Washington DC.- The United States shot down a Chinese balloon suspected of monitoring the US military in the Atlantic Ocean, authorities said, saying the wreckage could be recovered.
Officials speaking on condition of anonymity said President Biden had given the go-ahead. In a brief comment Saturday in response to a reporter’s question about the balloon, Biden said: “We’ll take care of that.”
The balloon was seen Saturday morning over the Carolinas as it neared the Atlantic coast. In preparation for the operation, the Federal Aviation Administration temporarily closed airspace over the Carolina coast, including the airports in Charleston and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and Wilmington, North Carolina.
The FAA was diverting air traffic from the area and warned of delays as a result of flight restrictions.
The Coast Guard also advised sailors to immediately leave the area due to US military operations “presenting significant danger.”
Officials were aiming to time the operation so they could recover as much debris as possible before it sinks into the ocean.
The Pentagon had previously estimated that the balloon, which was flying about 60,000 feet in the air, was the size of three school buses and that any debris field would be considerable.
