Trudeau ordered U.S. fighter jet to shoot down object over northern Canada
By —Associated Press
OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Saturday that on his order a U.S. fighter jet shot down an unidentified object that was flying high over the Yukon, acting a day after the U.S. took similar action over Alaska.
WATCH: U.S. shoots down object that crossed into airspace near Alaska
North American Aerospace Defense Command, the combined U.S.-Canada organization that provides shared defense of airspace over the two nations, said it had detected an object flying at a high altitude over northern Canada. It wasn’t immediately clear how high up it was flying or what it was.
Trudeau said he also spoke with President Joe Biden, who himself ordered the downing of an unidentified object over remote Alaska on Friday.
A spokesman, Maj. Olivier Gallant, said both Canadian and U.S. jets operating as part of NORAD had been deployed. The jets were scrambled and it was a U.S. jet that shot it down.
F-22 fighter jets have now downed three objects in the airspace above the U.S. and Canada over seven days, a stunning development in the skies that is raising questions on just what, exactly, is hovering overhead and who has sent them.
At least one of the objects downed was believed to be a spy balloon from China, but the other two have not yet been identified. Trudeau said that Canadian forces would recover the wreckage for study.
READ MORE: How spy balloons work, and what information they can gather
The down came a day after White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said an object roughly the size of a small car was shot down in remote Alaska. Officials couldn’t say if it contained any surveillance equipment, where it came from or what purpose it had.
Kirby said it was shot down because it was flying at about 40,000 feet (13,000 meters) and posed a “reasonable threat” to the safety of civilian flights, not because of any knowledge that it was engaged in surveillance.
According to U.S. Northern Command, recovery operations continued Saturday on sea ice near Deadhorse, Alaska.
In a statement, the Northern Command said there were no new details on what the object was. It said the Alaska Command and the Alaska National Guard, along with the FBI and local law enforcement, were conducting search and recovery.
“Arctic weather conditions, including wind chill, snow, and limited daylight, are a factor in this operation, and personnel will adjust recovery operations to maintain safety,” the statement said.
Last Saturday, U.S. officials shot down a large white balloon off the coast of South Carolina.
The balloon was part of a large surveillance program that China has been conducting for “several years,” the Pentagon has said. The U.S. has said Chinese balloons have flown over dozens of countries across five continents in recent years, and it learned more about the balloon program after closely monitoring the one shot down near South Carolina.
China responded that it reserved the right to “take further actions” and criticized the U.S. for “an obvious overreaction and a serious violation of international practice.”
The Navy continued survey and recovery activities on the ocean floor off South Carolina, and the Coast Guard was providing security. Additional debris was pulled out Friday, and additional operations will continue as weather permits, Northern Command said.
By —Associated Press
Feb 11, 2023
OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Saturday that on his order a U.S. fighter jet shot down an unidentified object that was flying high over the Yukon, acting a day after the U.S. took similar action over Alaska.
WATCH: U.S. shoots down object that crossed into airspace near Alaska
North American Aerospace Defense Command, the combined U.S.-Canada organization that provides shared defense of airspace over the two nations, said it had detected an object flying at a high altitude over northern Canada. It wasn’t immediately clear how high up it was flying or what it was.
Trudeau said he also spoke with President Joe Biden, who himself ordered the downing of an unidentified object over remote Alaska on Friday.
A spokesman, Maj. Olivier Gallant, said both Canadian and U.S. jets operating as part of NORAD had been deployed. The jets were scrambled and it was a U.S. jet that shot it down.
F-22 fighter jets have now downed three objects in the airspace above the U.S. and Canada over seven days, a stunning development in the skies that is raising questions on just what, exactly, is hovering overhead and who has sent them.
At least one of the objects downed was believed to be a spy balloon from China, but the other two have not yet been identified. Trudeau said that Canadian forces would recover the wreckage for study.
READ MORE: How spy balloons work, and what information they can gather
The down came a day after White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said an object roughly the size of a small car was shot down in remote Alaska. Officials couldn’t say if it contained any surveillance equipment, where it came from or what purpose it had.
Kirby said it was shot down because it was flying at about 40,000 feet (13,000 meters) and posed a “reasonable threat” to the safety of civilian flights, not because of any knowledge that it was engaged in surveillance.
According to U.S. Northern Command, recovery operations continued Saturday on sea ice near Deadhorse, Alaska.
In a statement, the Northern Command said there were no new details on what the object was. It said the Alaska Command and the Alaska National Guard, along with the FBI and local law enforcement, were conducting search and recovery.
“Arctic weather conditions, including wind chill, snow, and limited daylight, are a factor in this operation, and personnel will adjust recovery operations to maintain safety,” the statement said.
Last Saturday, U.S. officials shot down a large white balloon off the coast of South Carolina.
The balloon was part of a large surveillance program that China has been conducting for “several years,” the Pentagon has said. The U.S. has said Chinese balloons have flown over dozens of countries across five continents in recent years, and it learned more about the balloon program after closely monitoring the one shot down near South Carolina.
China responded that it reserved the right to “take further actions” and criticized the U.S. for “an obvious overreaction and a serious violation of international practice.”
The Navy continued survey and recovery activities on the ocean floor off South Carolina, and the Coast Guard was providing security. Additional debris was pulled out Friday, and additional operations will continue as weather permits, Northern Command said.
Statement on Today's Actions by North American Aerospace Defense Command
Feb. 11, 2023 |
Statement on today's actions by NORAD attributed to Pentagon Press Secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder:
"Following a call between the Prime Minister of Canada and the President of the United States, President Biden authorized U.S. fighter aircraft assigned to North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) to work with Canada to take down a high-altitude airborne object over northern Canada today. NORAD detected the object over Alaska late Friday evening. Two F-22 aircraft from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska monitored the object over U.S. airspace with the assistance of Alaska Air National Guard refueling aircraft, tracking it closely and taking time to characterize the nature of the object. Monitoring continued today as the object crossed into Canadian airspace, with Canadian CF-18 and CP-140 aircraft joining the formation to further assess the object. A U.S. F-22 shot down the object in Canadian territory using an AIM 9X missile following close coordination between U.S. and Canadian authorities, to include a call today between Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III and Minister of Defence Anita Anand. As Canadian authorities conduct recovery operations to help our countries learn more about the object, the Federal Bureau of Investigation will be working closely with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police."
Statement on today's actions by NORAD attributed to Pentagon Press Secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder:
"Following a call between the Prime Minister of Canada and the President of the United States, President Biden authorized U.S. fighter aircraft assigned to North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) to work with Canada to take down a high-altitude airborne object over northern Canada today. NORAD detected the object over Alaska late Friday evening. Two F-22 aircraft from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska monitored the object over U.S. airspace with the assistance of Alaska Air National Guard refueling aircraft, tracking it closely and taking time to characterize the nature of the object. Monitoring continued today as the object crossed into Canadian airspace, with Canadian CF-18 and CP-140 aircraft joining the formation to further assess the object. A U.S. F-22 shot down the object in Canadian territory using an AIM 9X missile following close coordination between U.S. and Canadian authorities, to include a call today between Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III and Minister of Defence Anita Anand. As Canadian authorities conduct recovery operations to help our countries learn more about the object, the Federal Bureau of Investigation will be working closely with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police."
A US Air Force F-22 brought down the latest aerial intruder over the Arctic.
The New Daily@TheNewDailyAU Feb 12
US and Canadian specialists are combing the sea ice off northern Canada for the wreckage of a suspected balloon destroyed by a US fighter plane – the third such incident in two weeks.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tweeted that the unidentified object was flying high over northern Canada when spotted by the NORAD defence network.
A NORAD spokesman, Major Olivier Gallant, said both Canadian and US warplanes operating as part of NORAD had been deployed.
On Twitter, Trudeau announced: “I ordered the take down of an unidentified object that violated Canadian airspace. @NORADCommand shot down the object over the Yukon. Canadian and U.S. aircraft were scrambled, and a US F-22 successfully fired at the object.”
Trudeau’s gratitude
In a second tweet, Trudeau said: “I spoke with President Biden this afternoon. Canadian Forces will now recover and analyze the wreckage of the object. Thank you to NORAD for keeping the watch over North America.”
A suspected Chinese spy balloon spent nearly a week flying through Canada and US airspace before it was shot down by US warplanes off South Carolina last Sunday.
The US military shot down a second object in Alaskan airspace on Friday, though authorities have not provided details on what it was.
US Navy crewmen retrieve the first downed balloon off the South Carolina coast. Photo: US Navy
According to US Northern Command, recovery operations continued on Saturday both near Deadhorse, Alaska, and off South Carolina.
In a statement, the Northern Command said there were no new details on what the object was that a US fighter jet shot down over Alaska.
Hunting the debris
It said the Alaska Command and the Alaska National Guard, along with the FBI and local law enforcement, were conducting search and recovery.
“Arctic weather conditions, including wind chill, snow, and limited daylight, are a factor in this operation, and personnel will adjust recovery operations to maintain safety,” the statement said.
“Recovery activities are occurring on sea ice.”
It added that the Navy continued survey and recovery activities on the ocean floor off South Carolina, and the Coast Guard was providing security.
Additional debris was pulled out on Friday, and additional operations would continue as weather permits, the statement said.
-AAP
According to US Northern Command, recovery operations continued on Saturday both near Deadhorse, Alaska, and off South Carolina.
In a statement, the Northern Command said there were no new details on what the object was that a US fighter jet shot down over Alaska.
Hunting the debris
It said the Alaska Command and the Alaska National Guard, along with the FBI and local law enforcement, were conducting search and recovery.
“Arctic weather conditions, including wind chill, snow, and limited daylight, are a factor in this operation, and personnel will adjust recovery operations to maintain safety,” the statement said.
“Recovery activities are occurring on sea ice.”
It added that the Navy continued survey and recovery activities on the ocean floor off South Carolina, and the Coast Guard was providing security.
Additional debris was pulled out on Friday, and additional operations would continue as weather permits, the statement said.
-AAP
No comments:
Post a Comment