The airborne object that the US military shot down over Lake Huron on Sunday was "a threat due to its potential surveillance capabilities," the US Department of Defense said in a statement.
"Based on its flight path and data we can reasonably connect this object to the radar signal picked up over Montana, which flew in proximity to sensitive DOD sites," the statement reads. "We did not assess it to be a kinetic military threat to anything on the ground, but assess it was a safety flight hazard and a threat due to its potential surveillance capabilities," the Pentagon added.
According to the statement, the object was shot down by an F-16 aircraft "at the direction of President Biden, and based on the recommendations of Secretary [of Defense] Austin and military leadership."
"The location chosen for this shoot down afforded us the opportunity to avoid impact to people on the ground while improving chances for debris recovery. There are no indications of any civilians hurt or otherwise affected," the Pentagon said, adding: "Our team will now work to recover the object in an effort to learn more."
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