Fighter plane shoots down object
Another suspicious balloon flies over the USA
February 24, 2024, 1:17 p.m
Just over a year ago, a suspicious object in the sky caused panic in the USA. To this day it is not clear whether it was a spy balloon or a Chinese weather balloon. Now another specimen appears over Utah. The US military acts immediately.
A small balloon in the airspace over the US state of Utah has put air surveillance on alert. Fighter aircraft intercepted the balloon at an altitude of around 13 kilometers, as reported by CBS News, citing the North American Air Defense Command (Norad), which is responsible for the USA and Canada. It was determined that he did not pose a threat to national security or air traffic. The balloon will continue to be monitored.
A US official told CBS News that a cube-shaped box with each side measuring 60 centimeters was attached to the balloon. The origin of the balloon and its purpose are not yet known.
Just over a year ago, the US armed forces shot down a suspected Chinese spy balloon over the US east coast. Beijing denied it was a spy balloon, saying the balloon was used for weather research and went off course. The incident increased diplomatic tensions between the USA and China.
At the time, US President Biden came under fire because he waited until the balloon reached the coast before launching it. Apparently they wanted to prevent damage to the ground from debris. Critics accused Biden of being able to intercept the aircraft as it headed for Alaska.
In June 2023, the Pentagon said that the balloon “did not collect any data while it flew over the United States.” The US government therefore concluded that he was not part of a Chinese espionage program. Weather and research balloons are often traveling at high altitudes and use the jet stream – a current of air that moves around the earth in several bands. The American military has been monitoring the airspace more closely since the incident.