Unsolved Files: Shining Metal UFO Near Plane, Photographed During Daytime in London

• When: September 11th, 2016 at 5:10 PM
  
• Where: London, Great Britain
• What: Shiny object in sky traveling near planes

A photographer snapping photos in the outdoors noticed a spherical shiny object in the sky near a passenger plane. As they were photographing the UFO,  they noticed it had a "smooth motion" and eventually it rose and disappeared. Interesting enough, the witness (who submitted photo and testimony to MUFON, case 81809) said all the planes nearby started emitting contrails after the object passed:

https://www.mufoncms.com/files_jeud8334j/81809_submitter_file2__DSCF98851.jpg

I had just gone out to take photos for desktop wallpaper, using a Fujifilm X-T1 and XF16-55mm f2.8 zoom lens. I noticed the object within 30 meters of leaving home and resorted quickly to manual focus and aperture at 55mm (longest focal length) between f5.6 and f8, trying to zone focus.

The wind was about 3 kts gusting 7 kts from around 190 degrees; the object moved almost orthogonality to the wind, heading around 300 to 330 degrees and varying in altitude. It had a very smooth motion.

Towards the end of this sighting the object appeared to occult, although it was quite far away and increasingly difficult to see. While I was changing lenses to a 55-200mm, it rose in the distance and disappeared. Oddly, every high-altitude aircraft in that vicinity started to leave persistent contrails thereafter, as if there had been an ambient temperature change.

Two "best shots" are attached, both heavy crops. The A/C in photo 2 is on the "S" curve to the Heathrow flight path and at that point is at 4000 - 5000 feet up.

Could this have been a drone or a balloon? Based on the witness description, the object appeared to move intelligently and was almost interacting with other planes.  What do you think of this sighting?

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