US scrambles fighter jets after another mysterious balloon spotted over Hawaii

A mysterious high-altitude balloon was spotted off the coast of Hawaii over the weekend, months after a Chinese spy balloon was sighted in US airspace and shot down, officials said.

The US military on Monday (local time) said it is tracking the balloon, whose owner remains unknown. It was detected and seen floating at approximately 36,000 feet above the Pacific on April 28, CBS news reported.

The US Air Force scrambled three F-22 Raptor stealth fighters to intercept the high-altitude balloon before concluding that “it posed no threat”, the US Indo-Pacific Command said in a statement.

There were no indications that the balloon was being maneuvered or controlled by any foreign actor. The object did not cross over sensitive areas, did not pose a threat to military and people on the ground, and did not disrupt air traffic over Hawaii, according to officials.

A Defence Department spokesperson said Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin agreed with the military commanders’ recommendation on not taking action against the balloon. However, the US military and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) are still tracking it, the spokesperson added.