A Chinese balloon violated US airspace and was shot down by a US Air Force F-22.
At first China explained that the balloon was a civilian weather balloon that accidentally drifted into the U.S. and Canada, but in fact it was apparently flown from a military base on the Chinese mainland.
The balloon, which was flying at an altitude of 20,000 meters, was said to be used to intercept radio signals from U.S. missile bases and other locations.
Since China already has reconnaissance satellites, it would seem that there is no need to fly a balloon, but apparently a low altitude is necessary for radio interception.
The balloon that was shot down was said to be about the size of three buses, which is quite large.
At first, the U.S. had planned to ignore the balloon, but reports that U.S. citizens who noticed the balloon tried to shoot it down with rifles made it impossible to ignore it, so the U.S. decided to shoot it down.
The wreckage of the destroyed balloon is currently being recovered by the U.S. military, so it will soon be clear what purpose the balloon had in flying to the United States.
In fact, such balloons have flown not only to the United States but also to Japan, the Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, and other countries. The number of such balloons is said to be more than 40.
By the way, I checked the height of the territorial airspace and found that it was 100 kilometers above the ground. Above that point, the airspace is outer space and does not include the Dragon Skies.
China's arrogance is too much to take in. China will be hated by the whole world if it doesn't get its act together.
