Politics
NEW: Explosive Details Emerge About 2023 Chinese Spy Balloon Incident
A Chinese spy balloon that floated across the near entirety of the continental United States before it was shot down off the coast of South Carolina in 2023 was carrying technology from at least five American companies, according to an explosive report released Tuesday.
The Chinese spy balloon flew all the way from Alaska to the East Coast of the continental United States before it was shot down over the Atlantic Ocean on February 3, 2023. Beijing denied that the aircraft was being used for espionage and insisted it was a weather balloon, though an investigation conducted by U.S. intelligence agencies confirmed that it was indeed used for spying.
According to a technical analysis conducted by the U.S. military, equipment recovered from the satellite included a satellite communication module, sensors and other tech from at least five American firms. Some of the equipment was being transported in a foam cooler inside the balloon, two sources familiar with the analysis told Newsweek.
Information captured by the spy balloon is not believed to have been successfully relayed to Beijing, though the latest revelations have added to security concerns surrounding the incident. The identification of sensitive U.S. tech secrets onboard the aircraft has raised questions about commercially available technology that can be sold or re-sold to America’s adversaries, including Russia, China and Iran.
A view of the balloon from the ground as it traveled near Billings, Montana
At the time of the shoot-down, the aircraft was traveling at an altitude of about 200 feet. It contained a dangling, dark-colored frame that spanned about 30 feet about 30 feet across. The frame also had an approximately 10-foot-long tech payload that included sophisticated surveillance equipment, some of which was housed in the foam cooler, two sources familiar with the analysis told Newsweek.
According to the report, one of the stolen pieces of technology aboard the Chinese spy balloon was a patent for a short burst messaging module called Iridium 9602. The device is produced by Virginia-based global satellite communications company Iridium. The patent was titled “A high-altitude balloon safety control and positioning recovery device and method.”
“A Chinese company would not have given them full satcom coverage over the U.S.,” said one of the sources, who was identified only as a former federal intelligence employee.
“We certainly don’t condone our radios or our modules ending up and being used in ways they shouldn’t be,” Jordan Hassim, Iridium’s Executive Director for Communications, told Newsweek.
Iridium added that the Satcom 9602 model could be exported to China without a license except for a prohibited end use or end-user, though this would be up to the partner to determine. If the company were to learn of a misuse, they would work with U.S. government agencies to disable it, Hassim told the outlet.
Additional technology recovered from the Chinese spy balloon belonged to Texas Instruments, Omega Engineering in Connecticut, Amphenol All Sensors Corporation and onsemi, Newsweek reported. Technology belonging to Switzerland-based STMicroelectronics was also found to have been onboard, according to the 75-page military analysis that was shared with the outlet.
Texas Instruments and STMicroelectronics stated that they did not know their technology was recovered from the balloon, though they did tell the outlet that they respected export controls. The other companies did not respond when asked for comment.
