US fighter jet shoot down an object flying at 40,000 feet above Alaska
Chinese balloon that flew over the United States last week was shot down by a US fighter jet off the coast of Florida on Saturday
The White House announced on Friday that a US fighter jet shot down an unidentified object drifting high over Alaska, just six days after the downing of an alleged Chinese surveillance balloon triggered a new diplomatic split with Beijing.
According to White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby, the purpose or origin of the new item is unknown, but it was removed because it posed a threat to civil aviation while floating at 40,000 feet.
“The president directed the military to shoot down the object,” Kirby explained.
When reporters questioned Biden about the incident at the White House, he declared the shoot-down “was a success.”
The object, according to Kirby, was far smaller than a massive Chinese balloon that crossed the United States last week and was shot down by a US fighter jet off the Atlantic coast on Saturday.
It was “about the size of a small car,” according to him.
“We don’t know if it’s state-owned or corporate-owned,” he remarked. “We don’t fully comprehend the intent.”
According to Pentagon spokesman Brigadier General Pat Ryder, the device was brought down by an F-22 Raptor equipped with an AIM-9X missile, the same aircraft, and munition used to strike the suspected Chinese spy balloon.
The incident occurred amid renewed concern among US officials about China’s ongoing program to fly surveillance balloons around the world to collect intelligence.
According to US officials, such balloons have flown over 40 countries, including at least four times over US territory.
Last week’s Chinese balloon sparked particular concern because it flew over areas where the US keeps nuclear missiles in underground silos and bases strategic bombers.
The incident prompted US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to cancel a long-planned trip to Beijing aimed at improving communications between the two rival superpowers.
The new object was discovered late Thursday and shot down Friday afternoon, according to Kirby.
It crashed in northern Alaska near the Canadian border and landed over a frozen body of water, making recovery possible, according to Kirby.
“We anticipate being able to recover the debris,” he said.
According to Kirby, Biden ordered the shoot-down because the object posed a “reasonable threat” to civil aviation at the altitude, it was flying at.
The US military sent a plane to observe the object before it was shot down, according to Kirby, and “the pilot assessed that this was not manned.”
He noted that the Chinese surveillance balloon could propel and maneuver itself.
It was “clearly for intelligence surveillance and inconsistent with the equipment onboard weather balloons,” according to a senior State Department official on Thursday.
“It had multiple antennas, including an array capable of collecting and geolocating communications,” the official said.
Without specifically stating that the PLA was responsible for its deployment, the official also connected the balloon to the Chinese People’s Liberation Army.
According to Ryder of the Pentagon, US recovery teams have finished mapping the debris field from the downed Chinese balloon and are “searching for and identifying debris on the ocean floor.”
“Debris recovered thus far is being loaded on the vessels, taken ashore, cataloged, and then moved onwards to labs for further analysis,” he added.
Beijing has denied sending the balloon to spy on the US, claiming it simply drifted into US airspace by accident.
However, China has rejected US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s offer to speak by phone about the issue since Saturday.
The US insisted on attacking the airship with force, which the Chinese defense ministry said was a grave violation of international norms and set a dangerous precedent.
