National Security Council spokesman John Kirby speaks on Feb. 13. AP.
U.S. authorities said on Tuesday that three recently downed aerial objects were "benign."
The
still-unidentified aircraft were shot down between Friday and Sunday,
following the destruction of a suspected Chinese spy balloon.
- White
House national security spokesperson John Kirby said on Tuesday that
the three objects were probably used for a "commercial or benign
purpose.”
- No private organizations have come forward to claim they operated the objects, said Kirby.
- Army Gen. Mark Milley confirmed that a sidewinder missile fired at one of the objects on Sunday missed its target over Lake Huron and landed in the water.
- A second sidewinder missile successfully downed the object.
- Kirby's statement draws a distinction between the recently downed aircraft and a Chinese balloon that was shot down by a U.S. fighter jet on Feb. 4.
- Sensor equipment suspected of having been used for surveillance was recently recovered from the balloon's wreckage.
- The Washington Post reported that
federal officials are analyzing tracking data suggesting that China did
not direct the balloon to U.S. airspace. The object's flight path
suggests it may have been pushed off course by strong winds.
