US Concludes Chinese Balloon Recovery Efforts off South Carolina

Washington — 

The United States successfully concluded recovery efforts off South Carolina on Thursday for debris from the suspected Chinese balloon shot down by a U.S. fighter jet on February 4, the U.S. military said in a statement Friday.

“Final pieces of debris are being transferred to the Federal Bureau of Investigation Laboratory in Virginia for counterintelligence exploitation, as has occurred with the previous surface and subsurface debris recovered,” the U.S. military’s Northern Command said in a statement.

“U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard vessels have departed the area. Air and maritime safety perimeters have been lifted.”