The balloon intercepted by American fighters over the western regions of the United States turned out to be an amateur one, CBS News reported.
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“The Department of Defense reported that the balloon discovered over Utah was an amateur one,” the statement said.
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The day before, the North American Air Defense Command (NORAD) told that fighter jets had intercepted a balloon previously spotted over the western regions of the United States. The military immediately assessed that the object “did not maneuver and did not pose a threat to national security.” They also added that the balloon was flying at an altitude of about 43-45 thousand feet, or 13.1-13.7 kilometers.
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Friday evening, CBS, citing unnamed American officials, reported that the United States had spotted an unidentified aircraft flying over the western regions of the country and posing no threat, but its origin and purpose were unknown.
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According to military estimates, the object was moving in an easterly direction under the influence of air currents. According to one of the officials, the device flew over the state of Colorado on Friday, causing concern among local authorities and prompting them to scramble military aircraft.
In February last year, the Americans detected a Chinese balloon in their airspace, which crossed US territory and ended up over the Atlantic Ocean, after which it was shot down. President Joe Biden later agreed that the craft had gone off course and argued that Chinese President Xi Jinping was not aware of what had happened. The Pentagon later reported that the downed balloon did not collect or transmit intelligence information, although it was carrying spy equipment.
