Case · C-049

Trans-en-Provence 1981: the reported landing and the traces analyzed by GEPAN

Trans-en-Provence, Var, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur · France · Jan 8, 1981

On land Civilian witnesses Physical traces

What happened

On January 8, 1981, a resident reported having seen a gray object about 2.5 meters in size land for a few seconds some tens of meters from him, lower down on his property, and take off again vertically, leaving a circular mark in the ground. The gendarmerie collected soil and alfalfa samples and GEPAN coordinated laboratory analyses: according to GEIPAN they showed soil compaction, heating below 600 degrees, and plant alterations that decreased with distance from the trace, without being able to establish its cause. With a single witness, the investigation did not identify the phenomenon and the case is classified “D.”

Proposed explanation

According to the gendarmes who examined the site, cited by the skeptical researchers David Rossoni, Éric Maillot and Éric Déguillaume, the marks were consistent with car tires at a spot where vehicles passed; GEPAN did not accept this hypothesis and GEIPAN keeps the case in class “D.”

Official investigation

National Gendarmerie; GEPAN of CNES, with analyses by laboratories including INRA

Words of the document

Un phénomène important inhabituel s'est produit ce jour là

Official documents

1. TRANS-EN-PROVENCE (83) 08.01.1981 – scheda del caso con verbale e analisi · GEIPAN (CNES) · 2021
2. Note technique n° 16 – Enquête 81/01: analyse d'une trace · GEPAN (CNES) · Mar 1, 1983

Sources

1. D. Rossoni, É. Maillot, É. Déguillaume, “UFOs: An Assessment of Thirty Years of Official Studies in France”, Skeptical Inquirer, 2009 (PDF) (analysis, skeptical)
2. Wikipedia (en) – Trans-en-Provence case (other)
3. Patrick Gross, “About the Trans-en-Provence case” (dossier on the traces) (analysis, pro-disclosure)

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