The Manises Incident (1979)
On November 11, 1979, commercial flight JK-297 from Salzburg to the Canary Islands, carrying 109 passengers, was followed over the Mediterranean by a series of intense red lights that corrected course with every evasive maneuver the plane made. The captain obtained clearance to divert to Manises airport near Valencia, where a Spanish Air Force Mirage F1 scrambled to intercept the object.
Witnesses
Crew, 109 passengers
Why it endures
A professional crew, 109 passengers evacuated as a precaution, and a military fighter sent to intercept — a rare scale of aviation disruption for a UFO case.
Official version (contested)
A Spanish Air Force report (1994) suggested flashes from a chemical plant and stars mistaken by the pilots. The account is disputed by witnesses.