Case file · Close encounter
Tindouf hovering craft
At 1 am on 28 July 1998, two Algerian soldiers out without leave near Tindouf hid behind a dune as a craft about 9 m long with front, rear, top and bottom lights hovered 1.5 m above the sand, 4.5 m away.
1998 CE · 27.67, -8.15 · status: account
The account
One of them emailed the French researcher Patrick Gross in December 2001, describing a square-section beam projected onto the ground and windows in the craft.
The sceptical view
A single witness writing three years later, with no investigation possible. Military helicopters operate around Tindouf.