VANCOUVER, Canada — The U.S. shot down an unidentified airborne object over northern Canada on Saturday, the third time this month that jets were deployed to counter such aerial incursions.
The North American Aerospace Defense Command earlier Saturday said it had identified the high-altitude object. Canadian and U.S. aircraft were scrambled and a U.S. F-22 fighter jet successfully took it down over the Yukon, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in a tweet.
The latest incident comes after the recent incursion of a Chinese balloon over U.S. and Canadian territory that shone a spotlight on Beijing’s alleged surveillance programs and sparked a diplomatic standoff between the world superpowers. The U.S. also downed another unidentified object in Alaska Friday near the Canadian border.
Canadian Forces will recover and analyze the wreckage of the object, Trudeau said, adding that he spoke with U.S. President Joe Biden.
It’s unclear what the latest object is and where it originated. But the U.S. has accused China of a years-long surveillance program in which it deployed spy balloons across the globe, a claim rejected by Beijing.
A U.S. intelligence report released in January said reporting of unidentified aerial phenomena has increased, as the stigma surrounding claims of UFO sightings lessens and awareness increases about the threats such objects may pose.
NORAD is a U.S.-Canada organization charged with the missions of aerospace warning, aerospace control and maritime warning for North America.
(With assistance from Jenny Leonard.)
