GC ships patrolling balloon site

The Defense Department did not shoot down the Chinese balloon as it approached Alaska in late January. The reason was that it did not pose a military threat to the United States or Canada, Air Force Gen. Glen VanHerck, commander of U.S. Northern Command and the North American Aerospace Defense Command, briefed reporters Feb. 6. The balloon, which Pentagon officials said was built to spy on sensitive military sites, was shot down Saturday off the coast of South Carolina. The balloon itself was about 200 feet tall and the payload was about the size of a regional jetliner and weighed thousands of pounds, VanHerck said. The debris deposits are in an area the size of 15x15 football fields, VanHerck said. It is being treated as potential hazardous waste because of the remnants from batteries of sensitive equipment aboard. There has been no indication the balloon carried explosives, he said. Military officials took action to shield sensitive sites along the balloon’s path, he said. Intelligence was gained by studying its capabilities, but he refused to say if electronic jamming devices were used to prevent it from transmitting information to China. NASA provided models that showed the debris could stretch over six miles, VanHerck said. That is why commanders waited until it was six miles offshore before an F-22 fired an AIM-9 sidewinder missile into the balloon. Navy and Coast Guard ships are patrolling the area where it splashed down, VanHerck said. (USA TODAY 02/06/23) DOD did not shoot down the Chinese balloon when it was first detected (usatoday.com)

Gulf Coast Note: Among those ships is the USS Carter Hall (LSD 50), which was laid down in November 1991 at Avondale Shipyards in New Orleans; and USNS Pathfinder (T-AGS 60), built by VT Halter Marine in Pascagoula, Miss. 

ALL SHIPS INVOLVED IN BALLOON RECOVERY

The Harpers Ferry-class dock landing ship USS Carter Hall (LSD 50), Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Philippine Sea (CG 58) and Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Oscar Austin (DDG 79) took up station to track the descent of the balloon’s payload as it fell into the water. USNS Pathfinder (T-AGS 60), an oceanographic survey ship operated by the Military Sealift Command. Coast Guard's cutters - USCGC Venturous (WMEC 625), USCGC Richard Snyder (WPC 1127), and USCGC Nathan Bruckenthal (WPC 1128).