According to Monday’s morning news report, the Chinese spy balloon was allowed to fly over the U.S. for a week and was able to transmit secret intelligence to Beijing “in real-time” about several military bases.
Three unnamed officials stated to NBC News that Communist China had been able “gather intelligence from several sensitive American Military sites”.
According to NBC, China’s intelligence was mainly gathered from electronic signals. These signals can be picked up by weapons systems and include communications from base personnel.
Remote control of the balloon allows it to hover over military installations such as Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana. Malmstrom is home to more than 3,000 Air Force personnel from the 341st Missile Wing. Three squadrons of Minuteman III nuke missiles are operated by them — one-third of our ground-based nuclear deterrent.
The balloon spent some time at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri. Whiteman is the Air Force’s only B-2 Spirit stealth heavy-bomber unit.
This next section, also courtesy of NBC News, will be a delight. Despite U.S. attempts to block it, the Chinese spy balloon was able to report back to Beijing.
The signal was not jammed, as the story implied. Playing hide-and-seek is not a good idea as it only protects against video spying and not the signals the balloon was acquiring. You should not publicly hesitate about what to do.
If a spy balloon from a rival flies into our airspace it is best to shoot it down. After Beijing’s cross-country flight to the United States, the Biden Administration decided to shoot the aircraft down. It even “at times flew figure-eight formations” above our most sensitive military installations including nuclear missiles, stealth bombers, and nuclear-capable stealth planes.
The remote-controlled self-destruct device was part of the Chinese spy balloon. Beijing chose not to use it or couldn’t because of a malfunction. I would bet against a malfunction. When Beijing was already performing two missions, why would it choose to destroy its spy balloon? The first mission was, naturally, a leisurely tour through American military bases. The second mission involved publicly humiliating the inept President Joe Biden.
If I had to guess, America’s readiness was revealed by the second mission, even though it wasn’t its primary task.