US Senators Want Mandatory Tracking of Research and Weather Balloons

(Photo : Mark Wilson/Getty Images)
Senators Mark Kelly, a Democrat, and Ted Budd, a Republican, said they would file a bill that would require the identification of balloons flying in US airspace.

Two US senators will propose legislation Wednesday requiring monitoring devices on high-altitude weather and research balloons to assist the US military in identifying possible threats.

Democratic Senator Mark Kelly and Republican Ted Budd announced their intention to draft legislation to require the identification of balloons flying inside US airspace, as per a Reuters report.

Last month, US fighter aircraft shot down a Chinese balloon and three other flying items, putting the spotlight on the issue.

The measure would compel the FAA to adopt rules within two years requiring high-altitude balloons at 10,000 feet or above to have tracking devices to broadcast altitude, identification, and position.

Senator Mark Kelly, a former Navy pilot, and NASA astronaut said that there is no reason why the US should have to question if a flying object inside US territory is "a threat, weather balloon, or science project."

Senator Ted Budd, who is a pilot, stated, the recent shoot-down of a Chinese spy balloon that roamed US skies for over a week "highlights the immediate need for the FAA to re-evaluate how we track objects flying" over American territory.

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US Developing Sharper Rules on UFOs

The US believes the Chinese balloon was utilized for spying. But China stated that it was a civilian balloon intended for meteorological reasons, and it was accidentally blown off track into US territory.

After three weeks of high-stakes drama caused by the discovery of a suspected Chinese spy balloon spanning much of the nation, President Joe Biden said last month that the US is establishing "sharper rules" to detect, monitor, and perhaps shoot down unidentified aerial objects, AP News reported.

Early this month, the five heads of the most senior intelligence agencies told the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence that China's strength and objectives are impacting virtually every threat they monitor, and the Chinese Communist Party remains a top concern of the US.

Subsequently, in a fiery address to the Chinese legislature, Chinese President Xi Jinping blasted the United States, saying that Washington was seeking to restrict Beijing's influence, per The Hill.