Navy releases first photos of balloon recovery
WASHINGTON — Using underwater drones, warships and inflatable vessels, the Navy is carrying out an extensive operation to gather all of the pieces of the massive Chinese spy balloon a U.S. fighter jet shot down Saturday off the coast of South Carolina.
In the newest images released by the Navy on Tuesday, sailors from Explosive Ordnance Disposal
Group 2 based at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek in Virginia Beach, Virginia, are seen pulling broad swaths of the balloon’s white outer fabric and shell structure into their boat.
The head of U.S. Northern Command, Gen. Glen VanHerck, said Monday that the teams were taking precautions to safeguard against the chance any part of the balloon was rigged with explosives.
The balloon was an estimated 200 feet tall and was carrying a long sensor package underneath, which VanHerck estimated was the size of a small regional jet.
The Navy is also mapping and scanning the sea floor for all remaining parts of the balloon, so U.S. analysts can get a full picture of what types of sensors the Chinese were using and to better understand how the balloon was able to maneuver.
The balloon debris is scattered in waters that stretch across an area 15 football fields long and 15 football fields across, VanHerck said.
China claims it was a civilian balloon used for meteorological research but has refused to say to which government department or company it belongs.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning on Tuesday reiterated that the “unmanned airship” entered U.S. airspace accidentally.
Balloons either suspected of or confirmed to be Chinese have been spotted over countries from Japan to Costa Rica.