Pilots report seeing ‘large white balloon’ floating 50,000ft above Hawaii on plane radars – after Pentagon downed four objects flying over US in last month
- There have been multiple reports of a large white balloon sighted by pilots over Honolulu, Hawaii
- It comes after recent claims by US officials that a Chinese ‘spy’ balloon targeting Hawaii had been blown off course
- The object was seen by several pilots and was estimated to be at an altitude of approximately 50,000 feet
Pilots have reported seeing a ‘large white balloon’ on their radars just east of Hawaii on Sunday afternoon.
A number of reports suggest that the object was spotted above Honolulu according to The Sun.
It comes days after US officials claimed that a Chinese ‘spy’ balloon that was headed towards Hawaii had been blown off course.
Some postings on social media report how a ‘large white balloon’ was spotted by pilots at an altitude of around 50,000 feet.
However, Air Traffic Control and other US officials have not yet confirmed such reports with the identity of the object and the potential threat it poses to the public unknown.
Pilots have allegedly been told to look out for another large white balloon off the Hawaii coast on Sunday
Air traffic control sent out instructions asking for pilots to report any sightings of the balloon
A ‘Large White Balloon’ was spotted 524 nautical miles NE of Honolulu on Sunday afternoon
It comes after recent claims by US officials that a Chinese ‘spy’ balloon targeting Hawaii had been blown off course (file photo from earlier this month)
An image posted to social media online shows what looks to be a pilot in the cockpit holding a note.
‘Report of large white balloon in vicinity of 2639N15021W. Estimated to be between FL400 and FL500. Precise altitude unknown. Advise ATC if object is seen.’
Oakland Oceanic Air Traffic Control Center confirmed the existence of the flying object which reported how the balloon was about 600 miles northeast of Honolulu, over the Pacific Ocean.
The US military shot down several balloons earlier this month, including what was believed to be a Chinese spy balloon on February 4 off the coast of South Carolina.
Since February 4, four objects have been shot down including the Chinese spy balloon, and then three ‘UFOs’
Last week another balloon was shot down over Alaska. A map of the hobby balloon’s predicted path indicates it was heading towards the site where the UFO was downed
On February 4, a much bigger balloon – believed to be a Chinese spy balloon (pictured) – was shot down off the coast of South Carolina
U.S. Navy shows sailors assigned to Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group 2 recovering a high-altitude surveillance balloon off the coast of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Sailors assigned to Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group 2 recovering a high-altitude surveillance balloon off the coast of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina earlier this month
The remnants of the downed balloon from earlier this month is packed away for investigation
On Thursday Joe Biden said that the U.S. is updating its guidelines for monitoring and reacting to unknown aerial objects after the discovery of a suspected Chinese spy balloon transited the country triggered high-stakes drama.
It saw the U.S. shootdown that balloon off the South Carolina coast and three smaller ones days later.
Biden said officials suspect the three subsequent balloons were ordinary ones which could mean they were used for research, weather, recreational or commercial purposes.
Officials have been unable to recover any of the remains of those three balloons, and late Friday the U.S. military announced it had ended the search for the objects that were shot down near Deadhorse, Alaska, and over Lake Huron on February 10 and 12.
President Joe Biden said there was no evidence of a surge in mysterious balloons, when he addressed the nation on Thursday. ‘We’re now just seeing more of them,’ he said
‘The U.S. military, federal agencies, and Canadian partners conducted systematic searches of each area using a variety of capabilities, including airborne imagery and sensors, surface sensors and inspections, and subsurface scans, and did not locate debris,’ officials said on Friday.
In the South Carolina incident, the U.S. military has said it believes it has collected all of the Chinese balloon’s priority sensors and electronics as well as large sections of its structure.
The balloon, which Beijing denies was a government spy vessel, spent a week flying over the United States and Canada before being shot down off the Atlantic Coast on Biden’s orders.
