Case file · Sighting
Jeffreys Bay green object
The crew of a Boeing 737 cargo plane off the Eastern Cape said a glowing green object rose past the cockpit to the clouds and fell back.
2016 CE · -34.05, 25.10 · status: account
The account
At about 21:30 on 12 December 2016, ten nautical miles offshore from Jeffreys Bay, the captain and co-pilot reported the object rising about 1,000 ft above them. A distress flare was suspected, then considered unlikely because of the height; Port Elizabeth airport officials asked whether a vessel was in trouble.
The sceptical view
Unresolved; a high-performance flare, rocket or firework remain possible.