UPDATED: U.S. Downs 3 Unidentified Flying Objects Nearly a Week After Shooting Down Chinese Spy Balloon

February 10, 2023 6:29 PM - Updated: February 13, 2023 8:12 AM
F-22 Raptor takes off for a training mission at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam on May 16, 2014. US Air Force Photo

This post has been updated with additional details on a third shootdown of a high-flying object over U.S. airspace.

The U.S. downed two high-altitude flying objects that flew into North American airspace near Alaska on Friday and over Canada on Saturday, a Pentagon spokesman said. On Sunday, the U.S. downed a third unidentified object over Lake Huron, Mich.

U.S. Coast Guard assets are assisting in the recovery mission for the third object, shot down on Sunday, that likely landed on the Canadian side of Lake Huron, U.S. Northern Command Gen. Glen VanHerck told reporters Sunday.

An Air Force F-16 used an AIM-9 sidewinder missile to shoot down the object Sunday afternoon while it was 20,000 feet in the air, Pentagon Press Secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said in a Sunday statement.

“Its path and altitude raised concerns, including that it could be a hazard to civil aviation. The location chosen for this shoot-down afforded us the opportunity to avoid impact to people on the ground while improving chances for debris recovery. There are no indications of any civilians hurt or otherwise affected. North American Aerospace Defense Command detected the object Sunday morning and has maintained visual and radar tracking of it,” Ryder said in the statement.
“Based on its flight path and data we can reasonably connect this object to the radar signal picked up over Montana, which flew in proximity to sensitive DOD sites. We did not assess it to be a kinetic military threat to anything on the ground, but assess it was a safety flight hazard and a threat due to its potential surveillance capabilities. Our team will now work to recover the object in an effort to learn more.”

On Saturday, a combined intercept mission of American and Canadian fighters detected and downed a high-flying object over Canadian air space after detecting it over Alaska late Friday.

“President Biden authorized U.S. fighter aircraft assigned to North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) to work with Canada to take down a high-altitude airborne object over northern Canada today,” Ryder said in a Saturday statement.
“Two F-22 aircraft from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska monitored the object over U.S. airspace with the assistance of Alaska Air National Guard refueling aircraft, tracking it closely and taking time to characterize the nature of the object. Monitoring continued today as the object crossed into Canadian airspace, with Canadian CF-18 and CP-140 aircraft joining the formation to further assess the object. A U.S. F-22 shot down the object in Canadian territory using an AIM 9X missile.”

On Friday, around 1:45 p.m., an F-22 pilot, with the U.S. Northern Command, flew from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, and shot an AIM-9x at the object, which was flying at about 40,000 feet, Ryder said during a Friday press briefing.

“The object was flying at an altitude of 40,000 feet and pose a reasonable threat to the safety of civilian flight,” Ryder said. “U.S. Northern Command is beginning recovery operations now.”

The object flew into U.S. airspace on Thursday, Ryder said. The press secretary said that the object was not currently being classified as a balloon.

The Pentagon does not currently know the origin of the flying object, Ryder said. Once the debris is recovered, the Department of Defense will learn more. The balloon was identifiable as Chinese due to the Pentagon’s understanding of the Chinese surveillance program, he said.

The decision to shoot the object down quicker than the Chinese surveillance balloon, which was downed off the coast of Myrtle Beach, S.C., was due to the threat to civilian air travel, Ryder said.

Amphibious warship USS Carter Hall (LSD-50) returned to Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story, Va., Friday to drop off the first load of recovered debris from the downed spy balloon, according to automatic identification system information seen by USNI News.

Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group 2, operating from Carter Hall, used underwater unmanned vehicles to detect and collect the remains of the 200-foot-tall balloon and the regional jet-sized surveillance package that weighs thousands of pounds.

The EOD sailors operated from rigid hull inflatable boats to recover pieces as well as diving in the 50-foot shallow water, according to photos released by the Navy.

Officials have said the remains will travel to FBI laboratories in Quantico, Va., for further analysis once they are unloaded in Little Creek.

“We have identified or located a significant amount of debris on the ocean floor that will be very beneficial to us learning more about it, but at this point in time, I’m not gonna have more details,” Ryder said during Friday’s press briefing.

Carter Hall is set to return to the scene, about six miles off the coast of Myrtle Beach, defense officials told USNI News earlier this week. Meanwhile, a contracted offshore supply vessel, HOS Rosebud is on the scene with additional divers and equipment to collect more of the remaining debris.

HOS Rosebud departed Little Creek on Wednesday and arrived late Thursday off South Carolina, according to AIS.

High seas anticipated over the weekend, according to the National Wester Service could slow the search. Ryder told reporters on Friday the hunt for more material from the spy balloon would continue, weather permitting.

The following is the complete Sunday statement from the Department of Defense on the downing of the object over Lake Huron. 

Today at 2:42 p.m., at the direction of President Biden, and based on the recommendations of Secretary Austin and military leadership, an F-16 fired an AIM9x to successfully shoot down an airborne object flying at approximately 20,000 feet altitude in U.S. airspace over Lake Huron in the State of Michigan. Its path and altitude raised concerns, including that it could be a hazard to civil aviation. The location chosen for this shoot down afforded us the opportunity to avoid impact to people on the ground while improving chances for debris recovery. There are no indications of any civilians hurt or otherwise affected. North American Aerospace Defense Command detected the object Sunday morning and has maintained visual and radar tracking of it. Based on its flight path and data we can reasonably connect this object to the radar signal picked up over Montana, which flew in proximity to sensitive DOD sites. We did not assess it to be a kinetic military threat to anything on the ground, but assess it was a safety flight hazard and a threat due to its potential surveillance capabilities. Our team will now work to recover the object in an effort to learn more.

Heather Mongilio

Heather Mongilio

Heather Mongilio is a reporter with USNI News. She has a master’s degree in science journalism and has covered local courts, crime, health, military affairs and the Naval Academy.
Follow @hmongilio

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