First Flight of a High-Altitude Object and the First Observation of Its Beam: President joe Biden
Shortly after American national security officials disclosed that the commander-in-chief gave the US military approval to shoot down the high altitude object, President joe Biden told CNN that the shoot down was a success.
It marked the second time US jets had taken down an object in less than a week, following the shooting down of a suspected Chinese spy balloon off the coast of South Carolina last Saturday.
A statement from Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder said the object shot down on Saturday was first noticed over Alaska on Friday evening. Two F-22 fighter jets “monitored the object” with the help of the Alaska Air National Guard, Ryder’s statement said, “tracking it closely and taking time to characterize the nature of the object.”
The Defense Department had no details on the object’s characteristics, purpose or origin. He added the object posed a reasonable threat to the safety of civilian flight, noting that “the object was about the size of a small car, so not similar in size or shape to the high altitude surveillance balloon that was taken down off the coast of South Carolina on February 4.”
There were two efforts to get closer to the object and evaluate it as it flew. The first engagement by fighter aircraft took place late Thursday night. Kirby told reporters that the engagements yielded limited information.
Kirby stated that the order to shoot it down was given before some fighter aircrafts were able to get around it.
The National Security Council’s coordination for strategic communications, John Kirby, told reporters that he came inside our territorial waters and within territorial airspace and over territorial waters. “Fighter aircraft assigned to US Northern Command took down the object within last hour.”
The Alaska National Guard and units under US Northern Command, along with HC-130 Hercules, HH-60 Pave Hawk, and CH-47 Chinook are all participating in the effort to recover the object, Ryder said.
The best description we have of this object is why we call it an object. We don’t know who owns it – whether it’s state-owned or corporate-owned or privately-owned, we just don’t know,” Kirby said.
The object first came to the attention of the US government “last evening.” Biden was first briefed Thursday night “as soon as the Pentagon had enough information,” Kirby said.
A suspected Chinese spy balloon that had been shot down by a US fighter jet over Alaska before being shot down off the coast of the Carolinas
“This thing did not appear to be self-maneuvering so therefore at the mercy of prevailing winds, it was much less predictable. The president just wasn’t willing to take that risk,” he said.
The Federal Aviation Administration issued a temporary flight restriction Friday in the area around Deadhorse, Alaska, as the military took action against the object.
Questions have arisen about the handling of a suspected Chinese spy balloon that floated across the US before being shot down off the coast of the Carolinas.
While the president has stood by how he and his administration handled that balloon, he has faced criticism from Republicans for allowing the suspected spy balloon to float over much of the country before shooting it down.
On Thursday, officials revealed that they believe the spy balloons the US has discovered are part of a large fleet that is conducting surveillance operations globally. The US traced the balloons to 40 countries.
“Given its size, which was much smaller, and the capabilities on the fighter aircraft themselves, the speed at which they were flying, it was difficult for the pilots to glean a whole lot of information,” he said.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Saturday that an “unidentified object” had been shot down by a US fighter jet over Canadian airspace on his orders.
It was not clear what the object looked like or where it came from. On Friday, it was said to be travelling north east across Alaska. He wouldn’t say if it was a small car or a balloon, but he said it was not much like the Chinese balloon that was downed off the coast of South Carolina.
The object did not appear to have any surveillance equipment, according to a US official, which would make it both smaller and likely less sophisticated than the Chinese balloon shot.
While officials have given no indication so far that the object shot down over Alaska is at all related to the Chinese spy balloon, details have been scarce.
Recovery on Sea Ice and Over Alaska: How China’s Balloon Assisted Detection of a Missing Energy Object Over Alaska
Ryder said on Friday that recovery teams have “mapped the debris field” and are “in the process of searching for and identifying debris on the ocean floor.”
When asked Friday if lessons learned about China’s balloon assisted in detecting the object shot down over Alaska, Ryder said it was “a little bit of apples and oranges.”
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police will be working closely with the Federal Bureau of Investigation in trying to find out more about the object.
Canadian Defense Minister Anita Anand tweeted Saturday that she had discussed the incident with US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin “and reaffirmed that we’ll always defend our sovereignty together.”
The balloon was spotted after entering the US Air Defense Identification Zone over Alaska on January 28 before flying over Canada, a Department of Defense official told lawmakers last week. It then reentered continental US airspace three days later.
“Recovery activities are occurring on sea ice,” the statement said. “We have no further details at this time about the object, including its capabilities, purpose, or origin.”