On Saturday, February 4, 2023, the U.S. military shot down what it believed to be a Chinese surveillance balloon. Footage posted on social media shows an F-22 jet from Langley Air Force Base circling the balloon before shooting it down. China's Foreign Minister has admitted the balloon and equipment it was carrying belonged to the country but claimed it "strayed into the United States due to force majeure." The balloon had passed over several sensitive military installations before it was finally downed over the Atlantic Ocean near the Carolina coastline. The Coast Guard warned mariners in the area of the potential hazard, and the Federal Aviation Administration temporarily shut down airspace in the region ahead of the military operation.