WASHINGTON — The Pentagon has released a new photo of the suspected Chinese spy balloon from a whole new perspective.
The image shows a U.S. Air Force pilot looking down at the balloon as it hovered over the Central Continental United States on Feb. 3, 2023, according to the Department of Defense.
The large Chinese balloon was shot down off the coast of South Carolina a day after the pilot's selfie was taken. The balloon had traveled across North America over the course of several days and U.S. officials said President Biden was advised the best time to shoot it down would be when it was over water.
CNN first reported the existence of the pilot's selfie, with the news outlet saying the image has "already gained legendary status in both NORAD and the Pentagon."
China has claimed that the balloon was merely a weather research “airship” that had been blown off course. The Pentagon rejected that out of hand — as well as China’s contention that it was not being used for surveillance and had only limited navigational ability.
Officials said Friday the U.S. finished efforts to recover the remaining debris from the Chinese balloon. Officials said the initial analysis of the remnants of the large balloon reinforces conclusions that it was indeed a Chinese spy balloon.
While the military is confident the balloon shot down off South Carolina was a surveillance airship operated by China, the Biden administration has admitted that the three smaller objects were likely civilian-owned balloons that were targeted during the heightened response, after U.S. homeland defense radars were recalibrated to detect slower moving airborne items.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.