UFO shot down by $400K US missile may have been a $12 hobby balloon: report

Blu82 said:
Guns don't work reliably since the Canadians tried it in 1998 and the balloon was still there a 1000 rounds later.
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That balloon wasn't small: it was estimated to be 25-storey high.

www.bbc.com

When a Canadian weather balloon went rogue

A stray research balloon survived 1,000 rounds of ammunition from fighter jets on its travels back in 1998.
www.bbc.com www.bbc.com

It was a massive thing - the size of a 25-storey building that would cover an area equivalent to five football pitches if deflated, according to a BBC report from the time.

...

"We asked the Canadian military if they would consider shooting it down, sending somebody out for target practice," Mr Sommerfeldt said.

A fighter jet had a ceiling of about 60,000 feet, he recalled and "the balloon, of course, was a lot higher than that".

Hoping to save the research, he asked them to shoot upwards and aim for the suspension point, where the release mechanism was for the package of scientific instruments, which were attached to a parachute.
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The attempt to bring it down was also made over the seas. They simply couldn't engage the target at that height, accurately, and bullets puncturing a huge balloon like that up that high won't allow the helium to escape through the punctures. The problem these pilots had was to somehow detach the balloon's payload without damaging it, so they had a small target which was its suspension point. Funny though, there was ridicule regarding this incident, but you can't put it on the pilots.

Blu82 said:
Gun runs are also extremely dangerous as you have a fast moving jet versus a small stationary target.
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Yes, I agree. The UFO was too small, and this UFO also wasn't over any large bodied waters or seas. The best solution was to kill it with an air-to-air missile given its dimension, height and location.

A balloon should be easily killed with an AA gun given the right conditions.
 
Fulcrum29 said:
That balloon wasn't small: it was estimated to be 25-storey high.

www.bbc.com

When a Canadian weather balloon went rogue

A stray research balloon survived 1,000 rounds of ammunition from fighter jets on its travels back in 1998.
www.bbc.com www.bbc.com



The attempt to bring it down was also made over the seas. They simply couldn't engage the target at that height, accurately, and bullets puncturing a huge balloon like that up that high won't allow the helium to escape through the punctures. The problem these pilots had was to somehow detach the balloon's payload without damaging it, so they had a small target which was its suspension point. Funny though, there was ridicule regarding this incident, but you can't put it on the pilots.



Yes, I agree. The UFO was too small, and this UFO also wasn't over any large bodied waters or seas. The best solution was to kill it with an air-to-air missile given its dimension, height and location.

A balloon should be easily killed with an AA gun given the right conditions.
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The final solution would be laser guided rockets and a LATIRN pod. Cheap, safe and guaranteed destruction over guns or an AIM9X. The only question is how hight a F-15C can go with a rockets and a LATIRN attached.
 
Kosmik said:
Nah, that can't be right, most models don't weigh anywhere near 3kg which is 6 pounds and they are restricted.

ok, I'm basing it off local knowledge which as I understood was taken a lot from FAA, ours is a lot stricter.





This is the act out of interest

View attachment 1477685
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Just quickly scanning through this. I don't even think it would apply to a balloon. There isn't even a suitable definition.
 
Kosmik said:
I wonder if they had a license or the allowed provisions. Many countries , including ours , do not allow model/recreational aircraft/toys to go above 100m in altitude.
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You also can't go to the airport to watch planes taking off and plenty countries do allow that. There are some that have built tourism around it.

The ANC has lost control over the country and picks on small issues to make out they doing something. So I don't pay attention to the ANC in these matters.
 
KatieKim said:
You also can't go to the airport to watch planes taking off and plenty countries do allow that. There are some that have built tourism around it.

The ANC has lost control over the country and picks on small issues to make out they doing something. So I don't pay attention to the ANC in these matters.
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Uhm you can watch planes taking off at the airport. There's a hobbyists photography community doing that all day everyday
 
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KatieKim said:
You also can't go to the airport to watch planes taking off and plenty countries do allow that. There are some that have built tourism around it.

The ANC has lost control over the country and picks on small issues to make out they doing something. So I don't pay attention to the ANC in these matters.
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It's perfectly legal to go planespotting around airports in SA. The only reason some people get into trouble is because they sometimes carry Air Band radio receivers without the proper licenses.
 
Wut said:
It's perfectly legal to go planespotting around airports in SA. The only reason some people get into trouble is because they often carry Air Band radio receivers without the proper licenses.
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Stand corrected
 
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Vorrie I'm glad you liked my comment. :)
 
Mike Hoxbig said:
The look on their faces says it all...

nibbb-club-pic-0004.jpg
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Qanon white supremacist terrorists... the number one threat to world order, they must be eradicated
 
Mirai said:
$400K missile will have to be produced by US workers in a US plant. The money will come from taxes of South Africans who watch Netflix, pay Youtube family subs or use Intel CPUs or iPhones. :)
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Screenshot_20230218_091504.jpg

Trigger-happy moolah-making!
 
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