Within a few days, the US military shoots four flying objects out of the sky: first a suspected espionage balloon from China, then other mysterious flying objects. Who or what is behind it?
The mystery in the sky over North America is growing: since the launch of a suspected Chinese spy balloon a week ago, the US military has now destroyed three more unidentified flying objects.
Most recently, an F-16 fighter jet took down a missile over Lake Huron in the US state of Michigan on Sunday, as the Pentagon announced in Washington. The origin and destination of the object remained unclear. Examination of the rubble should provide more information.
For days, ominous flying objects over North America have given the United States and the world new riddles – and are causing unrest. But China no longer wants to be blamed and turned the tables yesterday: The Foreign Ministry in Beijing accused the United States of having “illegally” flown balloons at high altitudes over China more than ten times in the past year. The US should stop “denigrating other countries and fomenting confrontation,” said foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin. It’s fairly common for US balloons to fly over other countries. But the spokesman did not say what type of balloons he was referring to – whether for espionage or simply for weather observation.
The US government immediately rejected the allegations. “That’s absolutely not true,” National Security Council communications director John Kirby told MSNBC in Washington. “We don’t fly balloons over China.”
The Financial Times reported that dozens of Chinese “military balloons” have also entered Taiwan’s airspace in recent years – far more than previously known. “They come very frequently, the last one just a few weeks ago,” said a senior official. Beijing regards the democratic island of Taiwan as part of the People’s Republic and is threatening to conquer it.
Another kill
The most recent incident over the United States took place again in the north of the country. According to the Pentagon, the flying object was traveling at an altitude of six kilometers. The trajectory and altitude raised concerns that it could endanger civil aviation. Potential surveillance options would also have represented a risk. US President Joe Biden therefore gave the instruction to shoot it down.
Incidents over Alaska and Canada
US fighter jets shot down two unidentified flying objects on Friday and Saturday: one off the coast of the US state of Alaska, the other over northern Canada. The salvage of debris should provide answers about the origin and purpose of the mission – so far, however, has been difficult due to the weather and environmental conditions on site.
A week earlier, the US Air Force had brought down a Chinese balloon suspected of being used for espionage off the coast of the state of South Carolina. The US government accuses China of wanting to spy on military installations. Beijing, on the other hand, spoke of a civilian research balloon that had gone off course. The incident caused new tensions in the already strained relationship. The US accused China of running a major surveillance program with balloons and targeting more than 40 countries on five continents.
The parallels and the differences
According to the US government, the Chinese balloon flew at an altitude of about 18 kilometers, well above the altitude at which civilian aircraft fly. It was the size of two or three buses and could be seen with the naked eye. The United States very quickly assigned the balloon to China – and classified it as a spy tool.
With the other three flying objects, it is still unclear who sent them on their way and for what purpose. According to official information, they were significantly smaller than the Chinese balloon – about the size of a small car – and at lower altitudes. The flying objects over Alaska and Canada were shot down at an altitude of around twelve kilometers.
Also balloon or unknown object?
The Democratic Senate Majority Leader, Chuck Schumer, citing the National Security Council, said it is currently assumed that the balloons were also involved. But Norad director Glen VanHerck dismissed this: “I’m not going to classify them as balloons – we don’t call them ‘objects’ for nothing.”
Kirby said the previously unidentified flying objects could possibly also have a harmless background. “There could be totally innocuous and totally explainable reasons why these objects are flying around up there.” For example, they could be used for scientific research or geographical mapping and could come from companies or scientific institutions. “We just don’t know.” For this, the remains would have to be evaluated. It is not about banning such objects. A problem is, however, if they endanger civil aviation.
Kirby roused the public to a The communications director said the government was working to find out exactly what those craft were and were targeting. This included intensive efforts to recover their debris from the remote launch sites. “It can take a long time, depending on the sea and weather conditions.” The safety of divers must also be protected.
Kirby pointed out that remains of the Chinese balloon were pulled out of the Atlantic off the coast of South Carolina. In the other cases, the search is more difficult. “It’s important to remember that the objects in Alaska and Canada are in fairly remote terrain.” You are dealing with “ice and wilderness and everything that makes it difficult to find them in winter weather”. The object shot down over Lake Huron in the northern United States on Sunday is in very deep water.
Why are kills piling up in North America?
VanHerck, who is also commander of US Northern Command, said to his knowledge the US military had never before had to shoot down aircraft in US airspace. Now suddenly four times within eight days.
The Pentagon leadership said that after the Chinese balloon was shot down, the US military took a closer look at US airspace at high altitudes and improved radar technology. This partly explains the increased discovery of such objects. Whether that means, conversely, that many such missiles were already on the move there and were simply not noticed, remained open.
The theories – are the extraterrestrials coming now?
The lack of information about the flying objects gave room for conjectures of all kinds. Social media has already speculated about a possible alien invasion. When asked if the US Department of Defense could rule out that extraterrestrials were behind it, VanHerck simply replied: “I’ll leave it to the intelligence services and counterintelligence to find out. I haven’t ruled anything out at this point.” It is questionable whether the statement is suitable for curbing speculation. MPs from both parties are urging more information to stop wild theories from spreading further.
And then there was: In view of the increasing speculation, the White House felt compelled to clarify – and ruled out a possible connection with extraterrestrials. “There is no evidence of aliens or extraterrestrial activity in these recent launches,” spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said in Washington. “I wanted to make sure the American people knew that.” There were many questions about it. “And it was important for us to say that from here.”