Pentagon: Weekend UFOs Are Not Balloons, Cannot Rule Out Aliens
Aerospace Defense Commander General Glen VanHerck confirmed that the UFOs discovered over the weekend are unlike the balloon shot down days ago over South Carolina's coast.
United States military leaders are uncertain about the exact nature and purpose of airborne objects shot down over the United States and Canada since February 10th. Unlike the balloon shot down off the coast of South Carolina six days earlier, the most recent UFOs stay aloft and move along. The revelation was made by the Commander of North American Aerospace Defense Command, General Glen VanHerck, and aliens have not been ruled out of the matter.
“I’m not going to categorize them as balloons,” he said during a media briefing about the UFOs via NBC News. “We’re calling them objects for a reason. I’m not able to categorize how they stay aloft,” he added. However, a defense official said there was no indication of aliens or extraterrestrial activity with these recent takedowns.
VanHerck previously declined to rule out extraterrestrial activity, saying he would let the intelligence community figure that out. The UFO shot down over Lake Huron on Sunday, February 10th, was described as an octagonal structure with strings hanging off but no discernible payload. It was the fourth flying object to be downed over North American airspace in less than two weeks.
The last three were similar in size and shape. According to VanHerck, the biggest issue with getting a better description is how fast fighter jet pilots pass them. The military jets are traveling at speeds of roughly 200 mph when eyes are put on the UFOs. That’s pretty significant when compared with the objects that are aloft but otherwise nearly static.
The Pentagon confirmed that an F-16 fighter firing an AIM9x missile shot down the most recent UFO at 2:42 pm on February 10th at roughly 20,000 feet. The order was given by President Joe Biden, based on recommendations of military leadership after its path and altitude raised concerns about risks to civil aviation, NBC News reports.
While it was not believed to be a military threat, it could have had surveillance capabilities. The UFO prompted military officials to develop a game plan, and the object was tracked to Lake Huron. “The all-clear was given to engage the target and it was taken down about 15 nautical miles east of the Upper Peninsula in Lake Huron,” the General said.
The location of the UFO shootdown was chosen to minimize public risk and improve the chances of recovering the debris. No civilians were hurt or otherwise affected by the military mission. However, the Federal Aviation Administration closed some airspace over Lake Michigan to support Pentagon activities. The airspace was reopened shortly after.
After the Chinese surveillance balloon was shot down, the military examined a wider range of radar data to monitor North American airspace for UFOs. The agency is also looking at smaller objects which may have previously been filtered out as clutter, The Washington Post reports.
It remains unclear if government officials are spotting UFOs that have always been present, or if there are new aerial objects that were not detected before. A United States fighter jet shot also shot down another unidentified object over Canada on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s orders.
