US shoots down Chinese ‘spy balloon’

The US has shot down a suspected Chinese spy balloon that has been flying over its airspace.

Television footage showed a small explosion, followed by the balloon descending toward the water off the Carolina coast.

The balloon was shot down by an Air Force fighter aircraft, using an AIM-9X missile.

Ships had also been deployed in the water to mount the recovery operation.

President Joe Biden said national security leaders decided the best time for the operation was when the balloon got over water.

“They successfully took it down and I want to complement our aviators who did it,” Mr Biden said.

A US defence official said the aircraft was a spy balloon and that China intended to use it on sensitive military sites.

Mr Biden had warned the US was “going to take care of” the craft after it was spotted again on Saturday – this time over North Carolina.

The US had previously hesitated to shoot the balloon because of the risks to people on the ground from falling debris.

Ahead of the operation, flights were halted at three airports including Myrtle Beach International Airport in South Carolina because of a “national security effort”, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said.

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The discovery of the balloon has stirred tensions and a diplomatic row between China and the US.

However, China insisted the balloon was used for meteorological and other scientific research and had been blown off course.

The object is believed to have flown over the Aleutian Islands, off the coast of Alaska, and through Canada before entering the US earlier this week.

It is operating at 60,000ft and is manoeuvrable, the Pentagon has said.