SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Coordinator for Strategic Communications at the National Security Council John Kirby speaks during a daily news briefing at the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House on February 10, 2023 in Washington, D.C.
(Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Pentagon Confirms It Shot Down 'Object' 40,000 Feet Over Alaska
"We're calling this an object because that's the best description we have right now," said a White House spokesperson, adding that the object was roughly the size of a small car.
Feb 10, 2023
This is a developing story. Please check back for possible updates...
The Pentagon on Friday confirmed that the U.S. military shot down an unidentified "object" tens of thousands of feet over Alaska, less than a week after an F-22 fighter jet downed a Chinese spy balloon over the Atlantic.
John Kirby, the coordinator for strategic communications at the National Security Council, briefed members of the press on the incident, which he said involved a much smaller object than the spy balloon.
The object was flying at about 40,000 feet and was determined to pose a "reasonable threat" to the safety of civilian aircraft.
"We're calling this an object because that's the best description we have right now," Kirby told one reporter who asked whether it should be described as an aircraft, air ship, or balloon.
He added that it was "roughly the size of a small car." The balloon that was shot down last Saturday was about the size of three school buses, according to officials.
Fighter pilots who observed the object over Alaska on Friday before shooting it down determined that it was not manned, according to the Pentagon. The object reportedly crashed into waters off the Alaska coast that are currently frozen, and Kirby said authorities have not yet determined whether it's owned by a government, corporation, or private owner.
He added that the White House expects to be able to recover the downed material so it can determine who owns the object and whether it held surveillance equipment or weaponry.
Last week's incident alarmed some peace advocates after Republicans claimed the Chinese balloon posed a security threat to the U.S. and "American sovereignty," as House China Select Committee Chairman Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) said.
China denounced the Pentagon's decision to shoot down the balloon as "excessive" and said it violated "international convention."
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
This is a developing story. Please check back for possible updates...
The Pentagon on Friday confirmed that the U.S. military shot down an unidentified "object" tens of thousands of feet over Alaska, less than a week after an F-22 fighter jet downed a Chinese spy balloon over the Atlantic.
John Kirby, the coordinator for strategic communications at the National Security Council, briefed members of the press on the incident, which he said involved a much smaller object than the spy balloon.
The object was flying at about 40,000 feet and was determined to pose a "reasonable threat" to the safety of civilian aircraft.
"We're calling this an object because that's the best description we have right now," Kirby told one reporter who asked whether it should be described as an aircraft, air ship, or balloon.
He added that it was "roughly the size of a small car." The balloon that was shot down last Saturday was about the size of three school buses, according to officials.
Fighter pilots who observed the object over Alaska on Friday before shooting it down determined that it was not manned, according to the Pentagon. The object reportedly crashed into waters off the Alaska coast that are currently frozen, and Kirby said authorities have not yet determined whether it's owned by a government, corporation, or private owner.
He added that the White House expects to be able to recover the downed material so it can determine who owns the object and whether it held surveillance equipment or weaponry.
Last week's incident alarmed some peace advocates after Republicans claimed the Chinese balloon posed a security threat to the U.S. and "American sovereignty," as House China Select Committee Chairman Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) said.
China denounced the Pentagon's decision to shoot down the balloon as "excessive" and said it violated "international convention."
From Your Site Articles
Related Articles Around the Web
This is a developing story. Please check back for possible updates...
The Pentagon on Friday confirmed that the U.S. military shot down an unidentified "object" tens of thousands of feet over Alaska, less than a week after an F-22 fighter jet downed a Chinese spy balloon over the Atlantic.
John Kirby, the coordinator for strategic communications at the National Security Council, briefed members of the press on the incident, which he said involved a much smaller object than the spy balloon.
The object was flying at about 40,000 feet and was determined to pose a "reasonable threat" to the safety of civilian aircraft.
"We're calling this an object because that's the best description we have right now," Kirby told one reporter who asked whether it should be described as an aircraft, air ship, or balloon.
He added that it was "roughly the size of a small car." The balloon that was shot down last Saturday was about the size of three school buses, according to officials.
Fighter pilots who observed the object over Alaska on Friday before shooting it down determined that it was not manned, according to the Pentagon. The object reportedly crashed into waters off the Alaska coast that are currently frozen, and Kirby said authorities have not yet determined whether it's owned by a government, corporation, or private owner.
He added that the White House expects to be able to recover the downed material so it can determine who owns the object and whether it held surveillance equipment or weaponry.
Last week's incident alarmed some peace advocates after Republicans claimed the Chinese balloon posed a security threat to the U.S. and "American sovereignty," as House China Select Committee Chairman Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) said.
China denounced the Pentagon's decision to shoot down the balloon as "excessive" and said it violated "international convention."
From Your Site Articles
Related Articles Around the Web
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.