According to U.S. defense sources, a suspected spy Chinese balloon was spotted over the U.S. in early February 2023.
However, China's foreign ministry said that its balloon was mostly utilized for meteorological purposes.
Since then, social media users have spread false and misleading claims.
Chinese "Spy" Balloon over the U.S.
U.S. defense sources stated that they spotted a balloon above sensitive areas, believing it was actually a "high-altitude surveillance" device.
According to officials, the object went across the Aleutian Islands in Alaska, over Canada, and then appeared over the Montana city of Billings on Wednesday.
When asked about the Chinese "spy" balloon, Joe Biden said that America is "going to take care of this."
China Says the Balloon Is a Weather Device
In a statement, China's foreign ministry claimed that the balloon was mostly used for "meteorological" purposes.
According to the Chinese statement, unforeseen winds caused the balloon to deviate from its intended path.
China "regrets the unintended entry" of the balloon into U.S. airspace.
The statement referred to the incident as an "unexpected situation" and said Beijing would continue to communicate with the U.S. side.
Misinformation About the Tracked Balloon
Social media users posted screenshots from the flight tracking website, Flightradar24, claiming that the photos show a Chinese balloon over the U.S's northwest.
A Twitter user tweeted a photo of the HBAL617 balloon track on the website, confusing it with the Chinese "spy" balloon.
The user’s tweet reads, "The Chinese high altitude balloon, initially discovered as it crossed into Montana, HBAL617 on @flightradar24 , is currently hanging around Memphis at 62,500’.. I’m sort of surprised the US hasn’t shot it down yet…"
Another Facebook user posted a photo of the balloon track from the same website with a satirical caption that read, "The Chinese high altitude balloon is taking a turn direct towards us. Track online, and watch it drop like a rock when it flies over my town and the locals fire up the shootin’ irons."
However, Flightradar24’s official Twitter account retweeted a press release posted by the North American Aerospace Defense Command, commenting that the Chinese balloon is not broadcasting ADS-B and is not visible on its website.
The quote retweeted reads, "The high altitude balloon currently over the United States being tracked by NORAD is not broadcasting ADS-B and is not visible on Flightradar24. The HBAL617 currently over Alabama is a US-based high-altitude research balloon, NOT the surveillance balloon."
Flightradar24 also tweeted a photo of the HBAL617 balloon's path, confirming that the balloon is not Chinese and that it belongs to the U.S. company Aerostar.
The U.S. Shot Down the Chinese Balloon
The U.S. has shot down the Chinese balloon that was allegedly spying on key military sites across America.
China's foreign ministry later expressed “strong dissatisfaction and protest against the US's use of force to attack civilian unmanned aircraft.”
Misbar’s Sources:
