Tag Archives: Pentagon

ABC News reports: A close-up photo of the Chinese spy balloon, taken mid-air from a U-2 spy plane, has been released by the U.S. military The photo was taken on Friday, Feb. 3 as the balloon flew over the American Midwest at an altitude of 60,000 feet — as the U-2 spy plane trailed it flew across the continental United …

The Wall Street Journal reports: A small circle of intelligence officials at the Pentagon during the Trump administration monitored a series of mysterious objects—now suspected to be balloons—but the incidents were never reported to the White House because it wasn’t clear what they were, former U.S. officials said. Following the shootdown earlier this month of a Chinese high-altitude balloon, the …

CNN reports: The unidentified flying object shot down in Canadian airspace on Saturday appeared to be a “small, metallic balloon with a tethered payload below it,” according to a Pentagon memo sent to lawmakers on Monday and obtained by CNN. The memo offers the first official details of one of the three objects shot down in recent days that was …

Reuters reports: The U.S. Air Force general overseeing North American airspace said on Sunday after a series of shoot-downs of unidentified objects that he would not rule out aliens or any other explanation yet, deferring to U.S. intelligence experts. Asked whether he had ruled out an extraterrestrial origin for three airborne objects shot down by U.S. warplanes in as many …

CNN reports: The US military shot down another high-altitude object over Lake Huron on Sunday afternoon, according to a US official and a congressional source briefed on the matter. The operation marks the third day in a row that an unidentified object was shot down over North American airspace. An unidentified object was shot down over northern Canada on Saturday. …

The New York Times reports: The Pentagon downed an unidentified object over Alaska on Thursday night at the order of President Biden, according to a U.S. official. The U.S. official said it was not confirmed if the object was a balloon, but it was traveling at an altitude that made it a potential threat to civilian aircraft. Mr. Biden ordered …

CNN reports: The US military has downed the suspected Chinese spy balloon over the Atlantic Ocean, a US official says. The balloon was first spotted in the sky over Montana earlier this week and traveled across the middle of the country following weather patterns before it exited the continental United States on Saturday. Prior to the balloon being shot down, …

The Associated Press reports: China said Friday it was looking into reports that a Chinese spy balloon has been flying in U.S. airspace over sensitive sites — a discovery that further strained already tense relations between Beijing and Washington. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said China has “no intention of violating the territory and airspace of any sovereign country” and …

CNN reports: The Pentagon is tracking a suspected Chinese high-altitude surveillance balloon over the continental United States, a senior defense official said on Thursday. The Pentagon has been tracking the balloon for several days as it made its way over the northern United States, Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder said. He added that the US military decided against shooting …

NBC News reports: A four-star Air Force general sent a memo on Friday to the officers he commands that predicts the U.S. will be at war with China in two years and tells them to get ready to prep by firing “a clip” at a target, and “aim for the head.” In the memo sent Friday and obtained by NBC …

Politico reports: The Pentagon formally dropped its Covid-19 vaccination mandate Tuesday, but a new memo signed by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin also gives commanders some discretion in how or whether to deploy troops who are not vaccinated. Austin’s memo has been widely anticipated ever since legislation signed into law on Dec. 23 gave him 30 days to rescind the mandate. …

The Washington Post reports: The looming reversal — spurred by Republicans who had threatened to block passage of the $858 billion spending bill if the mandate wasn’t struck down — creates a rat’s nest for the Pentagon. Commanders whose job it was to enforce the mandate will face the onerous task of assessing whether — and how — to allow …

Axios reports: Congress may consider legislation later this week that would scrap the Pentagon’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate for military service members. A rollback of the policy may be included in the National Defense Authorization Act, which is set to be unveiled Monday, as a compromise between Republicans and Democrats. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), who is vying to become …

The Military Times reports: A decade after the services first allowed gay and lesbian troops to serve openly, a report from the Joint Staff found that concerns about combat effectiveness and unit cohesion were basically unfounded. That’s the conclusion of a 196-page document published in 2021 by the Joint History and Research Office, recently brought to light by the Palm …

The Associated Press reports: A student at a military college who sued top Pentagon officials after he was deemed unfit for service because he tested positive for HIV has settled his lawsuit and plans to pursue his dream of becoming an Army officer, his lawyers said Tuesday. “I am incredibly grateful to be back on track to obtain a contract …

From the Justice Department: Michael Bostock, 54, of Nampa, Idaho, and Eric Bostock, 47, of Riverside, California, each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. According to court documents, Michael Bostock was the founder and CEO of California Technical Academy (CTA), a VA-approved, for-profit school that …

Via press release from the United States Space Force: Every branch of the armed forces has an official song, from “The Army Goes Rolling Along” to “The Marines’ Hymn.” Each song is part of the services’ foundation and represents its values, traditions and culture. The U.S. Space Force, the newest military branch established in 2019, has officially adopted its own …

The Wall Street Journal reports: As many as 80,000 Russian troops have been wounded or killed in less than six months of fighting in Ukraine, the Pentagon said Monday, the first time the U.S. military announced its estimates of the toll of the invasion on Russia. According to U.S. estimates, Russia has suffered 70,000 to 80,000 casualties, Colin Kahl, the …

The Hill reports: The Department of Defense (DOD) failed to retain text messages from a number of its top officials relating to the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot because it wiped their phones during the transition, a watchdog group that sued for the records disclosed Tuesday. American Oversight filed a public records request for the communications of former acting Defense …

From an op-ed published by the New York Times: The inquiry by the House’s Jan. 6 committee has produced many startling findings, but none to us more alarming than the fact that while rioters tried to thwart the peaceful transfer of power and ransacked the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, the president and commander in chief, Donald Trump, abdicated his …