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National Security

Unidentified balloon belongs to amateur balloonist: US official

Officials previously said the balloon, which is hovering at between
43,000 to 45,000 feet, does not appear to pose a national security
threat to the U.S.
 
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Feb. 23, 2024, 10:59 PM UTC / Updated Feb. 24, 2024, 5:49 PM UTC
By Courtney Kube, Mosheh Gains, Megan Lebowitz and Allie Raffa

The high-altitude balloon flying over the western U.S. is the
property of an amateur balloonist, a U.S. official told NBC News
Saturday.

Prior to Saturday, the U.S. military said it was monitoring an
unidentified "small" balloon flying at high altitudes over the west,
according to two U.S. officials and a defense official.

A fighter aircraft was sent to observe the balloon after it was
spotted over Utah this morning. The balloon, which is hovering at
between 43,000 to 45,000 feet, does not appear to pose a national
security threat to the U.S., the officials said.

The balloon is not maneuverable and has a small box-like payload, the
officials said.

NBC News has reached out to the White House for comment. A National
Security Council official referred NBC to the Defense Department for
official comment.

"NORAD will continue to track and monitor the balloon," said a
defense official, referring to the North American Aerospace Defense
Command. "The FAA also determined the balloon posed no hazard to
flight safety. NORAD remains in close coordination with the FAA to
ensure flight safety."

The balloon, which was first reported by CBS News, was spotted
roughly a year after the U.S. shot down a Chinese surveillance
balloon in February 2023. NBC News previously reported that the spy
balloon was able to gather intelligence from multiple sensitive U.S.
military sites, and that the balloon used an American internet
service provider to communicate, according to multiple sources.

Chinese government representatives had denied that last year's
balloon was used to spy. Instead, they said that the balloon was a
civilian airship used for meteorological research that
unintentionally drifted into the U.S.

[court]
Courtney Kube 

Courtney Kube is a correspondent covering national security and the
military for the NBC News Investigative Unit.

Mosheh Gains  

Mosheh Gains is a Pentagon producer for NBC News.

[img_2]
Megan Lebowitz

Megan Lebowitz is a politics reporter for NBC News.

Allie Raffa

Allie Raffa is an NBC News White House correspondent based in
Washington, D.C.

Gabe Gutierrez contributed.
 

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