Chinese Spy Balloon Collected Intel, Sent Back To Beijing In ‘Real Time’ Despite Pentagon Claims: Report

As per a new report from NBC News, the Chinese spy balloon, which traversed the US earlier this year, gathered and transmitted intelligence from various sensitive American military sites, despite the Pentagon’s claims that it had blocked the transmission. The balloon was reportedly steered by China to fly over certain military sites, while transmitting data continuously to Beijing. The obtained data primarily constituted electronic signals, which could be intercepted from weapons systems or base communications. Although officials from the National Security Council declined to comment, statements made by the Department of Defense in February claimed that the Chinese had “limited additive value” from the operation, as the US already has measures to protect sensitive intelligence. Pentagon officials also told lawmakers that little new intelligence was gathered in the Chinese balloon operation. NBC’s report noted that the communist nation could have gathered more intelligence if the Biden administration had not taken action to move the potential targets around to disrupt intelligence gathering.

The State Department has previously acknowledged that the spy balloon had intelligence-gathering capabilities, and flew over Montana, home to a nuclear missile silo field, following a flight path that allowed it to collect data on several other sensitive military sites. The spy balloon was shot down over the Atlantic Ocean in February by an F-22 Raptor with an air-to-air AIM-9X Sidewinder missile. It was up to 200 feet tall and weighed in excess of a couple of thousand pounds.

After the Chinese spy balloon was shot down, the US subsequently downed three more undated objects, one each over Alaska, Lake Huron, and Canada. Ryan Saavedra contributed to this report.

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