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Canadian recovery teams searching for third flying object shot down over North American airspace, Trudeau says

The object shot down over Canada's Yukon territory is believed to be a 'small metallic balloon with a tethered payload'

Paul Best By Paul Best Fox News
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Trudeau spoke with Biden about object shot down over Canada Video

Trudeau spoke with Biden about object shot down over Canada

Fox News correspondent Lucas Tomlinson has the latest developments after a U.S. F-22 shot down an object over Canada on 'Fox Report Weekend.'

Search teams are on the ground in Canada's Yukon territory searching for an object that a U.S. F-22 fighter jet shot down on Saturday, the third object shot down in a week over North American airspace, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said.

"Recovery teams are on the ground, looking to find and analyze the object," Trudeau told reporters on Sunday morning. 

"Yesterday afternoon, I also spoke with President Biden and confirmed together that we will continue to do everything necessary to protect the sovereignty of our shared North American airspace, but also to do everything necessary to keep our citizens safe."

North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) first detected the "high-altitude airborne object" flying at about 40,000 feet over Alaska late on Friday evening and scrambled jets to monitor it and "characterize the nature of the object."

F-22 jet

An F-22 fighter jet takes off from Langley Air Force Base.  (US NORCOM)

A U.S. F-22 Raptor shot down the object using an AIM 9X missile over Canada on Saturday afternoon. 

REPUBLICANS REACT TO THIRD 'OBJECT' SHOT DOWN OVER CANADA: 'UNPRECEDENTED CHALLENGE'

Separately, U.S. fighter jets shot down another object on Friday over northern Alaska. Both incidents came about a week after the U.S. shot down a much larger, 200-foot tall Chinese spy balloon off the coast of South Carolina on Feb. 4. 

U.S. officials are still working to recover the aircraft that was shot down over Alaska but it "could be some time before we get access," a senior U.S. official tells Fox News, citing weather conditions at this time of year. 

  • Balloon in sky
    Image 1 of 2

    A Chinese spy balloon flies in the sky over Billings, Montana, U.S. February 1, 2023, in this picture obtained from social media. (Chase Doak/via Reuters)

  • spy balloon
    Image 2 of 2

    The Chinese spy balloon drifts to the ocean after being shot down off the coast in Surfside Beach, South Carolina, U.S. February 4, 2023. (REUTERS/Randall Hill)

The latest two objects were both unmanned and neither could be steered. The object shot down over Canada is believed to be a "small metallic balloon with a tethered payload," a U.S. official said. The country of origin for both of the latest objects is unknown. 

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The Federal Aviation Administration also "briefly closed some airspace over Lake Michigan to support Department of Defense activities" on Sunday morning. The U.S. military examined a "potential contact" that was determined to not be a threat and the airspace was re-opened. 

Fox News' Jennifer Griffin contributed to this report. 

Paul Best is a breaking news reporter for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. Story tips and ideas can be sent to Paul.Best@fox.com and on Twitter: @KincaidBest.