DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Palus Politicus Why the US hasn't shot down the suspected Chinese surveillance balloon, according to officials

Why haven't they captured or shot this thing down?

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.cn...us-monitoring-chinese-balloon/index.html

There are rumors surfacing of another over Latin America too.

The kindergartens. It could crash into kindergartens. /purple

I'm thinking a couple things. We are studying it. We can see exactly what it is seeing and doing. It poses no threat now. We are blocking any info china is trying to get. I trust our military I think we have this under control

This is embarrassment on a national stage, a show of weak leadership, and complete capitulation.

This administration says its unacceptable, yet they let it still fly around the US? Ummmmm, no, are you kidding me?

So then the message we're sending is that its alright to invade our airspace? Got it.

It would be a good vehicle to spread disease microbes. Did it come from Wuhan?

I can buy the story that it can't gather in more info that low orbit satellites that the Chinese are already flying over us.... but agree with others who have said I think it is showing a bit of weakness by basically doing nothing... how hard would it be to shoot it down or capture it? I understand that if you shoot it down it could harm someone/something.... but I still feel uneasy with it...

first the Russian ship in US waters and now this... I pray for our military leaders to make good choices...

Rather than shoot it down, I'd want them to capture it, bring it to earth and study it. Find out if it is indeed a spy device.

I'd rather know what it is before destroying it for a couple of reasons..

1. I don't want to start WW3 over a weather balloon. (no, I don't think that's what it is)

2. I want the technology to study.

Just thinking our government may want a similar plan to fall into place.

100% agree with this!!! If we can capture it that's best case scenario...

There are a few things that stand out to me.

The first one is that Biden wanted to send jets to take it down. The pentagon said it should not be shot down. It's odd how people think the president "should listen to the military" when it suits their purpose and then blame a president who "listens to the military" when it doesn't suit their purpose. Funny how that works.

Then there is the reason the pentagon gave for not shooting it down about hurting civilians and or property. It was over Montana for God's sake! Are they trying to convince us that there's not enough open area in the state of Montana to have safely shot this thing down?

And lastly. Who spies with an object so large and close to the earth that people can easily see it? I mean the definition of the word spying is work for a government or other organization by secretly collecting information about enemies or competitors. That's certainly not the case here as it pertains to being done secretly.

Two words. Laser beam.

All jokes aside. I believe this is a typical move to further divide US, and to intimidate.

Biden 'WILL try to shoot down' the Chinese spy balloon over the Atlantic so it can be retrieved and studied - as aircraft is due to exit the east coast over the Carolinas by noon today

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...inese-spy-balloon-Atlantic.html#comments

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Some of the favorite comments:

-The time to shoot it down was BEFORE it entered the country's airspace....

-A Pentagon that gets more than $700 billion a year in funding will TRY to shoot down a BALLOON??

-Biden made sure it got all the info it needed for his buddies first.


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A couple of the worst rated comments (I love these):

-Well done Joe- Trump wouldn't have had the courage!

-If it rain down on a few Trump supporters, so be it

Good post. But first, it's not like everyone here is picking on Biden. I've read "we" and "they"... and only Brownie said "this administration". Maybe you're talking people in general.

As to Brownie's post -- he's 100% accurate. "So then the message we're sending is that its alright to invade our airspace? Got it." That's exactly the message, right? If we won't shoot down a balloon, we (obviously) won't shoot down anything unless we are at war. The once forbidden act of breaching airspace will now just get you a stern warning.

Point two. Yes. Montana! Could we pick a better place to take down a weather balloon?? Tell everyone to stay inside, shoot 'er outta the sky. Not that hard.

Point three. Who? Someone that is not only threatening you with the fact that they may be spying; but wants to prove you have no balls and will do nothing about it.

Yes, I'm talking about people and the media in general. Not directed at posters here per say.

And I actually agree with you about everything else. The excuse given when this thing was over Montana was pure BS and the message it sends is terrible. I have no idea why in the hell the pentagon would recommend not shooting this thing down in an open space where it could safely be done. Hopefully there's more to this than any of us realize.

Did the pentagon know there is no hazardous materials in the payload when over Montana or even now? Do we know if it’s filled with helium or hydrogen? I haven’t heard.

1. The military first discovered the thing over Alaska's Aleutian Islands.
2. The Military wanted to shoot it down.
3. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin didn't want to shoot it down when it made its way into Montana.
4. Biden chose to listen to his political advisors and Defense Secretary.
5. The balloon flew over a very important military base that holds 150/450 Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic (nuclear) missiles and other sensitive sites. *The other 2 bases are in Wyoming and South Dakota.


My questions...

1. Where did the balloon go after they discovered it over Alaska?
2. Why didn't they shoot it down over open water in the Bearing Sea or the Northern Pacific Ocean?

Pentagon tracking suspected Chinese spy balloon over the US

The US is tracking a suspected Chinese high-altitude surveillance balloon over the continental United States, defense officials said on Thursday, a discovery that risks adding further strain to tense US-China relations.

Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder said the US government has been tracking the balloon for several days as it made its way over the northern United States, adding it was “traveling at an altitude well above commercial air traffic and does not present a military or physical threat to people on the ground.”

Speaking on background, a senior US defense official said senior military officials had advised President Joe Biden not to shoot it down due to fear the debris could pose a safety threat to people on the ground.

https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/02/politics/us-tracking-china-spy-balloon/index.html

Pentagon decides not to shoot down Chinese balloon as could endanger people on ground

https://economictimes.indiatimes.co...-people-on-ground/videoshow/97608305.cms

Military brass have recommended against shooting down an alleged Chinese spy balloon flying over the US — for now

https://defensescoop.com/2023/02/02...-spy-balloon-flying-over-the-us-for-now/

Good Lord man.

um... there were no people on the ground.

It was discovered over open water.

And how does that change the fact that it was the pentagon who recommended it not be shot down? That seems to be the only fact we disagree on.

Saying things like this are a result of not having all the facts.

The balloon has been shot down.

Just saw this reported.

What an odd event this whole thing has been.

So, all of any information it obtained had already been sent to China. Neat.

What?

Well, it's safe to assume that's true. I don't think they were saving it to an onboard floppy disk.


Chinese government was using balloon to "surveil strategic sites" in the US, according to defense secretary

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said the balloon shot down by the US over the Atlantic Ocean Saturday was being used by the Chinese government "to surveil strategic sites in the continental United States."

President Joe Biden gave the Pentagon authorization on Wednesday to take down the surveillance balloon "as soon as the mission could be accomplished without undue risk to American lives under the balloon’s path," Austin said in a statement after the military downed the aircraft Saturday.

"The Department of Defense developed options to take down the balloon safely over our territorial waters, while closely monitoring its path and intelligence collection activities," Austin continued, adding that military leaders coordinated with the Canadian government on the mission.
"Today’s deliberate and lawful action demonstrates that President Biden and his national security team will always put the safety and security of the American people first while responding effectively to the (People's Republic of China)’s unacceptable violation of our sovereignty," Austin said.

https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/suspected-chinese-balloon-over-us-02-04-23/index.html


Seems like Biden handled the situation as well as he possibly could. Question is... what now?

Damn, i think my AliExpress order was on that thing!

I wonder how many times something like this has happened and we haven't been told? I'm still waiting for details on what happened in Roswell and Area 51... LOL

Came down within a football field or 3 of where our condo is.
Surfside/Garden City/Murrell's Inlet area

I don't freakkin' know.
I'm reasonably good at predicting normal stuff that can usually be attributed to patterns. This- I got no answer for.
Above my pay grade.

Didn't spring for 'next-day delivery.' did you?
[jfan]: "I'll just go with the 'balloon rate'... what's the worst that could happen?"

You did spring for the insurance, right?
Right?

F-22 Safely Shoots Down Chinese Spy Balloon Off South Carolina Coast

A U.S. Air Force fighter safely shot down a Chinese high-altitude surveillance balloon today, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III said in a written statement.

President Joe Biden ordered the action on Wednesday, but it was delayed until the balloon was over water off the coast of South Carolina to ensure no Americans on the ground were harmed.

"The balloon, which was being used by the PRC in an attempt to surveil strategic sites in the continental United States, was brought down above U.S. territorial waters," Austin said.

The action was taken in coordination and support of the Canadian government. "We thank Canada for its contribution to tracking and analysis of the balloon through [North American Aerospace Defense Command] as it transited North America," Austin said. "Today's deliberate and lawful action demonstrates that President Biden and his national security team will always put the safety and security of the American people first while responding effectively to the PRC's unacceptable violation of our sovereignty," Austin said referring to the Peoples Republic of China.

U.S. officials first detected the balloon and its payload on January 28 when it entered U.S. airspace near the Aleutian Islands. The balloon traversed Alaska, Canada and re-entered U.S. airspace over Idaho. "President Biden asked the military to present options and on Wednesday President Biden gave his authorization to take down the Chinese surveillance balloon as soon as the mission could be accomplished without undue risk to us civilians under the balloon's path," said a senior defense official speaking on background. "Military commanders determined that there was undue risk of debris causing harm to civilians while the balloon was overland."

An F-22 Raptor fighter from the 1st Fighter Wing at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia, fired one AIM-9X Sidewinder missile at the balloon.

The balloon fell approximately six miles off the coast in about 47 feet of water. No one was hurt.

Long before the shoot down, U.S. officials took steps to protect against the balloon's collection of sensitive information, mitigating its intelligence value to the Chinese. The senior defense official said the recovery of the balloon will enable U.S. analysts to examine sensitive Chinese equipment. "I would also note that while we took all necessary steps to protect against the PRC surveillance balloon's collection of sensitive information, the surveillance balloon's overflight of U.S. territory was of intelligence value to us," the official said. "I can't go into more detail, but we were able to study and scrutinize the balloon and its equipment, which has been valuable."

The balloon did not pose a military or physical threat. Still its intrusion into American airspace over several days was an unacceptable violation of U.S. sovereignty. The official said Chinese balloons briefly transited the continental United States at least three times during the prior administration.

While Chinese officials admitted that the balloon was theirs, they said it was a runaway weather balloon. "The PRC has claimed publicly that the high-altitude balloon operating above the United States is a weather balloon that was blown off course. This is false," the official said. "This was a PRC surveillance balloon. This surveillance balloon purposely traversed the United States and Canada, and we are confident it was seeking to monitor sensitive military sites."

The mission now transitions to one of recovery. There are a number of U.S. Navy and Coast Guard vessels establishing a security perimeter around the area where the balloon came to Earth. They are searching for debris, said a senior military official also speaking on background.

There is no estimate for how long the recovery mission will take, the military official said, but the fact that it came down in such a shallow area should make recovery "fairly easy".

The military official gave some detail of the engagement. The F-22 fired the Sidewinder at the balloon from an altitude of 58,000 feet. The balloon at the time was between 60,000 and 65,000 feet.

F-15 Eagles flying from Barnes Air National Guard Base, Massachusetts, supported the F-22, as did tankers from multiple states including Oregon, Montana, South Carolina and North Carolina. Canadian forces also helped track the overflight of the balloon.

The Navy has deployed the destroyer USS Oscar Austin, the cruiser USS Philippine Sea and the USS Carter Hall, an amphibious landing ship in support of the effort.

https://www.defense.gov/News/News-S...se-spy-balloon-off-south-carolina-coast/


GOPers, lmao. Happened to Trump three times, but MAGA Twitter never got the memo. Now they are the laughing stock again.

Did the Pentagon just do a "whatabout"?

That’s what happens when your boy lies and covers up and didn’t do squat about the same issue.

Nawww.

What the Pentagon just did was point out to every moron that was using the spy balloon as a way to label Biden as a weak leader that they don't know diddly squat. Exposing every Muppet and talking head that's been saying "Russia would never have invaded Ukraine if Trump was in office" and "China would never send Spy balloons over the USA if Trump was in office" for the peddler of lies and propaganda they are.

Is this the same Paul Sperry that writes commentaries for The New York Post and Real Clear Politics?

Like I said, people tend to be swayed by what they read.

Paul Sperry didn't say it. Ratcliff did. So yes, people tend to be swayed by what they read. Your post is a great example of that.