Update: Pilots who reported a UFO over Ireland on Friday, most likely saw a shooting star, according to a leading expert.

Shannon Air Traffic control was contacted by a captain flying over Kerry to say she had seen a speeding bright light, with two other pilots in the area confirming the sighting.

The Aviation Authority of Ireland has launched an investigation.

Aviation journalist Gerry Byrne said: "In all probability they were meteorites and it's not uncommon for meteorites to come in at a low angle, a low trajectory into the Earth's atmosphere."

- Additional reporting by Digital Desk

Earlier: Audio: Close encounter with UFO off Irish coast leaves pilots ‘wondering’

The Irish Aviation Authority has begun an investigation into the sighting of an unidentified flying object (UFO) by a number of aircraft off the south-west coast of Ireland last Friday.

At approximately 6.47am on November 9, the pilot of a British Airways flight, call sign Speedbird94, contacted Shannon Air Traffic Control (ATC) to ask if there were military exercises taking place in the airspace through which her Boeing 787 was passing.

There were no military exercises underway.

Shannon ATC replied: “There is nothing showing on either primary or secondary [radar].”

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The pilot responded: “OK. It was moving so fast.”

The controller then asked: “Alongside you?”

The BA pilot, flying from Montreal to Heathrow, describes how the UFO came up along the left-hand side of the aircraft, “then rapidly veered to the north”.

She said it was “a very bright light” that “disappeared at very high speed”.

She said they were “wondering” what it could be, that it did not seem to be on a collision course.

Scroll to 17m to hear interaction

The pilot of a Virgin Airlines Boeing 747, call sign Virgin76, then joined the conversation and made reference to a meteor or another object re-entering the earth’s atmosphere and said there were “multiple objects following the same sort of trajectory”.

He said they were very bright “where we were”.

Shannon ATC than asked if the pilots knew which direction the objects were heading. The Virgin Airlines pilot said it was in his “11 o’clock position” with “two bright lights over to the right”, that then climbed away at speed. Shannon ATC told the pilot it would pass that information on. Shannon ATC then told Speedbird94 that “other aircraft in the air have also reported the same thing so we are going to have a look and see”.

Another pilot said the speed of the UFO was “astronomical, it was like Mach 2”, or twice the speed of sound.

Very interesting report on Shannon high level Friday 9 November at 0630z with multiple aircraft with reported sightings of a UFO over County Kerry. Skip to 17 minutes to listen reports on @liveatc https://t.co/VP1p0hrScn #Aviation #UFO #Ireland — Trevor Buckley (@IrishAero) November 11, 2018

The Virgin Airlines flight, from Orlando to Manchester, can carry 455 passengers, while the 787 has 214 seats. A third aircraft, a Norwegian Air 737 travelling from Stewart, New York, to Shannon, which can carry 200 passengers, was also party to the conversation.

The BA flight was passing over Kerry at the time, while the other two flights were off the south-west coast, heading eastbound, and in high-level airspace, which extends from 24,500ft upwards.

The Irish Examiner contacted the Irish Aviation Authority to ask if it was investigating the UFO.

In a statement, the authority said: “Following reports from a small number of aircraft on Friday, November 9, of unusual air activity, the IAA has filed a report.

“This report will be investigated under the normal confidential occurrence investigation process.”</s>Image copyright Getty Images Image caption The pilots spotted fast flying objects and bright lights in the sky

The Irish Aviation Authority is investigating reports of bright lights and UFOs off the south-west coast of Ireland.

It began at 06:47 local time on Friday 9 November when a British Airways pilot contacted Shannon air traffic control.

She wanted to know if there were military exercises in the area because there was something "moving so fast".

The air traffic controller said there were no such exercises.

The pilot, flying from the Canadian city of Montreal to Heathrow, said there was a "very bright light" and the object had come up along the left side of the aircraft before it "rapidly veered to the north".

She was wondering what it could be but said it did not seem to be heading for a collision.

Another pilot from a Virgin plane joined in and suggested it might be a meteor or another object re-entering the earth's atmosphere.

Image copyright Twitter

He said there were "multiple objects following the same sort of trajectory" and that they were very bright.

The pilot said he saw "two bright lights" over to the right which climbed away at speed.

One pilot said the speed was "astronomical, it was like Mach 2" - which is twice the speed of sound.

What could it have been?

Apostolos Christou, an astronomer from the Armagh Observatory and Planetarium, said what the pilots saw was probably a piece of dust entering the earth's atmosphere at very high speed.

"It was most likely what are commonly called shooting stars," he said.

"It appears the matter was extremely bright so it must have been quite a large piece of material.

"I cannot say from the pilots' description, but it could have been the size of a walnut or an apple."

The astronomer said November tended to be a very busy month for such activity.

"It also appears there were bits coming off the object and flying past the aeroplane, that is also what you would expect if it was a particularly large rock from space hitting the atmosphere, it would tend to fragment."

"Following reports from a small number of aircraft on Friday 9 November of unusual air activity the IAA has filed a report," the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) said.

"This report will be investigated under the normal confidential occurrence investigation process."

A spokesperson for Shannon Airport said it would not be appropriate for the airport to comment while the IAA investigation is ongoing.</s>The Irish Aviation Authority said Tuesday it was looking into “reports from a small number of aircraft” about what was called “unusual air activity” on Friday.

LONDON— Irish aviation officials are investigating reports of bright lights moving quickly in the skies over Ireland.

“The report will be investigated under the normal confidential occurrence investigation process,” the authority said in a statement.

Press reports indicate the bright lights were seen Friday morning by pilots from British Airways and Virgin Atlantic.

The airlines did not immediately respond to request for comments.</s>A UFO investigation is under way in Ireland after pilots flying BA and Virgin Airlines jets reported seeing mysterious bright lights as they crossed the country.

The Irish Aviation Authority launched the probe after sightings on November 9 at around 7.40am.

The pilot of British Airways flight BA94 from Montreal to London contacted Shannon Air Traffic Control after seeing the object on the left-hand side of her Boeing 787.

She asked whether military exercises were taking place, according to Airlive.

Air traffic control reportedly said nothing was showing on their radar systems, to which the unnamed pilot replied: 'OK. It was moving so fast.'

She added that after approaching on the left side, it 'rapidly veered to the north'. She described it as a 'very bright light' that 'disappeared at very high speed'.

The pilot of Virgin Airlines flight VS76 from Orlando to Manchester then reported seeing a similar thing, the website reports.

He described it as a 'meteor or another object making some kind of re-entry' and said it was 'multiple objects following the same sort of trajectory – very bright from where we were.'

Both planes were flying in high level airspace - an altitude from between 28,500ft and 42,000ft.

Airlive says a third pilot also saw the bizarre lights and that the Irish Aviation Authority has filed a report with the sightings due to be 'investigated under the normal confidential occurrence investigation process'.</s>The Irish Aviation Authority is investigating several pilots’ reports of mysterious bright lights travelling quickly over Ireland.

According to an audio recording posted on the flight tracking website Airlive – which is run by aviation enthusiasts – the pilot of British Airways flight #BA94 from Montreal to London can be heard speaking to an air traffic controller in Shannon, Ireland about an unidentified object she saw on Friday morning.

The pilot is heard asking Shannon Air Traffic Control if there are any military exercises occurring in the air space she’s flying through. When the controller responds that there aren’t any, the pilot describes what she witnessed.

“OK. It was moving so fast,” she replied. “It came up on our left-hand side and rapidly veered to the north. We saw a bright light and then it disappeared at a very high speed.”

The British Airways pilot said she didn’t think they were on a collision course with the unknown object.

“We were just wondering what that could have been,” she explained.

Following that report, another pilot from Virgin Airlines flight #VS76 from Orlando, Fla. to Manchester chimed in to let air traffic control know that he too saw the lights. He described it as a “meteor or another object making some kind of re-entry.”

The pilot also said he thought it appeared to be “multiple objects” following the same trajectory.

“[They were] very bright from where we were,” he said. “Very interesting, that one.”

According to Airlive, there was another pilot who also reported seeing the unidentified object.

On Tuesday, the Irish Aviation Authority confirmed it was looking into “reports from a small number of aircraft” about “unusual air activity.”

In its statement, the authority added that the reports would be investigated “under the normal confidential occurrence investigation process.”

With files from The Associated Press</s>The Irish Aviation Authority is investigating sightings of unidentified flying objects and bright lights off the coast of Ireland after receiving similar reports from several commercial pilots. According to BBC, at 06:47 local time on Friday, a British Airways pilot contacted the Shannon air traffic control to report something "moving so fast" and wanting to know if there were military exercises taking place in the area off the west coast of Ireland.

"It was moving so fast," she said, according to the Guardian. "It came up on our left-hand side and then rapidly veered to the north. It was a very bright light that disappeared at very high speed."

The pilot was told there were no military exercises in the area.

Other aircraft flying in the area also reported seeing UFOs and bright lights. A pilot for a Virgin Airlines flight from Orlando to Manchester suggested that it might be a meteor or another object re-entering the earth's atmosphere.

"There appeared to be multiple objects following the same sort of trajectory. They were very bright from where we were," he said to the Irish Times.

One pilot said the speed of the UFOs was "astronomical, it was like Mach 2" - which is twice the speed of sound.

The reports created quite a stir on social media, with many wondering if it was aliens visiting earth and others putting forward conspiracy theories.

A spokesperson for the Irish Aviation Authority told the Irish Times it was investigating the incident and would file a report. "This report will be investigated under the normal confidential occurrence investigation process."</s>The Irish Aviation Authority is investigating reports of bright lights and UFOs off the south-west coast of Ireland.

It began at 06:47 local time on Friday 9 November when a British Airways pilot contacted Shannon air traffic control.

She wanted to know if there were military exercises in the area because there was something "moving so fast".

The air traffic controller said there were no such exercises.

The pilot, flying from the Canadian city of Montreal to Heathrow, said there was a "very bright light" and the object had come up along the left side of the aircraft before it "rapidly veered to the north".

She was wondering what it could be but said it did not seem to be heading for a collision.

Another pilot from a Virgin plane joined in and suggested it might be a meteor or another object re-entering the earth's atmosphere.

He said there were "multiple objects following the same sort of trajectory" and that they were very bright.

The pilot said he saw "two bright lights" over to the right which climbed away at speed.

One pilot said the speed was "astronomical, it was like Mach 2" - which is twice the speed of sound.

"Following reports from a small number of aircraft on Friday 9 November of unusual air activity the IAA has filed a report," the Irish Aviation Authority said.

"This report will be investigated under the normal confidential occurrence investigation process."</s>Bright lights from an unidentified flying object baffled commercial airline pilots near Ireland — and prompted a federal investigation into their mysterious origin, according to reports.

At least three pilots, including ones from Virgin Atlantic and British Airways, spotted the glowing orbs streaking across the sky near Shannon at “astronomical” speeds Friday, according to the UK Guardian.

“It was moving so fast,” one of the pilots said, according to the paper. “It came up on our left-hand side and then rapidly veered to the north. It was a very bright light that disappeared at very high speed.”

The British Airways pilot, who was flying from Montreal, radioed in to find out if there were any military exercises planned in the area, according to a recording of the conversation by Airlive, a site for aviation enthusiasts.

But air traffic controllers in Shannon told her there were no such plans.

A second pilot was also stunned by the bizarre sight, according to the paper.

It looked like, “a meteor or another object making some kind of re-entry,” said the Virgin Airlines pilot, who was flying from Orlando to Manchester.“[It was] multiple objects following the same sort of trajectory – very bright from where we were.”

A third pilot later weighed in via radio, saying: “Glad I’m not the only one [who saw it].”

On Monday, the Irish Aviation Authority said it was investigating the sighting, according to the The Irish Times.

“This report will be investigated under the normal confidential occurrence investigation process,” a spokesman said.

The rapidly moving lights were probably not alien invaders, the spokesman added.</s>Airline pilots cruising through the Irish sky were startled to discover they had some unexpected company early Friday morning, the Irish Mirror reported.

Pilots from three different airlines all radioed Shannon Air Traffic Control in Ireland to report the strange sighting as they flew through the air, according to the paper.

The first call, at about 6:47 a.m., came from a British Airways pilot on the way to London from Montreal, the Irish Times reported.

“It was moving so fast. It appeared on our left hand side and rapidly veered to the north. We saw a bright light and it then just disappeared at a very high speed,” the pilot said, according to the paper.

The controller responded that he saw nothing on the radar and that there were no military exercises at the time, according to a recording of the conversation posted by the aviation enthusiast site AirLive.

Another pilot, this one from a Virgin Airlines flight, chimed in that he had seen it as well. That pilot said he had seen “multiple objects following the same sort of trajectory,” with two of them extremely bright, according to the BBC. The pilot suggested they were meteors entering the atmosphere and burning up.

One pilot said the objects were moving at “astronomical” speed, of at least “Mach 2,” or twice the speed of sound, according to the BBC.

A third pilot from Norwegian Air said he was “glad it wasn’t just me,” the Irish Mirror reported.

“Very interesting that one,” a pilot says in the recording. The controller said the reports would be passed along and looked at.

“This report will be investigated under the normal confidential occurrence investigation process,” a spokesperson for the Irish Aviation Authority said, according to the Irish Times.

But David Moore, the chairman of Astronomy Ireland, said he was 99 percent sure the lights were simply shooting stars, or “fireballs,” the Irish Independent reported.

The fireballs are caused when space debris enters the atmosphere and burns up as it falls, producing a bright, streaking light.

“They are completely random, they happen in broad daylight, they happen in the dead of night,” he said, according to the paper— though he joked that the aliens “could be very clever, and what it could be is the aliens, to disguise their presence, fire a meteor into the atmosphere.”</s>Something weird has been sighted in the skies above Ireland – after several airliner pilots encountered a ‘very bright, very fast’ object last week.

The pilot of a BA flight contacted Shannon Air Traffic Control (ATC) and said that she had seen a ‘very bright light’ which ‘disappeared at very high speed’.

The pilot, flying from Montreal to Heathrow, said she was left ‘wondering’ what it could be – and asked air traffic control if there were military exercises in the area.

There were none, the controller said.

A pilot of a nearby Virgin Airlines Boeing 74 also described seeing bright lights, saying they spotted, ‘multiple objects following the same sort of trajectory,’ the Irish Examiner reports.

Other pilots also spotted lights, the Irish Examiner reported – and air authorities are to investigate the incident.

The Irish Aviation Authority said, ‘Following reports from a small number of aircraft on Friday, November 9, of unusual air activity, the IAA has filed a report.

‘This report will be investigated under the normal confidential occurrence investigation process.’
The Irish Aviation Authority launches an investigation after several airliner pilots report extremely fast moving bright lights off the south-west coast of Ireland.