OTTAWA: A US F-22 fighter jet shot down an unidentified cylindrical object over Canada on Saturday, the second such instance in as many days, as North America appeared on edge following a week-long Chinese spying balloon saga that drew the global spotlight.

Meanwhile, twice in 24 hours, US officials closed airspace — only to reopen it swiftly. On Sunday, the Federal Aviation Administration briefly closed space above Lake Michigan.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau first announced Saturday’s shootdown over the northern Yukon territory, which borders Alaska.

“The security of citizens is our top priority and that’s why I made the decision to have that unidentified object shot down,” he said, adding that it had posed a danger to civilian aircraft. Canadian investigators are hunting for the object’s wreckage. “Recovery teams are on the ground, looking to find and analyse the object,” Trudeau told reporters.

Defence Minister Anita Anand declined to speculate about the origin of the object, which she said was cylindrical in shape.

She stopped short of calling it a balloon, but said it was smaller than the Chinese balloon shot down off South Carolina’s coast a week ago, though similar in appearance.

Aloft at 12,200 metres, it posed a risk to civilian air traffic and was shot down at 3.41 EST (2041 GMT), she added.

“There is no reason to believe that the impact of the object in Canadian territory is of any public concern,” Anand told a news conference.

The Pentagon said the North American Aerospace Defence Command (Norad) had detected the object over Alaska late on Friday.

US fighter jets from a base in Alaska monitored the object as it crossed over into Canadian airspace, where that country’s aircraft joined the formation.

“A US F-22 shot down the object in Canadian territory, using an AIM 9X missile following close coordination between US and Canadian authorities,” Pentagon spokesman Brig Gen Patrick Ryder said in a statement.

‘Defend our airspace’

US President Joe Biden authorised the military to work with Canada to take down the high-altitude craft after a call between Biden and Trudeau, the Pentagon said.

The White House said Biden and Trudeau had agreed to continue close coordination to “defend our airspace”. “The leaders discussed the importance of recovering the object in order to determine more details on its purpose or origin,” it said in a statement.

A day earlier, Biden ordered another downing of an unidentified flying object near Deadhorse, Alaska.

On Saturday, the US military remained tight-lipped about what, if anything, it had learned as recovery efforts were under way on the Alaskan sea ice.

On Friday, the Pentagon offered only a few details, such as that the object was the size of a small car, was flying at about 12,200 metres, could not manoeuvre and appeared to be unmanned.

US officials have been trying to learn about the object since it was first spotted on Thursday.

“We have no further details at this time about the object, including its capabilities, purpose, or origin,” Northern Command said on Saturday.

It mentioned difficult Arctic weather conditions, including wind chill, snow, and limited daylight that can hinder search and recovery.

“Personnel will adjust recovery operations to maintain safety,” it added.

On Feb 4, an F-22 fighter jet brought down what the US government called a Chinese surveillance balloon off the coast of South Carolina following its week-long journey across the United States and portions of Canada. China said it was a civilian research vessel.

Some US lawmakers criticised Presi­dent Biden for not shooting down the Chinese balloon sooner. The US military had recommended waiting until it was over the ocean, for fear of injuries from falling debris.

US personnel have been scouring the ocean to recover debris and the undercarriage of electronic gadgetry since the shootdown of the 60-metre-tall Chinese high-altitude surveillance balloon.

According to the Pentagon, a significant amount of the balloon had already been recovered or located, suggesting American officials may soon have more information about any Chinese espionage capabilities aboard.

Published in Dawn, February 13th, 2023