Chinese balloon causes local airports to issue advisory for pilots

News Thursday of a large balloon from China flying over Montana caused Transport Canada to ask NAV Canada to issue a Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) to pilots travelling through airspace across Saskatchewan and Alberta.

The NOTAM, which was issued just after 8 p.m., is an advisory that contains information concerning the establishment, condition or change in any aeronautical facility, service, procedure or hazard that could disrupt travel.

The Regina and Saskatoon airports got the NOTAM.

A representative of the Saskatoon airport said they didn’t have a comment on the advisory. Justin Reves of the Regina Airport Authority said that while the advisory was issued for the airport, it hasn’t and shouldn’t cause any delays.

“There could always be a safety concern if you have something in the air that other aircraft could collide with, so that’s a big part of the notice to airmen that has gone out,” he explained.

“(The balloon) would have to be at a similar height and on flight paths and different things, but it’s more of a notice. We don’t expect it to cause a number of issues or any delays or cancellations due to the balloon (potentially) being somewhere in the area.”

The balloon is said to be travelling as high as 60,000 feet. For context, most airplanes travel around 30,000 feet.

According to Reves, NOTAMs are implemented sometimes when severe weather could impact an aircraft when departing or arriving.

When it comes to balloons, he says it’s pretty rare.

“It is pretty unique. We wouldn’t see something like this very often,” he said. “The primary concern with the notice is that ‘You have an object (potentially) in your airspace; watch out for it.’ ”

In a statement sent to 980 CJME Friday morning, NAV Canada said it couldn’t provide any more information on the advisory that was issued.

Canada’s Department of National Defence issued a statement on the issue Thursday, saying it’s tracking the balloon’s movement through the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD).

It added Canadians are safe and Canada is taking steps to ensure the security of its airspace, including the monitoring of a potential second incident.

NORAD, the Canadian Armed Forces, the Department of National Defence and other partners have been assessing the situation and working in close co-ordination.

The country is also working with intelligence agencies in the United States and is continuing to take all necessary measures to safeguard Canada’s sensitive information from foreign intelligence threats.

A statement from the U.S. Department of Defense said the balloon was travelling at an altitude well above commercial air traffic and did not present a military or physical threat to people on the ground.

“Instances of this kind of balloon activity have been observed previously over the past several years. Once the balloon was detected, the U.S. government acted immediately to protect against the collection of sensitive information,” the Department of Defense’s statement said.

According to reports, the balloon was over Missouri on Friday afternoon.

On Thursday, the Pentagon said it had decided not to shoot the balloon down because of concerns of hurting people on the ground. On Friday, the Pentagon refused to say if there was any new consideration for shooting down the ship.

The Pentagon called it a “Chinese spy balloon” after it rejected China’s claims earlier Friday. The Chinese said it was a weather balloon, but the Pentagon rejected claims the balloon wasn’t being used for surveillance.

Pentagon press secretary Gen. Pat Ryder said a news conference Thursday that the balloon wasn’t posing a threat to the public.