The Department of Defense shared an official statement Thursday afternoon.
Attributed to Pentagon Press Secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder:
The United States Government has detected and is tracking a high altitude surveillance balloon that is over the…
The Department of Defense shared an official statement Thursday afternoon.
Attributed to Pentagon Press Secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder:
The United States Government has detected and is tracking a high altitude surveillance balloon that is over the continental United States right now. The U.S. government, to include NORAD, continues to track and monitor it closely. The balloon is currently traveling at an altitude well above commercial air traffic and does not present a military or physical threat to people on the ground. Instances of this kind of balloon activity have been observed previously over the past several years. Once the balloon was detected, the U.S. government acted immediately to protect against the collection of sensitive information.
UPDATE AT 3:54 PM:
The Associated Press is reporting that a senior defense official told Pentagon reporters that the U.S. has “very high confidence” it is a Chinese high-altitude balloon and it was flying over sensitive sites to collect information.
According to Pentagon press secretary, Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder, the balloon is well above commercial air traffic in altitude and does not present a military or physical threat to those on the ground.
He also noted similar balloon activity has been seen in the past several years, and that the U.S. took steps to ensure it did not collect sensitive information.
It was reported the defense official said the U.S. has “engaged” Chinese officials through multiple channels and communicated the seriousness of the matter.
UPDATE AT 3:00 PM:
NBC News is reporting a high-altitude balloon that was spotted over Billings Wednesday is a suspected Chinese spy balloon.
According to the report, the government has been monitoring the balloon for the past few days.
A meeting of senior military and defense leaders was convened to review the threat profile of the balloon and possible response options.
Due to a risk to the safety and security of people on the ground from the possible debris field, it was decided to leave the balloon in the air.
A Pentagon spokesperson says It flew from the Aleutian Islands, through Canada, and into Montana where it was spotted on Wednesday. A senior defense official said the balloon is still over the U.S. but declined to say where it is now.
We will continue to follow any updates to this story and share them on air and online.
