Gendarmes followed by a light on the A1 motorway

Summary

In the early hours of May 13, 1980, two gendarmes patrolling the A1 motorway near Roye spotted a luminous object in the sky. They pulled into a rest area and radioed their control center, where a third gendarme visually confirmed the sighting. One officer attempted photographs, but the images came out blank. When they resumed driving north, the light appeared to follow their vehicle. The observation lasted nearly an hour.

Despite the consistency of the testimony and the professional credibility of the witnesses, GEPAN classified the case as PAN A, attributing it to a probable confusion with Venus on the horizon.