1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:02,111 Good afternoon everyone . Thanks very 2 00:00:02,111 --> 00:00:04,370 much for your patience . While we were 3 00:00:04,370 --> 00:00:06,640 delayed a little bit of a few things to 4 00:00:06,640 --> 00:00:08,840 talk about up top and then we'll get 5 00:00:08,840 --> 00:00:11,070 right to your questions . Uh So first 6 00:00:11,070 --> 00:00:13,370 of all , to add to information already 7 00:00:13,370 --> 00:00:15,860 provided earlier by the White House , 8 00:00:15,890 --> 00:00:17,946 at the direction of the President of 9 00:00:17,946 --> 00:00:19,890 the United States Fighter aircraft 10 00:00:19,890 --> 00:00:21,668 assigned to US Northern Command 11 00:00:21,860 --> 00:00:24,350 successfully took down a high altitude 12 00:00:24,350 --> 00:00:26,550 airborne object off the Northern coast 13 00:00:26,550 --> 00:00:29,700 of Alaska at 1:45 p.m. Eastern Standard 14 00:00:29,700 --> 00:00:32,610 Time today within US sovereign airspace 15 00:00:32,620 --> 00:00:36,090 over US territorial water On February 16 00:00:36,090 --> 00:00:38,312 nine , North American Aerospace Defense 17 00:00:38,312 --> 00:00:40,420 Command detected an object on ground 18 00:00:40,420 --> 00:00:43,150 radar and further investigated and 19 00:00:43,150 --> 00:00:45,150 identified the object using fighter 20 00:00:45,150 --> 00:00:47,620 aircraft . The object was flying at an 21 00:00:47,620 --> 00:00:49,910 altitude of 40,000 ft and posed a 22 00:00:49,910 --> 00:00:51,854 reasonable threat to the safety of 23 00:00:51,854 --> 00:00:54,340 civilian flight . Us Northern Command 24 00:00:54,340 --> 00:00:56,590 is beginning recovery operations now , 25 00:00:57,630 --> 00:00:59,890 US Northern Command's Alaska Command 26 00:00:59,890 --> 00:01:01,612 coordinated the operation with 27 00:01:01,612 --> 00:01:03,834 assistance from the Alaska Air National 28 00:01:03,834 --> 00:01:06,660 Guard Federal Aviation Administration 29 00:01:06,860 --> 00:01:09,193 and the Federal Bureau of Investigation . 30 00:01:09,610 --> 00:01:11,666 We have no further details about the 31 00:01:11,666 --> 00:01:13,666 object at this time , including any 32 00:01:13,666 --> 00:01:15,554 description of its capabilities , 33 00:01:15,554 --> 00:01:17,499 purpose or origin . The object was 34 00:01:17,499 --> 00:01:19,666 about the size of a small car , so not 35 00:01:19,666 --> 00:01:22,250 similar in size or shape to the high 36 00:01:22,250 --> 00:01:24,417 altitude surveillance balloon that was 37 00:01:24,417 --> 00:01:26,306 taken down off the coast of South 38 00:01:26,306 --> 00:01:29,140 Carolina on February four separately . 39 00:01:29,140 --> 00:01:31,084 U . S . Northern Command continues 40 00:01:31,084 --> 00:01:33,251 their recovery operations . In support 41 00:01:33,251 --> 00:01:35,362 of the recent takedown of the Chinese 42 00:01:35,362 --> 00:01:37,418 high altitude surveillance balloon . 43 00:01:37,418 --> 00:01:39,529 Recovery teams have mapped the debris 44 00:01:39,529 --> 00:01:41,307 field and are in the process of 45 00:01:41,307 --> 00:01:43,529 searching for and identifying debris on 46 00:01:43,529 --> 00:01:45,630 the ocean floor debris that's been 47 00:01:45,630 --> 00:01:47,741 recovered so far is being loaded onto 48 00:01:47,741 --> 00:01:50,450 vessels taken ashore cataloged and then 49 00:01:50,450 --> 00:01:52,920 moved onwards to labs for subsequent 50 00:01:52,920 --> 00:01:55,220 analysis . And while I won't go into 51 00:01:55,220 --> 00:01:57,960 specifics due to classification reasons , 52 00:01:57,960 --> 00:02:00,080 I can say that we have located a 53 00:02:00,080 --> 00:02:02,330 significant amount of debris so far 54 00:02:02,340 --> 00:02:04,507 that will prove helpful to our further 55 00:02:04,507 --> 00:02:06,618 understanding of this balloon and its 56 00:02:06,618 --> 00:02:09,130 surveillance capabilities of note uh 57 00:02:09,140 --> 00:02:11,362 Due to less than favorable sea states . 58 00:02:11,362 --> 00:02:13,307 Right now , teams will continue to 59 00:02:13,307 --> 00:02:15,473 conduct underwater survey and recovery 60 00:02:15,473 --> 00:02:17,584 as conditions permit . The department 61 00:02:17,584 --> 00:02:19,807 wants to thank our interagency partners 62 00:02:19,807 --> 00:02:21,973 from the U . S . Coast Guard , the FBI 63 00:02:21,973 --> 00:02:23,973 and state and local authorities for 64 00:02:23,973 --> 00:02:25,751 their continuing assistance and 65 00:02:25,751 --> 00:02:27,973 partnership in other news . And I think 66 00:02:27,973 --> 00:02:30,100 this is important that we remember a 67 00:02:30,100 --> 00:02:32,211 lot of folks and people in Turkey and 68 00:02:32,211 --> 00:02:34,980 Syria right now are are suffering . We 69 00:02:34,980 --> 00:02:37,091 want to again express our support for 70 00:02:37,091 --> 00:02:39,140 the people of Turkey A and Syria as 71 00:02:39,140 --> 00:02:41,307 they respond to the deadly earthquakes 72 00:02:41,307 --> 00:02:43,418 that struck there earlier this week . 73 00:02:43,560 --> 00:02:45,227 In support of ongoing U . S . 74 00:02:45,227 --> 00:02:47,560 Assistance efforts spearheaded by the U . 75 00:02:47,560 --> 00:02:49,171 S . Agency for International 76 00:02:49,171 --> 00:02:51,338 Development . U . S . European Command 77 00:02:51,338 --> 00:02:53,504 has positioned personnel equipment and 78 00:02:53,504 --> 00:02:55,727 a range of assets to aid the government 79 00:02:55,727 --> 00:02:57,782 of Turkey A and its continued search 80 00:02:57,782 --> 00:02:59,949 and rescue efforts . This includes the 81 00:02:59,949 --> 00:03:01,893 U . S . Navy's George H . W . Bush 82 00:03:01,893 --> 00:03:04,004 carrier strike group repositioning to 83 00:03:04,004 --> 00:03:05,838 the Eastern Mediterranean sea to 84 00:03:05,838 --> 00:03:07,893 provide logistics medical and rotary 85 00:03:07,893 --> 00:03:09,560 airlift support if required . 86 00:03:09,620 --> 00:03:11,842 Additionally , U . S . Army rotary wing 87 00:03:11,842 --> 00:03:13,953 aircraft began flying missions out of 88 00:03:13,953 --> 00:03:15,953 interlinked air base in Turkey . On 89 00:03:15,953 --> 00:03:18,290 february 72 transport transport first 90 00:03:18,290 --> 00:03:20,068 responders to the most affected 91 00:03:20,068 --> 00:03:23,100 populations and on february 8th u h 60 92 00:03:23,100 --> 00:03:24,878 black hawks transported injured 93 00:03:24,878 --> 00:03:27,100 civilians to a local medical facility . 94 00:03:27,100 --> 00:03:29,340 U . S . European Command has designated 95 00:03:29,340 --> 00:03:31,229 U . S . Naval forces , europe and 96 00:03:31,229 --> 00:03:33,390 Africa as the lead component command 97 00:03:33,390 --> 00:03:35,279 overseeing the EUCOM humanitarian 98 00:03:35,279 --> 00:03:37,630 assistance and disaster relief efforts 99 00:03:37,630 --> 00:03:39,870 within Turkey . A to aid in that 100 00:03:39,870 --> 00:03:41,981 coordination . U . S . Marine Corps , 101 00:03:41,981 --> 00:03:44,203 Brigadier General Andrew pretty U . S . 102 00:03:44,203 --> 00:03:46,037 Naval amphibious forces , europe 103 00:03:46,037 --> 00:03:47,592 commander and second marine 104 00:03:47,592 --> 00:03:49,426 expeditionary Brigade commanding 105 00:03:49,426 --> 00:03:51,592 general arrived in Turkey a february 9 106 00:03:51,592 --> 00:03:53,259 to lead military coordination 107 00:03:53,259 --> 00:03:56,260 coordination efforts with US agencies 108 00:03:56,260 --> 00:03:58,093 involved in humanitarian aid and 109 00:03:58,093 --> 00:04:00,230 disaster relief efforts will continue 110 00:04:00,230 --> 00:04:02,119 to provide you with updates as we 111 00:04:02,119 --> 00:04:04,286 receive them . Yukon will be issuing a 112 00:04:04,286 --> 00:04:06,452 press release with further details but 113 00:04:06,452 --> 00:04:08,674 again we offer our thoughts and prayers 114 00:04:08,674 --> 00:04:10,563 to the people of Turkey and Syria 115 00:04:10,563 --> 00:04:12,786 during this tragic and difficult time . 116 00:04:12,786 --> 00:04:14,897 And finally Secretary Austin welcomed 117 00:04:14,897 --> 00:04:17,008 Canadian Minister of National Defense 118 00:04:17,008 --> 00:04:19,174 and on for a bilateral meeting here in 119 00:04:19,174 --> 00:04:19,090 the pentagon today the secretary 120 00:04:19,090 --> 00:04:21,201 expressed his thanks and appreciation 121 00:04:21,201 --> 00:04:23,368 to Minister and on for the cooperation 122 00:04:23,368 --> 00:04:25,590 rendered by Canada and tracking the PRC 123 00:04:25,590 --> 00:04:27,812 high altitude surveillance balloon that 124 00:04:27,812 --> 00:04:30,034 violated the sovereignty of both of our 125 00:04:30,034 --> 00:04:32,034 countries . During the meeting both 126 00:04:32,034 --> 00:04:34,090 leaders reaffirmed the close defense 127 00:04:34,090 --> 00:04:36,257 relationship between the United States 128 00:04:36,257 --> 00:04:38,090 and Canada and a readout will be 129 00:04:38,090 --> 00:04:37,940 available later today on defense dot 130 00:04:37,940 --> 00:04:39,884 gov and with that I will take your 131 00:04:39,884 --> 00:04:42,107 questions . We'll start with Associated 132 00:04:42,107 --> 00:04:44,107 Press Star Cup . Hi , thank you for 133 00:04:44,107 --> 00:04:46,218 doing this . Um A couple of questions 134 00:04:46,218 --> 00:04:48,700 on this latest shoot down . Uh First 135 00:04:48,700 --> 00:04:51,030 what type of U . S . Fighter aircraft 136 00:04:51,030 --> 00:04:53,252 were used and what type of munition did 137 00:04:53,252 --> 00:04:55,640 they fire ? And do you already have 138 00:04:55,650 --> 00:04:58,470 Navy assets or Coast guard assets out 139 00:04:58,480 --> 00:05:00,591 in involved in the recovery process ? 140 00:05:00,591 --> 00:05:02,591 And then I have a few more . Thanks 141 00:05:02,591 --> 00:05:05,710 Tara . So so the the aircraft that took 142 00:05:05,710 --> 00:05:09,360 down the object was an F 22 flying out 143 00:05:09,360 --> 00:05:12,640 of Joint Base Elmendorf in Alaska and 144 00:05:12,640 --> 00:05:15,810 employed an aim nine x uh to to take 145 00:05:15,810 --> 00:05:19,720 down the object in terms of assets that 146 00:05:19,720 --> 00:05:23,300 are currently involved uh in terms 147 00:05:23,300 --> 00:05:27,250 of recovery we have H 148 00:05:27,260 --> 00:05:30,850 C 1 30 H H 60 and ch 47 aircraft 149 00:05:30,860 --> 00:05:33,082 participating in that recovery effort . 150 00:05:33,290 --> 00:05:35,123 Okay . You mentioned there was a 151 00:05:35,123 --> 00:05:37,360 reasonable threat um was there also a 152 00:05:37,360 --> 00:05:39,940 threat to potentially this object 153 00:05:39,950 --> 00:05:42,006 detecting some of our more sensitive 154 00:05:42,006 --> 00:05:44,420 radar capabilities um that are based in 155 00:05:44,420 --> 00:05:47,680 Alaska . And then what hasn't been said 156 00:05:47,680 --> 00:05:50,060 is where this object has come from ? Is 157 00:05:50,060 --> 00:05:52,282 there any indication that this was also 158 00:05:52,282 --> 00:05:55,510 a chinese surveillance balloon object , 159 00:05:55,510 --> 00:05:57,454 whatever it is ? Yeah . So at this 160 00:05:57,454 --> 00:06:00,300 point uh we don't know the origin of 161 00:06:00,300 --> 00:06:04,090 the object . Um Again we will know more 162 00:06:04,100 --> 00:06:06,840 once we're able to potentially recover 163 00:06:06,850 --> 00:06:09,150 some of those materials but the primary 164 00:06:09,150 --> 00:06:11,840 concern again was the potential hazard 165 00:06:11,840 --> 00:06:15,050 to civil flight uh And so again we'll 166 00:06:15,050 --> 00:06:17,520 know more later . Thank you perceived 167 00:06:17,520 --> 00:06:19,470 threat to any of the radar 168 00:06:19,470 --> 00:06:21,470 installations that we have based in 169 00:06:21,470 --> 00:06:23,750 Alaska again right now we'll we'll know 170 00:06:23,750 --> 00:06:26,780 more once we assess it . Um just leave 171 00:06:26,780 --> 00:06:30,620 it at that . Thank you . This 172 00:06:33,520 --> 00:06:36,180 thank you . Thanks for taking my 173 00:06:36,180 --> 00:06:38,070 question . Um What made this 174 00:06:38,070 --> 00:06:40,292 threatening enough to shoot down ? What 175 00:06:40,292 --> 00:06:42,514 is different about this object than the 176 00:06:42,514 --> 00:06:44,348 last object that was over Alaska 177 00:06:44,348 --> 00:06:46,760 because it was chosen not to shoot the 178 00:06:46,760 --> 00:06:49,040 last one down over Alaska . Yeah . So 179 00:06:49,050 --> 00:06:50,828 you know the important thing to 180 00:06:50,828 --> 00:06:52,939 understand here is any time we detect 181 00:06:52,939 --> 00:06:54,994 anything we're going to first of all 182 00:06:54,994 --> 00:06:57,217 observe it and then make a decision and 183 00:06:57,217 --> 00:06:59,328 take appropriate action . So you have 184 00:06:59,328 --> 00:07:01,494 to look at each individual case on its 185 00:07:01,494 --> 00:07:03,717 own merits . And this particular case , 186 00:07:03,717 --> 00:07:05,939 given the fact that it was operating at 187 00:07:05,939 --> 00:07:08,060 an altitude that posed a reasonable 188 00:07:08,060 --> 00:07:10,800 threat to civilian air traffic . The 189 00:07:10,800 --> 00:07:13,022 determination was made in the President 190 00:07:13,022 --> 00:07:15,078 gave the order to take it down . Was 191 00:07:15,078 --> 00:07:17,022 there a specific threat a specific 192 00:07:17,022 --> 00:07:18,967 civilian air traffic incident that 193 00:07:18,967 --> 00:07:21,420 could have happened again as you well 194 00:07:21,420 --> 00:07:23,587 know , civilian aircraft operate , you 195 00:07:23,587 --> 00:07:25,850 know at a variety of ranges up to 40 to 196 00:07:25,850 --> 00:07:27,710 45,000 ft . So again there was a 197 00:07:27,710 --> 00:07:29,654 reasonable concern that this could 198 00:07:29,654 --> 00:07:32,420 present present a threat to or 199 00:07:32,420 --> 00:07:34,253 potential hazard to civilian air 200 00:07:34,253 --> 00:07:36,490 traffic . So let me has Secretary 201 00:07:36,490 --> 00:07:38,212 Austin reached out his chinese 202 00:07:38,212 --> 00:07:40,323 counterpart or any other counterparts 203 00:07:40,323 --> 00:07:42,268 at all since this has been tracked 204 00:07:42,268 --> 00:07:45,060 since this particular object . No , We 205 00:07:45,060 --> 00:07:47,227 go here and then I'll come over to one 206 00:07:50,620 --> 00:07:54,470 knowledge that things from the 207 00:07:54,480 --> 00:07:56,591 previous balloon had been recovered . 208 00:07:56,591 --> 00:07:58,810 What additional information you have 209 00:07:58,810 --> 00:08:00,754 now about the capabilities of that 210 00:08:00,754 --> 00:08:02,977 balloon ? Yeah , so we're continuing to 211 00:08:02,977 --> 00:08:05,088 assess that . Again , I'm not able to 212 00:08:05,088 --> 00:08:06,990 go into more detail other than in 213 00:08:06,990 --> 00:08:09,130 addition to learning a lot about the 214 00:08:09,130 --> 00:08:11,186 balloon and the capabilities that it 215 00:08:11,186 --> 00:08:13,790 has while it was over the Continental 216 00:08:13,790 --> 00:08:17,710 United States . Um we Have identified 217 00:08:17,720 --> 00:08:20,180 or located a significant amount of 218 00:08:20,180 --> 00:08:22,380 debris on the ocean floor that will be 219 00:08:22,380 --> 00:08:24,390 very beneficial to us learning more 220 00:08:24,390 --> 00:08:26,446 about it . But at this point in time 221 00:08:26,446 --> 00:08:28,390 I'm not going to have more details 222 00:08:28,390 --> 00:08:30,612 manufacturing label on these equipments 223 00:08:30,612 --> 00:08:32,723 or the balloons indicate that they're 224 00:08:32,723 --> 00:08:34,890 all manufactured in China sourced from 225 00:08:34,890 --> 00:08:34,680 China . Again , I'm not going to have 226 00:08:34,680 --> 00:08:36,847 details to provide it at this point in 227 00:08:36,847 --> 00:08:39,090 time . Also say that 39 , other 228 00:08:39,090 --> 00:08:41,340 countries have have indicated they have 229 00:08:41,350 --> 00:08:43,350 seen balloons in there in their 230 00:08:43,350 --> 00:08:45,100 territories are sharing those 231 00:08:45,100 --> 00:08:47,280 information from from the pentagon to 232 00:08:47,280 --> 00:08:49,391 these countries or the capabilities , 233 00:08:49,391 --> 00:08:52,810 how you shot them down . Uh So in terms 234 00:08:52,810 --> 00:08:54,754 of what we're learning about these 235 00:08:54,754 --> 00:08:56,921 balloons , I know the State Department 236 00:08:56,921 --> 00:08:56,770 has talked to this in terms of our 237 00:08:56,770 --> 00:08:59,040 international outreach , certainly the 238 00:08:59,040 --> 00:09:01,151 Department of Defense plays a role in 239 00:09:01,151 --> 00:09:03,207 those relationships . And so we will 240 00:09:03,207 --> 00:09:05,262 continue to work with our allies and 241 00:09:05,262 --> 00:09:07,262 partners to share information along 242 00:09:07,262 --> 00:09:09,429 with our State Department colleagues . 243 00:09:09,429 --> 00:09:11,540 Let me go to uh two questions First , 244 00:09:11,540 --> 00:09:13,429 did this object show any signs of 245 00:09:13,429 --> 00:09:15,707 maneuver maneuverability or propulsion . 246 00:09:15,707 --> 00:09:17,484 And then you and other pentagon 247 00:09:17,484 --> 00:09:19,484 officials made a big deal about how 248 00:09:19,484 --> 00:09:19,370 much intelligence was gathered by 249 00:09:19,370 --> 00:09:21,630 letting the other one float across much 250 00:09:21,630 --> 00:09:23,852 of the United States . And yet you shot 251 00:09:23,852 --> 00:09:25,963 this one down before enter the United 252 00:09:25,963 --> 00:09:28,186 States . Is that the pentagon bowing to 253 00:09:28,186 --> 00:09:28,150 political pressure ? Was there nothing 254 00:09:28,150 --> 00:09:30,750 to gain from this one ? Yeah . So so 255 00:09:30,750 --> 00:09:33,410 again , uh , we're gonna judge each of 256 00:09:33,410 --> 00:09:35,577 these on its merits , no indication at 257 00:09:35,577 --> 00:09:38,020 this time that it was maneuverable . 258 00:09:38,030 --> 00:09:40,830 But again , we'll we'll know more . Um , 259 00:09:40,840 --> 00:09:42,840 and in terms of entering the United 260 00:09:42,840 --> 00:09:45,007 States , it did enter U . S . Airspace 261 00:09:45,007 --> 00:09:47,118 and we took it down intelligence from 262 00:09:47,118 --> 00:09:49,229 this one as you did from the previous 263 00:09:49,229 --> 00:09:51,284 one . We're going to recover what we 264 00:09:51,284 --> 00:09:53,340 can from this and more to follow the 265 00:09:53,340 --> 00:09:55,340 decision to shoot it down before it 266 00:09:55,340 --> 00:09:57,673 entered too far to the U . S . Airspace . 267 00:09:57,673 --> 00:09:56,520 The pentagon bowing to political 268 00:09:56,520 --> 00:09:58,631 pressure from the hill . Look again , 269 00:09:58,631 --> 00:10:00,853 we're gonna judge each of these objects 270 00:10:00,853 --> 00:10:03,020 on its own merits . It entered into us 271 00:10:03,020 --> 00:10:06,110 airspace on February nine . We we sent 272 00:10:06,110 --> 00:10:08,460 up aircraft to assess what it was . The 273 00:10:08,460 --> 00:10:10,349 decision was made that it posed a 274 00:10:10,349 --> 00:10:12,238 reasonable threat to civilian air 275 00:10:12,238 --> 00:10:14,720 traffic . The President Uh gave the 276 00:10:14,720 --> 00:10:16,776 order to take it down and we took it 277 00:10:16,776 --> 00:10:17,831 down . Thank you . 278 00:10:19,070 --> 00:10:22,940 Thanks for taking my question . 279 00:10:22,950 --> 00:10:25,061 Um , so a couple questions . First of 280 00:10:25,061 --> 00:10:27,172 all , has anything like this happened 281 00:10:27,172 --> 00:10:30,140 before with an object , the size , the 282 00:10:30,140 --> 00:10:32,700 shape in this , this particular um 283 00:10:33,180 --> 00:10:36,310 Height for the 40,000 ft range has , 284 00:10:36,310 --> 00:10:38,199 that has happened before and then 285 00:10:38,199 --> 00:10:40,920 second of all , um how why did you , 286 00:10:40,930 --> 00:10:42,930 can you say more about why you knew 287 00:10:42,930 --> 00:10:45,730 that that last balloon or object was 288 00:10:45,730 --> 00:10:47,952 from China , whereas this one you don't 289 00:10:47,952 --> 00:10:51,580 know . Um So in terms of this 290 00:10:51,580 --> 00:10:53,413 particular object , again , as I 291 00:10:53,413 --> 00:10:55,580 highlighted , we don't know where it's 292 00:10:55,580 --> 00:10:57,747 from . It posed a reasonable threat to 293 00:10:57,747 --> 00:10:59,636 civilian air traffic . And so the 294 00:10:59,636 --> 00:11:01,802 determination was made to take it down 295 00:11:01,802 --> 00:11:03,858 in terms of the other balloon , as I 296 00:11:03,858 --> 00:11:06,210 mentioned in our previous briefing , um 297 00:11:06,220 --> 00:11:09,000 we have learned a lot about the chinese 298 00:11:09,010 --> 00:11:10,970 surveillance high altitude balloon 299 00:11:10,980 --> 00:11:13,580 program . Um we've we've gathered a lot 300 00:11:13,580 --> 00:11:15,747 of information over the last couple of 301 00:11:15,747 --> 00:11:17,913 years . And so we were able to , based 302 00:11:17,913 --> 00:11:20,080 on that information detect at a , at a 303 00:11:20,080 --> 00:11:21,747 very early stage , uh , as it 304 00:11:21,747 --> 00:11:23,913 approached us airspace , we had a good 305 00:11:23,913 --> 00:11:25,913 understanding of what it was . As I 306 00:11:25,913 --> 00:11:27,913 mentioned , we were able to monitor 307 00:11:27,913 --> 00:11:30,024 that closely , track it while it went 308 00:11:30,024 --> 00:11:32,080 over the Continental United States , 309 00:11:32,080 --> 00:11:34,191 Learn a lot about it and take it down 310 00:11:34,191 --> 00:11:36,469 at the appropriate time . So would you , 311 00:11:36,469 --> 00:11:38,524 would you , or just to put this in a 312 00:11:38,524 --> 00:11:40,747 different bucket than that or should we 313 00:11:40,747 --> 00:11:42,913 yeah , I think I was pretty clear this 314 00:11:42,913 --> 00:11:45,080 was traveling at about 40,000 ft which 315 00:11:45,080 --> 00:11:47,340 posed a potential a reasonable threat 316 00:11:47,350 --> 00:11:49,239 to civilian air traffic . And the 317 00:11:49,239 --> 00:11:51,470 decision was made to take it down . So 318 00:11:55,750 --> 00:11:57,840 when the pilot , when the pilots 319 00:11:57,840 --> 00:12:00,070 approached it um and and they 320 00:12:00,080 --> 00:12:02,302 determined I understand that it was not 321 00:12:02,302 --> 00:12:04,470 manned . How did they determine that ? 322 00:12:04,470 --> 00:12:06,303 And at that point wouldn't it be 323 00:12:06,303 --> 00:12:08,526 possible to at least describe what they 324 00:12:08,526 --> 00:12:10,526 were looking at ? Did it resemble a 325 00:12:10,526 --> 00:12:12,803 balloon or an airplane or what ? Again , 326 00:12:12,803 --> 00:12:14,900 we'll know more and have more 327 00:12:14,900 --> 00:12:17,122 information once we've recovered this ? 328 00:12:17,122 --> 00:12:20,490 Um I will give credit to our pilots 329 00:12:20,500 --> 00:12:23,590 that they're very capable in terms of 330 00:12:23,600 --> 00:12:25,700 looking at an object , assessing 331 00:12:25,700 --> 00:12:27,811 whether or not this had the potential 332 00:12:27,811 --> 00:12:29,589 to be manned at that altitude , 333 00:12:29,589 --> 00:12:31,478 something that small um very very 334 00:12:31,478 --> 00:12:33,990 unlikely that it was manned . Uh And so 335 00:12:33,990 --> 00:12:36,350 again , uh no indication that it was 336 00:12:36,350 --> 00:12:39,660 manned presented presented a potential 337 00:12:39,670 --> 00:12:41,559 reasonable threat to civilian air 338 00:12:41,559 --> 00:12:43,503 traffic and we took it down , what 339 00:12:43,503 --> 00:12:45,670 speed was it traveling at by the way , 340 00:12:45,670 --> 00:12:47,726 I don't have that information on the 341 00:12:47,726 --> 00:12:49,837 chinese balloon if we could go back . 342 00:12:49,837 --> 00:12:51,837 Is it is it still in the pentagon's 343 00:12:51,837 --> 00:12:54,330 view plausible or maybe even likely 344 00:12:54,340 --> 00:12:57,760 that it was not necessarily intentional 345 00:12:57,770 --> 00:12:59,750 when that balloon turned in blue 346 00:12:59,760 --> 00:13:02,330 eastward that that it seemed to have 347 00:13:02,340 --> 00:13:05,260 not , you know , lost some had some 348 00:13:05,260 --> 00:13:07,316 technical problems . Yeah . So dan , 349 00:13:07,316 --> 00:13:09,427 what I would tell you is based on the 350 00:13:09,427 --> 00:13:12,530 information that we have uh it was um 351 00:13:13,070 --> 00:13:15,510 being maneuvered and purposefully 352 00:13:15,870 --> 00:13:19,460 driven along its track . Again , 353 00:13:19,460 --> 00:13:21,880 recognizing that wins do play a role 354 00:13:21,890 --> 00:13:24,057 because of the maneuver ability of the 355 00:13:24,057 --> 00:13:26,860 balloon . Um It's our assessment that 356 00:13:26,870 --> 00:13:29,860 this was a purposeful mission . Uh In 357 00:13:29,860 --> 00:13:33,500 terms of the uh chinese motivations 358 00:13:33,510 --> 00:13:35,600 again I'd have to refer you back to 359 00:13:35,600 --> 00:13:38,120 china to talk about that ma'am and then 360 00:13:38,130 --> 00:13:39,160 come to nancy . 361 00:13:43,710 --> 00:13:47,480 Um Sorry we emailed 362 00:13:47,480 --> 00:13:49,820 you police body camera footage showing 363 00:13:49,820 --> 00:13:51,653 a National Guard general in Ohio 364 00:13:51,653 --> 00:13:53,790 pushing my colleague and having to be 365 00:13:53,790 --> 00:13:56,012 escorted away from him . This week , we 366 00:13:56,012 --> 00:13:57,901 asked the Ohio National Guard for 367 00:13:57,901 --> 00:14:00,068 comment . But do you as a spokesperson 368 00:14:00,068 --> 00:14:02,179 for the Department of Defense condone 369 00:14:02,179 --> 00:14:04,346 such conduct by a commissioned officer 370 00:14:04,346 --> 00:14:06,290 of the U . S . Military against an 371 00:14:06,290 --> 00:14:08,234 american journalist . Yeah . So we 372 00:14:08,234 --> 00:14:10,770 clear the answer is no that that's not 373 00:14:10,770 --> 00:14:14,040 acceptable behavior . The Secretary of 374 00:14:14,040 --> 00:14:16,910 Defense . The Department of Defense 375 00:14:16,920 --> 00:14:19,930 absolutely supports uh strongly 376 00:14:19,930 --> 00:14:23,230 supports a free and independent press . 377 00:14:23,240 --> 00:14:25,430 Uh So again I'd refer you to the Ohio 378 00:14:25,430 --> 00:14:28,220 National Guard for any comments about 379 00:14:28,230 --> 00:14:30,174 that particular incident but I can 380 00:14:30,174 --> 00:14:32,341 assure you that that is not acceptable 381 00:14:32,341 --> 00:14:35,240 behavior . Any kind of conduct . 382 00:14:35,240 --> 00:14:37,296 Unbecoming charge under the UcMJ and 383 00:14:37,296 --> 00:14:39,518 I'd have to refer you to them . I'm not 384 00:14:39,518 --> 00:14:42,040 gonna uh I'm not gonna make those kind 385 00:14:42,040 --> 00:14:44,262 of policy comments here from the podium 386 00:14:44,262 --> 00:14:47,220 in terms of what they may or may not be 387 00:14:47,220 --> 00:14:49,109 doing to address it . It would be 388 00:14:49,109 --> 00:14:51,442 inappropriate for me to comment on that . 389 00:14:51,442 --> 00:14:52,609 Let me go to nancy . 390 00:14:56,000 --> 00:14:58,056 Um I just had a couple of clarifying 391 00:14:58,056 --> 00:15:00,230 questions . You said that um that the 392 00:15:00,230 --> 00:15:02,174 pilots were able to see it that it 393 00:15:02,174 --> 00:15:04,230 wasn't the same shape or size as the 394 00:15:04,230 --> 00:15:06,341 balloon . Can you say definitively it 395 00:15:06,341 --> 00:15:09,140 was not a balloon ? Um , I don't at 396 00:15:09,140 --> 00:15:12,240 this point considering the fact that 397 00:15:12,250 --> 00:15:15,580 we're still assessing the object . Um , 398 00:15:16,260 --> 00:15:18,482 I don't want to get into characterizing 399 00:15:18,482 --> 00:15:21,090 it . Um , so just leave it at that . 400 00:15:21,270 --> 00:15:23,492 You mentioned , you know how fast I was 401 00:15:23,492 --> 00:15:25,214 traveling . Can you say it was 402 00:15:25,214 --> 00:15:27,214 traveling faster or slower than the 403 00:15:27,214 --> 00:15:29,437 balloon ? I don't have that information 404 00:15:29,437 --> 00:15:31,770 from me . So I don't want to make it up . 405 00:15:31,770 --> 00:15:33,992 Try a couple more . Um , did anyone try 406 00:15:33,992 --> 00:15:36,048 to within the administration contact 407 00:15:36,048 --> 00:15:38,159 their chinese counterparts before the 408 00:15:38,159 --> 00:15:41,020 decision was made to shoot it down ? Uh , 409 00:15:41,030 --> 00:15:43,700 in terms of uh , when you say the 410 00:15:43,700 --> 00:15:45,922 administration , if you're referring to 411 00:15:45,922 --> 00:15:48,144 the White House that after referring to 412 00:15:48,144 --> 00:15:50,367 them , the Department of Defense , uh , 413 00:15:50,367 --> 00:15:52,422 to my knowledge did not , again , we 414 00:15:52,422 --> 00:15:54,589 don't know the point of origin of this 415 00:15:54,589 --> 00:15:57,640 object . Um , So and was there any 416 00:15:57,640 --> 00:15:59,790 effort to jam or somehow disable this 417 00:15:59,790 --> 00:16:02,420 object before ? Such that it posed less 418 00:16:02,420 --> 00:16:05,150 of a I don't want to get into specific 419 00:16:05,160 --> 00:16:07,216 tactics or techniques that we may or 420 00:16:07,216 --> 00:16:09,382 may not use when observing these types 421 00:16:09,382 --> 00:16:12,990 of things . Again , uh , NORAD 422 00:16:13,000 --> 00:16:15,630 sent up aircraft to observe to see what 423 00:16:15,630 --> 00:16:17,870 it was . And then the ultimate decision 424 00:16:17,870 --> 00:16:20,092 was made based on the reasonable threat 425 00:16:20,092 --> 00:16:22,092 to civilian civilian air traffic to 426 00:16:22,092 --> 00:16:25,050 take it down . So thank you , Tony a 427 00:16:25,060 --> 00:16:27,004 couple things you mentioned you've 428 00:16:27,004 --> 00:16:29,171 recovered , recovered a significant or 429 00:16:29,171 --> 00:16:31,449 located a significant amount of debris . 430 00:16:31,449 --> 00:16:33,504 Is it fair to say you've said you've 431 00:16:33,504 --> 00:16:35,504 located a significant amount of the 432 00:16:35,504 --> 00:16:37,760 payload , you're talking about the PRC 433 00:16:37,760 --> 00:16:41,060 high altitude balloon . Um , so Tony at 434 00:16:41,060 --> 00:16:44,630 this point , um , I'm not able to go 435 00:16:44,630 --> 00:16:46,760 into more detail other than we've , 436 00:16:46,770 --> 00:16:49,180 what I would describe we've discovered 437 00:16:49,180 --> 00:16:52,050 or located a significant amount of the 438 00:16:52,060 --> 00:16:55,370 uh , the debris associated with the 439 00:16:55,370 --> 00:16:57,259 balloon . Again , we'll have more 440 00:16:57,259 --> 00:16:59,481 details to follow , but I'll just leave 441 00:16:59,481 --> 00:17:01,537 it at that located . But you haven't 442 00:17:01,537 --> 00:17:03,592 recovered and took pulled out of the 443 00:17:03,592 --> 00:17:03,140 ocean for forensic analysis , Is that 444 00:17:03,140 --> 00:17:05,196 right ? Yeah , So , great point . So 445 00:17:05,196 --> 00:17:07,460 the way that the way to understand how 446 00:17:07,460 --> 00:17:10,900 this is , is unfolding is as we map 447 00:17:10,900 --> 00:17:13,920 out the area where the debris field 448 00:17:13,920 --> 00:17:16,200 would be . Uh it enables us to , to 449 00:17:16,200 --> 00:17:18,200 figure out where the places that we 450 00:17:18,200 --> 00:17:19,978 need to prioritize the search , 451 00:17:19,978 --> 00:17:22,089 recognizing that we're talking a wide 452 00:17:22,089 --> 00:17:24,256 area . And so as that happens , divers 453 00:17:24,256 --> 00:17:26,311 are able to go down and depending on 454 00:17:26,311 --> 00:17:28,422 the size of the debris , uh , they're 455 00:17:28,422 --> 00:17:30,478 able to tag it . Uh , So debris that 456 00:17:30,478 --> 00:17:32,811 can be brought up quickly is brought up , 457 00:17:32,811 --> 00:17:34,922 put on a vessel , taken ashore debris 458 00:17:34,922 --> 00:17:37,033 that's going to take more time . Uh , 459 00:17:37,033 --> 00:17:38,867 and again , especially given the 460 00:17:38,867 --> 00:17:41,089 current C states , it may take a little 461 00:17:41,089 --> 00:17:43,256 longer we know where it is . So we tag 462 00:17:43,256 --> 00:17:45,478 it and then we'll go back and and bring 463 00:17:45,478 --> 00:17:47,533 it up the equivalent , you found the 464 00:17:47,533 --> 00:17:49,422 titanic , but you haven't started 465 00:17:49,422 --> 00:17:51,644 pulling up yet from it . When I ask you 466 00:17:51,644 --> 00:17:53,700 about the overall program , you said 467 00:17:53,700 --> 00:17:55,756 you've been , you've been learning a 468 00:17:55,756 --> 00:17:57,978 lot about this balloon program over the 469 00:17:57,978 --> 00:18:00,089 last couple of years yet . The annual 470 00:18:00,089 --> 00:18:02,256 china report doesn't have a peep about 471 00:18:02,256 --> 00:18:04,422 balloons in there . You spend a lot of 472 00:18:04,422 --> 00:18:06,644 money and effort , but no balloons . We 473 00:18:06,644 --> 00:18:08,478 learned about Taiwan and china's 474 00:18:08,478 --> 00:18:10,144 balance of power against them 475 00:18:10,144 --> 00:18:12,367 satellites and jets , but no balloons , 476 00:18:12,367 --> 00:18:14,478 why not so so Tony . What I would say 477 00:18:14,478 --> 00:18:16,422 on the , on the unclassified china 478 00:18:16,422 --> 00:18:18,644 power report . Right , there's gonna be 479 00:18:18,644 --> 00:18:20,700 certain elements , uh , intelligence 480 00:18:20,700 --> 00:18:22,533 aspects uh , in the unclassified 481 00:18:22,533 --> 00:18:24,533 version that may not be included in 482 00:18:24,533 --> 00:18:26,700 that particular report . Um , in terms 483 00:18:26,700 --> 00:18:28,922 of what's in that report and what's not 484 00:18:28,922 --> 00:18:31,300 in that report . Um again , we can go 485 00:18:31,300 --> 00:18:33,467 back and look at that , but I can tell 486 00:18:33,467 --> 00:18:35,689 you , I can assure you that there are a 487 00:18:35,689 --> 00:18:37,800 lot of activities that we continue to 488 00:18:37,800 --> 00:18:40,133 monitor to include this balloon program . 489 00:18:40,133 --> 00:18:42,244 And we've learned a lot over the last 490 00:18:42,244 --> 00:18:45,340 couple of years , I'd have to go back 491 00:18:45,340 --> 00:18:47,507 and look , I do not know the answer to 492 00:18:47,507 --> 00:18:49,507 that . Thanks . Let me get a couple 493 00:18:49,507 --> 00:18:52,870 other folks here mike . And then that 494 00:18:52,880 --> 00:18:54,880 the only reason the american people 495 00:18:54,880 --> 00:18:57,102 know about the first balloon is because 496 00:18:57,102 --> 00:18:59,269 a couple of guys in Montana spotted it 497 00:18:59,269 --> 00:19:01,491 and leaked out . My , my question is if 498 00:19:01,491 --> 00:19:03,436 it had remained secret and did not 499 00:19:03,436 --> 00:19:05,602 become a spectacle and and arguably an 500 00:19:05,602 --> 00:19:07,547 embarrassment to the White House . 501 00:19:07,547 --> 00:19:09,713 Would you have shot it down or allowed 502 00:19:09,713 --> 00:19:11,824 it to continue on its way ? So you're 503 00:19:11,824 --> 00:19:13,910 asking me to speculate ? Sure , 504 00:19:16,430 --> 00:19:18,470 so , so mike , I'll kinda just push 505 00:19:18,470 --> 00:19:20,414 back a little bit at the assertion 506 00:19:20,414 --> 00:19:22,581 there . So first of all , again , what 507 00:19:22,581 --> 00:19:24,581 made this balloon different was the 508 00:19:24,581 --> 00:19:26,637 length and duration that it was over 509 00:19:26,640 --> 00:19:28,640 the United , the Continental United 510 00:19:28,640 --> 00:19:30,862 States . Look , we track activities all 511 00:19:30,862 --> 00:19:33,430 over the globe on a daily basis , um , 512 00:19:34,180 --> 00:19:36,236 some of which will remain classified 513 00:19:36,236 --> 00:19:38,458 because again , we don't want to reveal 514 00:19:38,458 --> 00:19:40,624 sources and methods in this particular 515 00:19:40,624 --> 00:19:42,940 case . Um , I can tell you that there 516 00:19:42,940 --> 00:19:45,900 were efforts underway to uh , to make 517 00:19:45,910 --> 00:19:49,300 that public . Um I , you know , Montana 518 00:19:49,300 --> 00:19:51,522 journalists reporting notwithstanding . 519 00:19:51,522 --> 00:19:53,633 Um , all that to say , look , they're 520 00:19:53,633 --> 00:19:55,356 going to be times when there's 521 00:19:55,356 --> 00:19:57,133 activities happening that we're 522 00:19:57,133 --> 00:19:59,244 monitoring that we're not going to go 523 00:19:59,244 --> 00:20:01,133 public , especially if it doesn't 524 00:20:01,133 --> 00:20:02,856 present a particular or pose a 525 00:20:02,856 --> 00:20:04,800 significant threat to the american 526 00:20:04,800 --> 00:20:07,160 public . Um but again , uh as as we 527 00:20:07,160 --> 00:20:09,280 monitored that balloon , uh there was 528 00:20:09,280 --> 00:20:11,870 an effort underway to ensure that that 529 00:20:11,870 --> 00:20:13,703 folks understood what this was , 530 00:20:13,703 --> 00:20:15,980 especially given how visible it was . 531 00:20:15,990 --> 00:20:18,990 Um and I'll just stop there . Thank you . 532 00:20:19,000 --> 00:20:22,620 Yes , ma'am , thank you . 533 00:20:22,620 --> 00:20:24,842 General . First , a really quick follow 534 00:20:24,842 --> 00:20:27,090 up on Tony's question at this point is 535 00:20:27,090 --> 00:20:29,420 the pentagon reassessing the need for 536 00:20:29,420 --> 00:20:31,650 counter balloon or counter object 537 00:20:31,660 --> 00:20:33,771 capabilities at that altitude at this 538 00:20:33,771 --> 00:20:36,710 time . So , so what I would tell you is 539 00:20:36,710 --> 00:20:38,850 not , you know , in the Air Force , 540 00:20:38,850 --> 00:20:40,739 sometimes we talk about don't get 541 00:20:40,739 --> 00:20:42,739 platform specific . Right , so what 542 00:20:42,739 --> 00:20:45,270 we're talking about is um monitoring 543 00:20:45,280 --> 00:20:47,558 the domain and having domain awareness . 544 00:20:47,558 --> 00:20:50,640 And again , as I highlighted uh it 545 00:20:50,640 --> 00:20:52,862 seems like a couple days ago , probably 546 00:20:52,862 --> 00:20:54,807 last week . Um we're continuing to 547 00:20:54,807 --> 00:20:56,973 learn more and more about this program 548 00:20:56,973 --> 00:20:59,140 which enables us to identify and track 549 00:20:59,140 --> 00:21:02,480 objects uh and so and and thus ensure 550 00:21:02,480 --> 00:21:05,070 that we're continuing to protect our 551 00:21:05,080 --> 00:21:08,040 our skies in our airspace . And then um 552 00:21:08,050 --> 00:21:10,680 real quick first do you and Admiral 553 00:21:10,680 --> 00:21:13,830 Kirby know the shape of this new object ? 554 00:21:13,840 --> 00:21:16,290 And if so , what is um sort of the 555 00:21:16,290 --> 00:21:18,310 reason for why you can't share its 556 00:21:18,310 --> 00:21:20,330 shape before it was shot down . And 557 00:21:20,330 --> 00:21:22,441 then separately , how is the recovery 558 00:21:22,441 --> 00:21:24,760 efforts of this new object down over 559 00:21:24,770 --> 00:21:27,410 ice ? Different from the one down over 560 00:21:27,410 --> 00:21:29,577 the coast and water . And are you guys 561 00:21:29,577 --> 00:21:31,577 using unmanned systems for this new 562 00:21:31,577 --> 00:21:33,743 object as well ? Yeah , thank you . So 563 00:21:33,743 --> 00:21:35,910 in terms of the shape , I don't know , 564 00:21:35,910 --> 00:21:38,132 I have not seen any imagery of it . I'm 565 00:21:38,132 --> 00:21:39,688 just telling you the verbal 566 00:21:39,688 --> 00:21:41,854 characteristics as it was described to 567 00:21:41,854 --> 00:21:43,910 me in terms of the difference in the 568 00:21:43,910 --> 00:21:46,200 recovery effort . I mean , again , so 569 00:21:46,210 --> 00:21:48,432 this literally was what , an hour and a 570 00:21:48,432 --> 00:21:50,430 half , two hours ago . So that's 571 00:21:50,430 --> 00:21:52,870 underway right now . So more to follow 572 00:21:52,870 --> 00:21:55,710 on that front ? Um Right now I think 573 00:21:55,710 --> 00:21:57,932 they're moving to the site . We'll have 574 00:21:57,932 --> 00:22:00,099 more to follow in the days ahead . Let 575 00:22:00,099 --> 00:22:02,432 me go to a few other folks here , sorry , 576 00:22:02,432 --> 00:22:04,654 some new folks back here and then we'll 577 00:22:04,654 --> 00:22:06,950 go over here to Michael , The 578 00:22:07,230 --> 00:22:10,670 object was spotted 579 00:22:10,680 --> 00:22:12,847 yesterday . Is that the first that you 580 00:22:12,847 --> 00:22:15,220 we saw it or did we see it coming in a 581 00:22:15,220 --> 00:22:17,109 couple days before it was spotted 582 00:22:17,109 --> 00:22:20,900 yesterday and for follow up , did what 583 00:22:20,900 --> 00:22:22,900 we have , what we learned about the 584 00:22:22,900 --> 00:22:25,122 first balloon last week . Did that help 585 00:22:25,122 --> 00:22:28,290 us detect this object ? Um , I would 586 00:22:28,290 --> 00:22:31,420 say that again . Um , we detect when we 587 00:22:31,420 --> 00:22:35,320 detect objects . Um let me just back up . 588 00:22:35,320 --> 00:22:38,070 So what you're asking is , did what we 589 00:22:38,070 --> 00:22:40,580 learned from the PRC balloon help us 590 00:22:40,580 --> 00:22:42,850 track this . Um kind of a little bit of 591 00:22:42,850 --> 00:22:44,906 apples and oranges , right ? Um , in 592 00:22:44,906 --> 00:22:47,280 terms of um , NORAD , North com 593 00:22:47,280 --> 00:22:49,558 maintains the ability to track objects . 594 00:22:49,558 --> 00:22:51,680 So again , they track this as it 595 00:22:51,690 --> 00:22:54,150 approached and entered into us airspace . 596 00:22:54,160 --> 00:22:57,250 Um Again , we're still assessing what 597 00:22:57,250 --> 00:23:00,900 this object was . So , um , I don't 598 00:23:00,900 --> 00:23:03,067 know that we learned anything new as a 599 00:23:03,067 --> 00:23:05,178 result of that . Other than again , I 600 00:23:05,178 --> 00:23:07,460 think we're all to include the media 601 00:23:07,460 --> 00:23:10,140 and the public very attuned to balloons 602 00:23:10,150 --> 00:23:12,770 at the moment . So , thank you . Yes , 603 00:23:12,770 --> 00:23:13,770 sir , 604 00:23:20,620 --> 00:23:23,200 thank you , sir . And just to clarify . 605 00:23:23,200 --> 00:23:25,367 So , this was first identified when it 606 00:23:25,367 --> 00:23:27,700 flew into us airspace . Is that correct ? 607 00:23:27,700 --> 00:23:29,478 Or was identified before it was 608 00:23:29,478 --> 00:23:32,010 detected yesterday ? And then again , 609 00:23:32,020 --> 00:23:34,720 NORAD sent aircraft to observe it , see 610 00:23:34,720 --> 00:23:36,942 what it was . And then the decision was 611 00:23:36,942 --> 00:23:39,109 made to take it down . And do you have 612 00:23:39,109 --> 00:23:41,109 any information whether this object 613 00:23:41,109 --> 00:23:43,220 flew over any other sovereign nations 614 00:23:43,220 --> 00:23:45,220 or countries ? I do not do not have 615 00:23:45,220 --> 00:23:47,164 time for a few more . We go to joe 616 00:23:48,690 --> 00:23:52,560 question about the recovery effort . Um 617 00:23:52,570 --> 00:23:54,570 I think you mentioned at the outset 618 00:23:54,570 --> 00:23:56,681 that that it was gonna involve rotary 619 00:23:56,681 --> 00:23:58,570 wing aircraft . That's because it 620 00:23:58,570 --> 00:24:00,690 landed on ice as opposed to water . 621 00:24:00,690 --> 00:24:03,870 That's why um there's an um watercraft 622 00:24:03,880 --> 00:24:06,440 being used . Yeah joe we'll we'll get 623 00:24:06,440 --> 00:24:08,662 you more information on that front . Um 624 00:24:08,662 --> 00:24:10,773 You know , again this happened just a 625 00:24:10,773 --> 00:24:12,884 short while ago . Uh And so according 626 00:24:12,884 --> 00:24:15,300 to to North com these are the assets 627 00:24:15,300 --> 00:24:18,050 that were being used to go out and do 628 00:24:18,050 --> 00:24:20,217 the initial recovery , but we'll we'll 629 00:24:20,217 --> 00:24:22,328 have more information in terms of the 630 00:24:22,328 --> 00:24:24,439 various roles and responsibilities of 631 00:24:24,439 --> 00:24:26,439 those . Get down in the weeds for a 632 00:24:26,439 --> 00:24:28,606 second and any idea what um what units 633 00:24:28,606 --> 00:24:30,772 are involved in the recovery effort or 634 00:24:30,772 --> 00:24:33,330 in the um the F 22 that that shot it 635 00:24:33,330 --> 00:24:35,608 down ? We can get you that information . 636 00:24:35,608 --> 00:24:39,460 Thanks Phil hey there 637 00:24:39,460 --> 00:24:41,182 just a couple of clarification 638 00:24:41,182 --> 00:24:43,349 questions . First off , when you first 639 00:24:43,349 --> 00:24:45,571 identified it was traveling at the same 640 00:24:45,571 --> 00:24:47,738 altitude around 40,000 ft . Um Did you 641 00:24:47,738 --> 00:24:49,960 at that point ? No , its velocity . And 642 00:24:49,960 --> 00:24:52,127 and secondly , you know , does doesn't 643 00:24:52,127 --> 00:24:54,182 north come have the authority on its 644 00:24:54,182 --> 00:24:56,349 own to shoot down unidentified objects 645 00:24:56,349 --> 00:24:58,516 entering U . S . Airspace if they pose 646 00:24:58,516 --> 00:25:00,738 a threat to civilian air traffic and if 647 00:25:00,738 --> 00:25:02,516 so then why was the president's 648 00:25:02,516 --> 00:25:04,627 authorization required in this case . 649 00:25:04,627 --> 00:25:06,990 Yeah . Thanks . Um So my understanding 650 00:25:06,990 --> 00:25:09,550 is it was at 40,000 ft when it was 651 00:25:09,550 --> 00:25:12,530 detected and ultimately taken down uh 652 00:25:12,540 --> 00:25:16,520 the NORAD uh North com commander um 653 00:25:17,410 --> 00:25:19,632 does not have the authority necessarily 654 00:25:19,632 --> 00:25:21,880 to take down an object if it's not 655 00:25:21,890 --> 00:25:25,790 posing a potential hostile uh intent 656 00:25:25,800 --> 00:25:28,620 or actions . However , given the fact 657 00:25:28,620 --> 00:25:31,420 that this aircraft was uh excuse me , 658 00:25:31,420 --> 00:25:33,440 this object was operating at an 659 00:25:33,440 --> 00:25:35,760 altitude that posed a reasonable threat 660 00:25:35,770 --> 00:25:39,270 to uh civilian air traffic . After 661 00:25:39,270 --> 00:25:43,270 consultation uh with the secretary 662 00:25:43,270 --> 00:25:45,270 and the President , of course , the 663 00:25:45,270 --> 00:25:48,680 President uh on our advice uh gave the 664 00:25:48,680 --> 00:25:50,736 order to take it down and we took it 665 00:25:50,736 --> 00:25:53,180 down trying to clarify , is his 666 00:25:53,180 --> 00:25:55,291 authorization required in a situation 667 00:25:55,291 --> 00:25:58,830 like this ? Um Again it's kind of a 668 00:25:58,830 --> 00:26:00,886 moot point at this point because the 669 00:26:00,886 --> 00:26:03,108 president gave the order but he has the 670 00:26:03,108 --> 00:26:05,220 authorization to take action against 671 00:26:05,220 --> 00:26:07,860 anything that presents a potential 672 00:26:07,860 --> 00:26:10,082 threat to the american public or people 673 00:26:10,082 --> 00:26:12,193 on the ground in this particular case 674 00:26:12,193 --> 00:26:14,138 it was determined that this post a 675 00:26:14,138 --> 00:26:16,416 reasonable threat to air traffic again . 676 00:26:16,416 --> 00:26:18,416 Yeah , I'll just leave it at that . 677 00:26:18,416 --> 00:26:19,520 Thanks . Tara . 678 00:26:22,680 --> 00:26:25,120 Just a couple of classifiers . Um was 679 00:26:25,120 --> 00:26:28,340 it a single F 22 or a pair um that were 680 00:26:28,340 --> 00:26:31,420 up today for the shot ? And then when 681 00:26:31,430 --> 00:26:33,430 the when NORAD sent the initial 682 00:26:33,440 --> 00:26:36,090 aircraft up to see was there any sort 683 00:26:36,090 --> 00:26:38,980 of hailing or any type of warning given ? 684 00:26:38,980 --> 00:26:40,980 Typically when an aircraft makes an 685 00:26:40,980 --> 00:26:43,000 incursion into protected airspace , 686 00:26:43,000 --> 00:26:45,330 there's a whole lot of procedures that 687 00:26:45,330 --> 00:26:47,330 have to be followed before it would 688 00:26:47,330 --> 00:26:49,608 escalate to something like this . Okay , 689 00:26:49,608 --> 00:26:51,774 well this is an object , Right , so it 690 00:26:51,774 --> 00:26:53,774 wasn't an aircraft per se Um and to 691 00:26:53,774 --> 00:26:55,830 answer your earlier question , uh it 692 00:26:55,830 --> 00:26:58,140 was a two ship of F22 , but one 693 00:26:58,140 --> 00:27:00,620 aircraft took the shot , got time for 694 00:27:00,620 --> 00:27:03,070 one more , go to Liz 695 00:27:05,730 --> 00:27:08,380 really quick when it was started to be 696 00:27:08,390 --> 00:27:10,610 tracked last night . Were you able to 697 00:27:10,610 --> 00:27:12,888 tell what direction it was coming from ? 698 00:27:12,888 --> 00:27:15,210 Uh this this was traveling in a north 699 00:27:15,210 --> 00:27:18,140 easterly direction when it was taken 700 00:27:18,140 --> 00:27:20,380 down ? And then one more . Um the 701 00:27:20,380 --> 00:27:22,730 aircraft that we're observing it . What 702 00:27:22,740 --> 00:27:25,440 what type of aircraft for those ? I'll 703 00:27:25,440 --> 00:27:27,607 have to come back to you and I think I 704 00:27:27,607 --> 00:27:29,607 know , but I don't wanna make it up 705 00:27:29,607 --> 00:27:31,829 from the podium , so we'll come back to 706 00:27:31,829 --> 00:27:31,030 you on that one . Okay , Thank you very 707 00:27:31,030 --> 00:27:32,330 much , everybody . I appreciate it .