The military waited for the balloon to emerge from the sea and shot it down with an AIM-9X missile fired by an F-22 Raptor.
On Saturday, February 4, the US military shot down a Chinese balloon they thought was a spy. The Pentagon said the wolf was watching military bases.
“This afternoon, at the direction of President Biden, US fighter jets assigned to the US Northern Command successfully shot down a high-altitude observation balloon launched and owned by the People’s Republic of China,” the Pentagon said.
It is known that the balloon was shot down at an altitude of approximately 19.8 km by a single AIM-9X missile fired by an F-22 Raptor at an altitude of approximately 17.7 kilometers.
The US military waited for the whale to go into the sea off the Atlantic coast of Myrtle Beach in South Carolina. The Federal Aviation Administration has closed coastal airspace in South and North Carolina. Airports are also suspended.
The ball reportedly fell ashore in water at a depth of about 14 meters, so the recovery operation is expected to be relatively easy.
The media later shared a video showing the moment the bullet was fired.
TODAY – The US military shot down a Chinese spy airship over the Atlantic Ocean after letting it fly over the country for days.pic.twitter.com/1roYrb30uE
— Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) February 4, 2023
Beijing previously admitted that the hot air balloon was made in China. However, they claim it was just a meteorological probe that went off course. At the same time, the Pentagon denied such a statement and emphasized that it was a reconnaissance ship.
A few days earlier, the Pentagon said it was monitoring a Chinese spy balloon conducting reconnaissance over the northern territory of the United States.
The incident caused the cancellation of a planned visit by US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to China.
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Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.