US Navy salvage operations have recovered “significant debris” from the remains of what officials say was a Chinese surveillance balloon shot down off the coast of South Carolina last week, according to US Northern Command.
(Bloomberg) — US Navy salvage operations have recovered “significant debris” from the remains of what officials say was a Chinese surveillance balloon shot down off the coast of South Carolina last week, according to US Northern Command.
Crews found “all of the priority sensor and electronics pieces identified as well as large sections of the structure,” the command said in a statement late Monday night.
“Weather permitted crane operations at the site late last week. Underwater recovery activities are limited and weather dependent,” according to the statement. The debris will be examined by FBI technicians.
“Recovery,” in the parlance of maritime salvage, refers to actually lifting objects from the depths. That’s opposed to “locating” underwater debris and mapping it for later salvage.
Brigadier General Pat Ryder made the distinction during a Friday afternoon Pentagon press conference.
Navy Divers are using MK 18 “MOD 1” Swordfish and MK 18 “MOD 2” Kingfish underwater drones equipped with sonar to track balloon debris, according to defense officials. The Swordfish is designed for low-visibility reconnaissance in shallow water while the Kingfish can dive deeper.
Balloon debris fell about six miles (10 kilometers) off the coast into an area of about 50 feet of water.
Since that episode, US warplanes have shot down three as-yet unidentified objects over the US and Canada, with the most recent occurring Sunday over Lake Huron.
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