Video clips documented the moment a missile launched by an American fighter dropped the Chinese "spy" balloon, which flew for days over the United States, causing great tension between Washington and Beijing, which expressed great dissatisfaction.

Video clips broadcast by American channels showed the balloon falling vertically after being targeted by a missile.

And US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announced in a statement that an F-22 fighter jet shot down the balloon "in the airspace over the coast of South Carolina."

Austin added that the operation was in response to an "unacceptable violation of our sovereignty".

The Pentagon assesses that the balloon is intended for "espionage" purposes.

It's apparent that a missile fired from one of the F-22s is what was used to shoot down the Chinese High-Altitude Surveillance Balloon.

pic.twitter.com/Cn1IkplsXc

— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) February 4, 2023

The minister confirmed that the airship was "used by the People's Republic of China in an effort to monitor strategic locations" in the United States.

US President Joe Biden congratulated the army on its success in carrying out the accurate projection operation.

Biden said he gave the order Wednesday to shoot down the balloon "as soon as possible," but the Pentagon wanted to wait "until it was in the safest place to do so" to avoid any possible damage from falling debris.

New video of the Chinese spy balloon being shot down pic.twitter.com/XwRVA7s1Hu

— BNO News Live (@BNODesk) February 4, 2023

Operations are underway to recover the wreckage of the airship, with the participation of divers, and a senior US military official said that the wreckage fell into shallow waters, which "will make it very easy."

At the time of its downing, the balloon was 18 kilometers above sea level and 11 kilometers from the coast, according to Pentagon officials.

USA shoot down Chinese surveillance balloon over the coast of South Carolina.#spyballoon #chinsespyballoon pic.twitter.com/nDeVNPahSn

— Newsistaan ​​(@newsistaan) February 4, 2023

Prior to the operation, the US Civil Aviation Regulatory Authority announced the suspension of air traffic at three airports in the southeastern United States as part of a "national security" measure.

Air traffic resumed soon after the end of the operation.