US says it shot down object over Alaska, size of small car

By Andrea Shalal and Steve Holland

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. fighter jet on Friday shot down over Alaska a high-altitude object that was the size of a small car, on the order of President Joe Biden, the White House said on Friday.

White House spokesperson John Kirby told reporters many details were unknown about the object but the United States expected to recover the object after it landed in U.S. territorial waters.

It was unclear where the object came from, Kirby said. "We don't know who owns this object," he said.

He said the object went down on the far northeastern part of Alaska near the Canadian border. He said the American pilot's assessment was that no human was onboard.

The United States on Feb. 4 shot down a Chinese high-altitude surveillance balloon that transited the United States.

Kirby was careful not to classify the object as a balloon.

He said the knowledge about the new object and its track first came to U.S. attention on Thursday night.

(Reporting by Andrea Shalal and Steve Holland; Editing by Chris Reese)