or multiple witnesses. Despite the apparent simplicity of the account, the absence of technical data prevents a definitive resolution.