When US President Joe Biden was informed about the balloon on Tuesday, he initially wanted to take it down over land.
But on the advice of the US Defense Forces, the White House chose to wait and instead planned to shoot down the balloon when it reaches the sea, writes ABC news.
Biden, who previously chose not to comment on the subject, now states that they will "handle" the balloon.
Flight departures are paused
On Friday afternoon, local time, the announcement came that the federal aviation authority FAA is pausing departures from three airports, reports Reuters.
The reason is stated to be "to support the Ministry of Defense in a national security effort".
Chinese authorities claim that American airspace has not been violated and that the balloon is being used for research purposes.
But US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken disagrees and calls China's actions irresponsible.
- Our main job is to get the Chinese balloon out of American airspace, he says.
On Saturday, the Pentagon announced that another balloon had been spotted over Latin America.
The text is updated