Link: https://metro.co.uk/2026/08/02/pilot-spots-flying-saucer-cockpit-plane-near-london-gatwick-airport-29280510/amp/

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The original was posted on /r/ufos by /u/silv3rbull8 on 2026-08-03 12:22:09+00:00.

A pilot spotted a ‘flying saucer’ narrowly close to their plane near LondonGatwick Airport.

Aviation officials say the pilot was behind the wheel of an Airbus A319 when they saw an ‘unk obj’, or unknown object, at 11.30am on April 29.

The A319 pilot reports that descending, turning left, a disc or “flying saucer” type ­suspected drone was seen flying very close in the opposite direction, at the same level to them, past their right wing,’ a report by the UK Airprox Board published in June said.

The disc was spotted soaring over the Sussex countryside near Hangcross, a village roughly seven miles south of Gatwick.

The UK Airprox Board examines incidents of ‘airprox’, or when something is close enough to a plane that it could be a safety risk.

And this ‘something’ was just 100ft or so from the aircraft wing as they were 8,500ft in the air and about to land, the board was told.

‘The object looked like a disc with darker markings on the rim, a suspected possible drone but not sure,’ its monthly meeting report said.

‘It was very close to the aircraft, but no evasive action was required as they were in a turn already.’

Investigators cross-checked the sighting with radar data to see if it was a known drone, but came up short.

‘In the Board’s opinion the reported altitude and/or description of the object were such that they were unable to determine the nature of the unknown object,’ the report concluded.