Reports: Balloon allegedly collected data on US military sites

According to US media reports, the Chinese observation balloon, which the US shot down over the Atlantic Ocean in early February, is said to have collected information on several US military sites. The balloon also allegedly sent real-time information to Beijing, broadcasters CNN and NBC News reported Monday, citing sources familiar with the matter. The US government has not confirmed the reports.

In early February, the US military shot down the balloon after days of flying over the United States. The United States accused China of espionage, which Beijing denied. Washington said at the time that the US took immediate steps during the flyover to prevent the balloon from collecting sensitive information and reduce intelligence value to China.

China was able to maneuver the balloon several times to fly over some locations, NBC News reported, citing senior government officials. Much more information could have been collected from sensitive locations if the US government had not limited the balloon’s capacity. Their usefulness is basically limited compared to information China can collect from low-Earth satellites. (sda/dpa)