Chinese Home-made Airship AS700 Conducts Test Flightmen,
Some media and politicians are taking a whimsical view of these high flying balloons.
The White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, confirmed that the administration does not believe aliens are involved. “There is no indication of aliens or extraterrestrial activity with these recent takedowns,” she said.
NORAD should consider anything invading American airspace to be a threat. We don’t now much about the Chinese balloon that was shot down after passing over much of the US, but we do know that the Chinese government lies like mad.
I think it was a trial balloon. The Chinese government wanted to see what we’d do and how seriously we would take the incursion. Since they had attempted this three times during the Trump administration, and Pentagon officials didn’t even tell the president, the Chinese government expected not much of a reaction.
Reports say that NORAD radar has been upgraded, so the balloons are easier to detect. Our spy satellites could certainly see them. The military shouldn’t be wasting expensive ordinance on hobby balloons, but they should be alert and have procedures to intercept incursions into our airspace.
This report Inside China’s Military Balloon Program is more informative than anything I’ve seen in the New York Times.