Ministry of National Defense: "Chinese Reconnaissance Balloon Did Not Enter Our Airspace"

Unauthorized Passage at the Southwestern Edge of the Korean Peninsula Airspace
No Radar Track Detected by Air Force Radar

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] It appears that the Chinese "reconnaissance balloon" shot down by the United States did not pass through our airspace.

Jeon Ha-gyu, spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense, said at a regular briefing on the 6th, "Considering the altitude of the Chinese reconnaissance balloon as assessed by the U.S. side and our air defense capabilities, it is judged that it did not pass through our airspace," adding, "There was no track detected by our Air Force radar during that period."

Earlier, according to a simulation by American meteorologist Dan Satterfield based on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) airflow movement model, if the Chinese reconnaissance balloon traveled at an altitude of 14,000 meters riding the airflow, it could have skimmed the southwestern edge of the Korean Peninsula’s airspace.

This is only a simulation based on the airflow movement model and not the actual flight path of the Chinese balloon. Furthermore, it has been reported that no similar balloon to the one found over the North American continent has ever been detected in our airspace.

The Ministry of National Defense explained the detection capability of reconnaissance balloons similar to the one shot down in the U.S., stating, "Our air defense control radar can detect across the entire airspace," and "There were no tracks detected by the military radar during that period."

Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Defense announced on the 5th (local time) that it is in the process of recovering debris from the Chinese reconnaissance balloon shot down over the coast of South Carolina.

General Glen D. VanHerck, commander of the U.S. Northern Command (NORTHCOM), responsible for defending the U.S. mainland, and commander of the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), said in a Department of Defense statement, "While the U.S. Coast Guard maintains security and public safety in the area, our Navy is conducting recovery operations." The U.S. plans to collect the debris to analyze the purpose of the airspace intrusion and China’s intelligence-gathering capabilities.