File 143 · 11 November 1979

Manises, Spain

Manises / Valencia, Spain

Opened 9/4/2026

Ledger illustration of the file — not a photograph of the object. Ledger illustration of the report. Mediterranean airport night. — Night Ledger illustration of the file

LightsHynek RVofficialArchive40 witnesses

Standing

Unidentified

On the public record, and still open. A claim, paper, or film — not a finding that it was ours, and not a finding that it was not.

What was claimed

A commercial flight diverted to Manises after the crew reported red lights that paced the airliner. F-1 fighters were scrambled.

What is on the record

This file is a working record — a report, not a verdict. Official paper, if any, is linked where we have it.

Tae 1972, a Super Caravelle from Salzburg to Tenerife, was near Valencia when the crew saw two intense red lights. Capt. Francisco Javier Lerdo de Tejada requested an emergency landing at Manises. Passengers saw the lights. Spanish Air Force Mirages were scrambled from Los Llanos; one pilot reported a target that outran him. The lights were also seen from the airport.

A later official report discussed flares and optical effects. The diversion, the scramble, and the passenger statements are not in dispute. Spain released a file. The airline captain never withdrew the report.

Could this have been ours?

The known sky, that night.

Satellites were already up. The station was not. Starlink was not.

Always

Venus and the bright planets

A fixed brilliant point. Does not streak. Does not hover over a street then leave. Often the first misread light in a rural report.

Always

Aircraft, balloons, meteors

Landing lights, flares, lanterns, reentries, fireballs. They are on the known sky. They do not close a file by themselves — they are what a serious look has to hold the claim against.

Orbit · Space — the desks for lights that are already named.

Sources

Spanish Air Force / Tae 1972 crew

Related files

Same craft, same place, same years. A neighbor in the catalogue — not a conclusion.

Lights

Same craft · Same year · 27 August 1979

Val Johnson, Minnesota

Marshall County, Minnesota · United States

Unidentified

A deputy’s patrol car was damaged and the officer injured after he reported a blinding light on a rural road. State police documented the car.

Lights

Same craft · Same years · December 30-31, 1978

Kaikoura Lights Radar-Visual Encounter

Kaikoura, South Island · New Zealand

Unidentified

Aircrew, passengers, and air traffic controllers observed and filmed bright lights maneuvering near an aircraft; confirmed by Wellington radar and RNZAF investigation.