It's not from an aircraft.

That's the FAA's determination, announced today, of its examination of a 16-inch-long piece of twisted metal that fell from the sky Monday in Stanton, slicing through the roof of a parked sport utility vehicle.

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Smoldering hot metal rips through a car in Delaware

That means the origin of the brown, hook-shaped object - which still was smoldering and too hot to touch when firefighters arrived on scene - remains a mystery. The FAA is still investigating, FAA spokesman Jim Peters said.

Witnesses told Mill Creek Fire Company Chief James Howell that the object landed with such force it sounded like an explosion in the parking lot of Happy Harry's at 536 Main St.

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"Never in my district have I ever seen anything slice through a car like that," Howell said.

Witnesses said the car was owned by a woman and had a child's car seat inside, Howell said. No one was inside the vehicle when the brown object crashed through its roof about 4 p.m., Delaware State Police spokesman Cpl. Jeff Whitmarsh said. It was turned over to the Federal Aviation Administration for further investigation.

State police reported delays during rush hour as motorists slowed to see what had happened.