4 things to know in the aftermath of the Chinese spy balloon

By Ryan Foley, Christian Post Reporter Saturday, February 11, 2023

'Significant amount of debris' has been located

On Friday, Pentagon Press Secretary Pat Ryder announced U.S. officials "discovered or located a significant amount of the debris associated with the balloon," declining to clarify whether or not he was talking about the payload. He specified that much of the wreckage discovered had yet to be recovered.

Previously, the FBI provided an update on the federal government's ongoing efforts to recover the wreckage in a press briefing Thursday. The recovery effort, which began Sunday, consists of a collaboration between the FBI's Operational and Technology and Laboratory Divisions, the Department of Defense's Naval Criminal Investigative Services and personnel from FBI field offices in Washington, Columbia, Charlotte and Norfolk.

"We were on-scene late Sunday, on February 5, and the first evidence that was received was transported to Quantico and received late Monday, February 6," said Eric Pokorak, assistant director of the FBI Laboratory Division. After arriving at the FBI laboratory in Quantico, Virginia, employees began "removing the salt water from the evidence itself" and "rinsing and washing it so that it can be further processed."

The FBI identified the wreckage recovered thus far as "surface findings, including the balloon (or canopy itself), some wiring, a tiny amount of electronics — but only a small portion of the payload."

Michael Paul, associate director of the Operational and Technology Division, predicted that the payload could provide the U.S. with a wealth of information about China's surveillance capabilities.

"We have not seen the payload where we expect to see the lion's share of the electronics," he asserted. "OTD deployed specialists to assist with screening and to specifically assess electronic components that might be recovered during the operation."

According to Paul, the investigation is the first time the FBI divisions have dealt with a "hot air balloon of this nature." He stressed that while no "energetic or offensive material" has been detected, much of the evidence remained at sea. Paul maintained that the FBI does not have information as to whether the design of the balloon was based on stolen intelligence.