A US fighter jet shot down an object flying at high altitude over Alaska on Friday. The White House reports, according to international news agencies, that it is an unknown object the size of a car. President Joe Biden himself gave the order to bring down the object.
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The United States first signaled the object on Thursday evening. It flew at an altitude of more than twelve kilometers and therefore posed a danger to civil aviation, according to the spokesman for the White House. The object shot down will be retrieved from US territorial waters for investigation. The Pentagon says it has no indication that the object was drivable or manned.
The downing of the unknown object comes at a sensitive time. On Saturday, the US shot down a Chinese balloon flying off the coast of South Carolina. According to the Americans, it was a Chinese-made surveillance balloon, which led to a diplomatic row. According to China, the balloon – two to three school buses in size – had only scientific purposes and had drifted.