Chinese spy hot air balloon spotted over US airspace in 2023
Commercial fishermen have found what is believed to be a spy balloon off the coast of Alaska.
The fishermen were ordered to take the debris ashore and meet FBI agents waiting at the docks.
CNN reported:
Commercial fishermen off the coast of Alaska have discovered what officials fear could be another spy balloon and are bringing it ashore with them, three sources familiar with the matter told CNN.
FBI agents will meet the fishing vessel when it comes into port, which is expected over the weekend. The bureau will then transport the unknown object to the FBI laboratory in Quantico, Virginia, for analysis, as has been done with previous surveillance balloons.
The fishermen shared photographs of the object with law enforcement after encountering it, the sources said. All three sources stressed that it was unclear exactly what the object was and that it may not be a balloon at all, but that the FBI determined that it was quite similar in appearance to a surveillance balloon owned by a foreign government to warrant further investigation. investigation.
The FBI said in a statement Friday evening that it was “aware of debris found off the coast of Alaska by a commercial fishing vessel. We will work with our partners to assist in the logistics of debris recovery.”
Last January, the Biden administration knew about the Chinese spy balloon crossing the continental United States, from Alaska to the Carolinas, but tried to hide it from the American public.
A newspaper photographer first spotted the balloon over Montana.
The Chinese spy balloon first entered US airspace over Alaska in late January 2023.
The balloon flew over nuclear silos and military installations in the United States with the full approval of Joe Biden.
The balloon was eventually shot down over the Atlantic, just off the coast of Carolina.
According to the Pentagon, the spy balloon carried self-detonating explosives, was 200 feet tall and weighed thousands of pounds.
It was recently reported that General Milley also knew that the spy balloon was collecting data as it flew over the continental United States, but kept it hidden from the American public.
According to CNN, the Chinese spy balloon used the US internet to communicate as it flew over the US and gathered intelligence.
Last month, the U.S. military tracked a high-altitude balloon over Colorado. The Pentagon sent jets to investigate. It turned out to be a hobbyist’s ball.