Friday, February 10, 2023 4:21:28 PM
New Spy Balloon Shot down over Alaska
FEB 10 2023
Pentagon Shot Down Object Over Alaska, U.S. Officials Say.
U.S. shoots down second ‘high altitude object’ days after Chinese spy balloon
The incident comes less than a week after a U.S. fighter jet shot down a Chinese spy balloon over the Atlantic.
A U.S. fighter jet shot down a “high altitude object” off the coast of Alaska, less than a week after a high altitude Chinese surveillance balloon was shot down off the coast of South Carolina.
White House spokesman John Kirby hesitated to characterize the aircraft as a balloon. “We’re calling this an object because that’s the best description we have right now,” he said.
The latest object was smaller than the spy balloon and flying at a lower altitude, which posed a threat to civilian aircraft, the White House said.
National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby speaks during the daily briefing in the Brady Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on February 10, 2023.
A Raytheon-built AIM-9X Sidewinder infrared-guided air-to-air missile is mounted on one of the 3rd Wing’s F-15C Eagle jets at Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska. On Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023, as a Chinese surveillance balloon flew in U.S. airspace about 6 nautical miles off the coast of South Carolina, a single F-22 fighter jet from Virginia’s Langley Air Force Base, flying at an altitude of 58,000 feet, fired an AIM-9X Sidewinder into it.
The craft was flying at approximately 40,000 feet in altitude, which is lower than the balloon last week, and it was the size of a small car, he said.
Unlike the balloon shot down on Saturday, the latest object did not appear to possess any maneuverability, Kirby said.
Last week’s spy balloon was the size of three school buses, according to Pentagon officials. A sophisticated surveillance craft with propellers that gave it maneuverability, the balloon carried a payload the size of a jetliner, Pentagon officials have said.
The latest incident also differed significantly from the prior one in that this floating object was shot down within hours of its detection.
The larger, previous balloon was permitted to float across the United States for a week before Biden gave the order to shoot it down.
The Pentagon defended that decision at a Senate hearing on Thursday, telling lawmakers that the spy balloon’s primary value to the U.S. military lay in what could be learned from its flight course and its debris.
“A key part of the calculus for this operation was the ability to salvage, understand and exploit the capabilities of the high altitude balloon,” said Assistant Secretary of Defense Melissa Dalton.
Another factor influencing the decision to let this balloon remain in the air was that it did not pose an immediate threat to civilian aircraft, because it was floating tens of thousands of feet higher than passenger airliners fly.
The object shot down on Friday was floating at just 40,000 feet, posing a threat to civilian air safety, said Kirby. Commercial airliners typically cruise at an altitude of 35,000 feet.
A Pentagon spokesman said Friday that the salvage operation for the latest object was already underway, but had been hampered by rough seas in the Arctic Ocean that made diving especially perilous.
https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/10/us-shoots-down-second-high-altitude-object-on-bidens-orders.html
FEB 10 2023
Pentagon Shot Down Object Over Alaska, U.S. Officials Say.
U.S. shoots down second ‘high altitude object’ days after Chinese spy balloon
The incident comes less than a week after a U.S. fighter jet shot down a Chinese spy balloon over the Atlantic.
A U.S. fighter jet shot down a “high altitude object” off the coast of Alaska, less than a week after a high altitude Chinese surveillance balloon was shot down off the coast of South Carolina.
White House spokesman John Kirby hesitated to characterize the aircraft as a balloon. “We’re calling this an object because that’s the best description we have right now,” he said.
The latest object was smaller than the spy balloon and flying at a lower altitude, which posed a threat to civilian aircraft, the White House said.
National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby speaks during the daily briefing in the Brady Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on February 10, 2023.
A Raytheon-built AIM-9X Sidewinder infrared-guided air-to-air missile is mounted on one of the 3rd Wing’s F-15C Eagle jets at Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska. On Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023, as a Chinese surveillance balloon flew in U.S. airspace about 6 nautical miles off the coast of South Carolina, a single F-22 fighter jet from Virginia’s Langley Air Force Base, flying at an altitude of 58,000 feet, fired an AIM-9X Sidewinder into it.
The craft was flying at approximately 40,000 feet in altitude, which is lower than the balloon last week, and it was the size of a small car, he said.
Unlike the balloon shot down on Saturday, the latest object did not appear to possess any maneuverability, Kirby said.
Last week’s spy balloon was the size of three school buses, according to Pentagon officials. A sophisticated surveillance craft with propellers that gave it maneuverability, the balloon carried a payload the size of a jetliner, Pentagon officials have said.
The latest incident also differed significantly from the prior one in that this floating object was shot down within hours of its detection.
The larger, previous balloon was permitted to float across the United States for a week before Biden gave the order to shoot it down.
The Pentagon defended that decision at a Senate hearing on Thursday, telling lawmakers that the spy balloon’s primary value to the U.S. military lay in what could be learned from its flight course and its debris.
“A key part of the calculus for this operation was the ability to salvage, understand and exploit the capabilities of the high altitude balloon,” said Assistant Secretary of Defense Melissa Dalton.
Another factor influencing the decision to let this balloon remain in the air was that it did not pose an immediate threat to civilian aircraft, because it was floating tens of thousands of feet higher than passenger airliners fly.
The object shot down on Friday was floating at just 40,000 feet, posing a threat to civilian air safety, said Kirby. Commercial airliners typically cruise at an altitude of 35,000 feet.
A Pentagon spokesman said Friday that the salvage operation for the latest object was already underway, but had been hampered by rough seas in the Arctic Ocean that made diving especially perilous.
https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/10/us-shoots-down-second-high-altitude-object-on-bidens-orders.html
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