Leaked documents reportedly contain info on additional Chinese spy balloons

The classified documents leaked by Massachusetts Air National Guardsman Jack Teixeira reportedly contain several major bombshells about the Chinese balloon incident that occurred in late January and early February.

First of all, the balloon that went viral for entering U.S. airspace, code-named Killeen-23, was evidently high-powered.

The leaked documents show that “Killeen-23 contained a parabolic dish measuring 1.2 meters in diameter, several unidentified sensors, and a possible mast antenna,” according to The Washington Post.

The documents also say that the federal government has “no imagery collections of the bottom of the Killeen-23 payload to analyze for an optical sensor.”

“The lack of detailed conclusions about the balloon’s surveillance capabilities raises questions about the decision to let it fly over the United States before shooting it down, an action the Defense Department justified at the time as an opportunity to collect additional intelligence,” the Post notes.

“Engineers at the National Space Intelligence Center, which is affiliated with the Space Force, assessed that the solar panels on Killeen-23 could generate upward of 10,000 watts of solar power, more than enough to operate any surveillance capability, including synthetic aperture radar,” according to the Post.

Secondly, Killeen-23 was not alone. There were at least four additional balloons, including Bulger-21 and Accardo-21.

“Another balloon flew over a U.S. carrier strike group in a previously unreported incident, and a third crashed in the South China Sea,” according to the Post.

It’s not clear if Bulger-21 and Accardo-21 were the same as these two.

What’s known is that Bulger-21 “carried sophisticated surveillance equipment and circumnavigated the globe from December 2021 until May 2022,” whereas Accardo-21 “carried similar equipment as well as a ‘foil-lined gimbaled’ sensor,

Moreover, it appears Bulger-21 was engineered by Eagles Men Aviation Science and Technology Group, a Chinese company that’s reportedly been sanctioned by the U.S. government over the incident that happened in January/February.

Perhaps the biggest bombshell is that Killeen-23’s entrance into U.S. airspace had been unanticipated by the Chinese government.

“The incursion of the spy balloon into U.S. airspace in late January probably caught elements of China’s government by surprise, according to a third document that relies on intercepted communications,” the Post notes.

“Knowledge of the incursion was likely ‘heavily stovepiped’ within the Chinese military, which lacks ‘strong senior’ oversight of the surveillance balloon program, the document[s] assessed, adding that some in the Chinese government viewed their Foreign Ministry’s response as poor for allowing the crisis to be ‘sensationalized.'”

As previously reported, despite a Chinese balloon flying into United States airspace and violating American sovereignty, the Chinese Communist Party acted as if it was the real victim.

In a statement issued in early February, a spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry first claimed the alleged spy balloon was just a weather balloon that’d simply flown off course because of too much wind.

“Regarding the unintended entry of a Chinese unmanned airship into US airspace due to force majeure, the Chinese side has verified it and communicated it to the US side. It is a civilian airship used for research, mainly meteorological, purposes. Affected by the Westerlies and with limited self-steering capability, the airship deviated far from its planned course,” they said.

“This is entirely an unexpected situation caused by force majeure and the facts are very clear. China always acts in strict accordance with international law and respects the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries. We have no intention to violate and has never violated the territory or airspace of any sovereign country.”

The spokesperson then attacked those in the U.S. who’d assumed that the balloon was a spy balloon.

“Some politicians and media in the US have hyped it up to attack and smear China. The Chinese side is firmly opposed to that,” they said.

Chinese newspapers also jumped on the bandwagon

Over at China Daily, an English-language newspaper owned by the CCP, an op-ed was published that blamed Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s last-minute decision to cancel a trip to China at the time on “some media outlets’ hyping up of the issue.”

“Although China has explained clearly and unambiguously the balloon spotted in the US is a civilian vessel designed for meteorological use and its entry to the US was unintended, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken still cited it as an excuse to postpone his planned visit to China,” the piece read.

“It is the duty of both sides’ diplomatic teams to manage differences in bilateral ties and handle any unintended incidents. The fact the US’ decision is based on some media outlets’ hyping up of the issue makes one doubt its sincerity in putting bilateral relations back on a healthy track,” it continued.

Vivek Saxena

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