Chinese reconnaissance balloon shot down by American fighter over the sea

A Chinese balloon flying over the United States, including over military installations, was shot down by a fighter jet on February 4.

On February 4, an American fighter jet shot down a suspected Chinese reconnaissance balloon. He flew over the United States, including over secret military bases.

The incident sparked international tension, forcing US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to postpone a planned visit to China.

The balloon entered Alaska airspace on January 28 and flew south over Canada before returning to US airspace over Idaho on January 31.

The US alleges that the balloon was on an intelligence-gathering mission, flying over a number of important military installations, including missile silos. China claims that the balloon was intended for meteorological observations and simply strayed off course.

US officials say similar balloons have flown over the US at least three times during Donald Trump’s presidency and once earlier under Joe Biden, but this flight was the longest and details have been made public for the first time.

They also say similar balloons have been seen flying over Asia and Europe, and another one is flying over Central and South America, and has recently been seen over Costa Rica and Venezuela.

On Wednesday, February 1, Biden ordered the military to shoot down the balloon, but several days passed before it could be shot down without risk to civilians.

The balloon was eventually destroyed by a Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor from Langley Air Force Base in Virginia, off the coast of South Carolina. The aircraft fired one AIM-9X missile from nearly 18,000 meters (58,000 ft) at a balloon that was flying at an altitude of 18,000 to 19,800 meters.

“Shooting the balloon removed the threat of surveillance on military installations and further neutralized any intelligence value it might have generated by preventing it from returning to the PRC. [People’s Republic of China]an unnamed senior Defense Department official said on February 4. “Also, shooting down the balloon could allow the US to recover China’s sensitive equipment.”

US Navy and FBI teams are currently working to find the wreckage, which fell only 15 meters into the water but is scattered across an area of ​​11 kilometers.

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texasstandard.news contributed to this report.

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