US jet shoots down ‘unidentified object’ over Canada
By Euronews with AP • 12/02/2023
Canada’s Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, gave the final order to down the object
Canada’s Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, gave the final order to down the object – Copyright Darryl Dyck/AP
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau gave the order for a US fighter jet to shoot down an “unidentified object” on Saturday that was flying high over the Yukon territory.
It comes just one day after America took similar action over Alaska, against another as yet unidentified object.
The combined US-Canada organization that organises the shared defence of airspace over the two nations, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), detected the object flying at a high altitude on Friday evening over Alaska, US officials said. It crossed into Canadian airspace on Saturday.
Trudeau spoke with US President Joe Biden, who also ordered the object to be shot down. Canadian and US jets operating as part of NORAD were jointly scrambled.
Canadian Defense Minister Anita Anand told a news conference in Ottawa that the object, flying at around 40,000 feet, had been shot down at 3:41 PM Toronto time, approximately 100 miles from the Canada-US border in central Yukon.
A recovery operation was underway involving the Canadian Armed Forces and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
US fighter jets have now taken out three objects in the airspace above the US and Canada over seven days, a stunning development that is raising questions on just what, exactly, is hovering overhead and who has sent them.
At least one of the downed objects was believed to be a spy balloon from China. While Beijing acknowledges the object was its own, it has denied it was being used for espionage purposes.
