2023 Alaska high-altitude object
Map
The location of Deadhorse, where the object was shot down off the coast.
DateFebruary 10, 2023
LocationBeaufort Sea
TypeAirspace violator
OutcomeShot down by a U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptor

On February 10, 2023, the United States Air Force shot down a high-altitude object that had entered U.S. airspace over Alaska a day before. The object was shot down onto the Beaufort Sea. The Department of Defense said it was the size of a small car and flying northeast at approximately 40,000 feet (12,000 m), posing a risk to civilian flight. On February 16, 2023, US President Joe Biden stated that the downed object was probably a civilian-owned balloon and "most likely tied to private companies, recreation or research institutions".[1]

An attempt was made to recover the debris, which landed in the sea. However on February 18, 2023, it was reported that the search had been abandoned.[2]

Background

The object in Alaska was detected less than one week after a Chinese balloon[a] was detected by the U.S. and shot down over the Atlantic.[3] United States National Security Council coordinator John Kirby said it was "much, much smaller than the spy balloon that we took down last Saturday"[3] and was about the size of a small car.[4] The Chinese balloon shot down in the Atlantic was at 60,000 feet (18,000 m), while the Alaska object was at about 40,000 feet (12,000 m),[4] thus presenting a greater threat to commercial aircraft.[3]

On February 11, another high-altitude object was shot down in Yukon.

Detection, description, and flight path

The unidentified flying object[5] was described as cylindrical, silver, and appearing to float.[6] It was detected by U.S. radar at 9 p.m. AKST on February 9 and U.S. Northern Command sent an E-3 Sentry AWACS aircraft to track it, supported by inflight refueling.[3] Two flypasts were conducted, one on the evening of February 9 and the other on the morning of February 10.[7] F-35 fighter jets from Eielson Air Force Base and F-22 fighter jets from Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson (JBER) were deployed to make a visual inspection. They found that the object was uncrewed.[3][8]

A source briefed on the intelligence told CNN that the pilots gave differing accounts of what they had seen. Some pilots said that the object "interfered with their sensors" on their aircraft but other pilots did not report this.[7] Some pilots said that they could not identify any means of propulsion on the object.[7] One U.S. official told CNN that the object did not appear to have any surveillance equipment.[9]

According to U.S. officials, the object had traveled over Alaska before heading northward to sea at a speed of 20 to 40 miles per hour (32 to 64 km/h).[3]

Shootdown

At around 10:45 a.m. AKST on February 10,[4][10] the object was shot down by an AIM-9X Sidewinder fired by an F-22 Raptor from JBER, marking the model's second air-to-air kill.[10][11][12]

President Joe Biden ordered the shootdown, out of what Kirby called an "abundance of caution".[3][13] Pentagon press secretary Pat Ryder called it "a reasonable threat to the safety of civilian flight".[14]

Recovery operations

U.S. Air Force Brigadier General Patrick Ryder during a press briefing at the Pentagon.

The object landed on the frozen sea off Deadhorse, near the Prudhoe Bay Oil Field, in the territorial waters of the United States.[5][15] A Department of Defense official said it broke into pieces.[3]

The U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard and FBI participated in efforts to recover the object.[4] Search and rescue aircraft such as the CH-47 Chinook, HC-130 and HH-60 Pave Hawk were used in the effort.[10]

It remains unclear who owned the object.[16] On February 11, U.S. Northern Command said they had no new information to share about the "capabilities, purpose or origin" of the object, and that recovery operations continued but were affected by Arctic weather conditions, such as wind chill, snow and limited daylight hours.[7] A Pentagon spokesman said on the same day that recovery teams were collecting the debris on top of the ice.[7] U.S. divers and unmanned underwater vehicles retrieved additional debris.[17]

On February 18, 2023, it was reported that the search had been abandoned.[2]

Reactions

President Biden said that the shootdown was a success.[7] Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he was briefed on the incursion and "supported the decision to take action".[3]

In a statement made shortly after the object was downed, Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy said it "raises serious national security concerns that should concern every American", that it is a reminder of Alaska's geopolitical strategic importance and that the Alaska National Guard is "working closely with USNORTHCOM and other agencies to provide any support as requested".[18]

The White House stated the leading explanation for the objects was "commercial or research entities and therefore totally benign".[19]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Alleged by US and Canada to be observation balloon, claimed by China to be a weather balloon

References

  1. ^ Kinery, Christina Wilkie, Emma (February 16, 2023). "Biden says three recently downed aerial objects were not linked to Chinese spy program". CNBC. Retrieved September 24, 2023.((cite web)): CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ a b "US and Canada abandon search for three flying objects shot down". BBC News. February 18, 2023. Archived from the original on February 25, 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Cooper, Helene; Barnes, Julian E.; Wong, Edward (February 10, 2023). "U.S. Shoots Down High-Altitude Object Over Alaska". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on February 10, 2023. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
  4. ^ a b c d Aratani, Lauren (February 11, 2023). "Mystery surrounds what exactly was object US jet shot down over Alaska". The Observer. ISSN 0029-7712. Retrieved February 12, 2023.
  5. ^ a b Shalal, Andrea; Holland, Steve; Stewart, Phil; Stewart, Phil (February 11, 2023). "U.S. shoots down unidentified object flying above Alaska". Reuters. Archived from the original on February 11, 2023. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
  6. ^ Gittleson, Ben (February 11, 2022). "US shoots down unknown 'high-altitude object' over Alaska, White House says". ABC News. Archived from the original on February 10, 2023. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
  7. ^ a b c d e f Britzky, Haley; Bertrand, Natasha; Pelish, Aaron (February 11, 2023). "What we know about the unidentified object shot down over Alaska | CNN Politics". CNN. Archived from the original on February 12, 2023. Retrieved February 13, 2023.
  8. ^ Vazquez, Maegan; Klein, Betsy; Liebermann, Oren; Britzky, Haley (February 10, 2023). "Biden says shoot down of 'high-altitude object' over Alaska was a 'success'". CNN. Archived from the original on February 11, 2023. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
  9. ^ Vogt, Adrienne; Powell, Tori; Meyer, Matt (February 10, 2023). "February 10, 2023 - US shoots down 'high-altitude object' over Alaska". CNN. Archived from the original on February 12, 2023. Retrieved February 12, 2023.
  10. ^ a b c Woodward, Alex; Dodds, Io (February 10, 2023). "Everything we know about the mysterious 'object' shot down by US warplanes in Alaska". The Independent. Archived from the original on February 11, 2023. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
  11. ^ Epstein, Jake (February 10, 2023). "After nearly 2 decades in service, the F-22 has its first air-to-air kills — neither against the jets it was designed to fight". Business Insider. Archived from the original on February 11, 2023. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
  12. ^ Ellis, Tim (February 11, 2023). "JBER-based fighter jets shoot down airborne object off Alaska". KUAC. Archived from the original on February 11, 2023. Retrieved February 13, 2023.
  13. ^ Cabral, Sam; Kim, Chloe (February 10, 2023). "High-altitude object shot down over Alaska, US says". BBC News. Archived from the original on February 10, 2023. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
  14. ^ Samuel, Brett; Mitchell, Ellen (February 10, 2023). "US shoots down another 'high-altitude object' over Alaskan airspace". The Hill. Archived from the original on February 10, 2023. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
  15. ^ Shabad, Rebecca (February 11, 2023). "U.S. shoots down 'high-altitude object' over Alaskan airspace, White House says". NBC News. Archived from the original on February 11, 2023. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
  16. ^ Shivaram, Deepa (February 10, 2023). "'High-altitude object' shot down by military over Alaska". NPR. Archived from the original on February 11, 2023. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
  17. ^ Czuczka, Tony (February 11, 2023). "US Recovery of Object Downed Over Alaska Faces Arctic Conditions". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved February 15, 2023.
  18. ^ Schroeder, Kollette (February 11, 2023). "Governor Dunleavy Issues Statement on Unidentified Object Shot Down Over Alaska". Government of Alaska. Retrieved February 12, 2023.
  19. ^ Nicholas, Peter; Shabad, Rebecca; Wong, Scott (February 14, 2023). "White House says a leading explanation for the 3 downed unidentified objects is that they were commercial or benign". NBC News.
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