US Fighter Jet shot down suspected Chinese Spy Ballon over Atlantic

The US military has shot down a suspected Chinese spy balloon over the Atlantic Ocean, with China threatening repercussions after it continued to insist the flyover was an accident involving a civilian aircraft.

US President Joe Biden confirmed his government shot down the Chinese spy balloon off the coast of South Carolina on Saturday.

According to eyewitness reports, the balloon was hit by a US missile off the coast of South Carolina near Surfside Beach.

Vision posted to social media shows what looks like a burst balloon descending towards the water.

Biden told reporters he ordered the Pentagon on Wednesday to shoot down the suspected Chinese spy balloon as soon as it was safe to do so.

“They decided that the best time to do that [was when] it got over water,” Mr Biden said.

The government then ordered a halt to flights around the South Carolina coast due to what it called an undisclosed “national security effort”.

The balloon was downed by US air force fighter aircraft.

In response to the balloon being shot down, China’s foreign ministry expressed “strong dissatisfaction” and opposition towards the United States’ “use of force” to attack its “civilian unmanned airship”.

A statement from the foreign ministry said despite the US acknowledging the balloon posed no military threat, it still insisted on using force, “obviously overreacting and seriously violating international practice.”