A US F-22 fighter shot down an unidentified cylindrical object over Canada on Saturday, a day after it Washington shot down another aircraft over Alaska.
The Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeauwas the first to announce the shootdown over the Yukon Territory in the north of the country, saying Canadian forces would recover and analyze the wreckage.
Canadian Defense Minister Anita Anand declined to speculate on the origin of the object, which she said was cylindrical in shape. She stopped short of describing it as a balloon, but she said it was smaller than the Chinese balloon shot down off the coast of South Carolina a week ago, but similar looking. He said it was flying at 40,000 feet and posed a risk to civilian air traffic when it was shot down at 2041 GMT.
“There is no reason to believe that the impact of the object on Canadian territory is cause for public concern,” Anand told a news conference.
The Pentagon said the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) detected the object over Alaska late Friday afternoon. US fighter jets from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, kept an eye on the object as it crossed Canadian airspace, where Canadian CF-18 and CP-140 jets joined the formation.
“A US F-22 shot down the object on Canadian territory using an AIM 9X missile following close coordination between US and Canadian authorities,” Pentagon spokesman Brigadier General Patrick Ryder said in a statement.
US President Joe Biden authorized the US military to work with Canada to shoot down the high-altitude craft following a call between Biden and Trudeau, the Pentagon said. The White House said Biden and Trudeau agreed to continue close coordination to “defend our airspace.”
“The leaders discussed the importance of recovering the object to determine more details about its purpose or origin,” the White House said in a statement.
A day earlier, Biden ordered another shoot down of an unidentified flying object near Deadhorse, Alaska. On Saturday, the US military was tight-lipped about what, if anything, it had learned as recovery efforts were underway on the Alaskan sea ice.
The Pentagon offered only a few details on Friday, including that the object was the size of a small car, was flying at about 40,000 feet and was unable to maneuver and appeared to be unmanned. US officials have been trying to get information about the object since it was first spotted on Thursday.
“We have no further details at this time about the object, including its capabilities, purpose or origin,” Northern Command said on Saturday.
He noted difficult arctic weather conditions, including wind chill, snow and limited daylight that can hamper search and recovery efforts.
“Personnel will adjust recovery operations to maintain security,” Northern Command stated.
On February 4, a US F-22 fighter shot down what the US government called a Chinese surveillance balloon off the coast of South Carolina, following its week-long journey across the United States and parts of Canada. The Chinese government has claimed that it was a civilian investigative apparatus.
Some US lawmakers criticized Biden for not bringing down the Chinese balloon sooner. The US military had recommended waiting until the balloon was over the ocean for fear of injury from falling debris.
Since the downing of the Chinese high-altitude surveillance balloon, US personnel have been scouring the ocean for debris and electronics.
The Pentagon has said that a significant part of the balloon had already been recovered or located, suggesting that US officials may soon have more information about any Chinese spy capabilities aboard the device.
Sea conditions on February 10 “allowed for diving and unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) activities and the recovery of additional debris from the seabed,” Northern Command said.
“The public can view US Navy vessels moving to and from the site while conducting unloading and resupply activities.”
(With information from Reuters and AFP)
