• US sailors assigned to Assault Craft Unit 4 prepare material recovered in the Atlantic Ocean. AP
    US sailors assigned to Assault Craft Unit 4 prepare material recovered in the Atlantic Ocean. AP
  • FBI special agents assigned to the evidence response team process material recovered from the high-altitude balloon recovered off the coast of South Carolina. AP
    FBI special agents assigned to the evidence response team process material recovered from the high-altitude balloon recovered off the coast of South Carolina. AP
  • US officials say the military has finished recovering the remnants of the large balloon and analysis of the debris so far reinforces conclusions that it was a Chinese spy balloon. AP
    US officials say the military has finished recovering the remnants of the large balloon and analysis of the debris so far reinforces conclusions that it was a Chinese spy balloon. AP
  • US Navy frogmen recover debris from the Atlantic Ocean. Reuters
    US Navy frogmen recover debris from the Atlantic Ocean. Reuters
  • A US fighter jet approaches the large balloon off the coast of South Carolina. AP
    A US fighter jet approaches the large balloon off the coast of South Carolina. AP
  • US sailors recover a Chinese surveillance balloon that was shot down at the weekend off the coast of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. US Navy / Reuters
    US sailors recover a Chinese surveillance balloon that was shot down at the weekend off the coast of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. US Navy / Reuters
  • A handout photo made available by the US Central Command (CENTCOM) Public Affairs via the Defense Visual Information Distribution Service (DVIDS) on 07 February 2023 shows sailors assigned to Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group 2 recover a high-altitude surveillance balloon off the coast of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, 05 February 2023 (issued 07 February 2023). At the direction of the US President and with the full support of Canada's Government, U. S. fighter aircrafts under U. S. Northern Command authority engaged and brought down a high altitude surveillance balloon within sovereign U. S. airspace and over U. S. territorial waters 04 February 2023, according to the US Navy. EPA / US Navy / Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Tyler Thompson / HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY / NO SALES
    A handout photo made available by the US Central Command (CENTCOM) Public Affairs via the Defense Visual Information Distribution Service (DVIDS) on 07 February 2023 shows sailors assigned to Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group 2 recover a high-altitude surveillance balloon off the coast of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, 05 February 2023 (issued 07 February 2023). At the direction of the US President and with the full support of Canada's Government, U. S. fighter aircrafts under U. S. Northern Command authority engaged and brought down a high altitude surveillance balloon within sovereign U. S. airspace and over U. S. territorial waters 04 February 2023, according to the US Navy. EPA / US Navy / Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Tyler Thompson / HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY / NO SALES
  • Under orders from US President Joe Biden and with the full support of the Canadian government, American fighter jets shot down the balloon in US airspace. US Navy / EPA
    Under orders from US President Joe Biden and with the full support of the Canadian government, American fighter jets shot down the balloon in US airspace. US Navy / EPA
  • A US Coast Guard helicopter flies over balloon debris during recovery work. US Navy / EPA
    A US Coast Guard helicopter flies over balloon debris during recovery work. US Navy / EPA
  • US sailors look for more debris. US Navy / EPA
    US sailors look for more debris. US Navy / EPA
  • The Department of Defence said the balloon was able to manoeuvre itself to a degree. US Navy / EPA
    The Department of Defence said the balloon was able to manoeuvre itself to a degree. US Navy / EPA
  • The Chinese government has insisted that it was a weather research balloon. US Navy / EPA
    The Chinese government has insisted that it was a weather research balloon. US Navy / EPA

World

US

US Navy shares first images of shot-down Chinese balloon

US officials say it is 60 metres wide and tall, with a payload underneath weighing more than 900kg

Patrick deHahn
Patrick deHahn
New York

February 07, 2023

  • English
  • Arabic

The US Navy on Tuesday shared images from the operation to recover pieces of the suspected Chinese surveillance balloon the military shot down at the weekend.

The photos show US Navy sailors on small boats in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

Members of the Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group began salvaging parts of the “high-altitude surveillance balloon” on Sunday, the day the photos were taken.

US President Joe Biden issued orders to shoot down the balloon last Wednesday. It was first seen in US airspace over Alaska on January 28.

The US military advised waiting until the object arrived at a place where it was safe to shoot down without the risk of debris harming people below.

China has claimed that the vessel was a civilian balloon for meteorology research, which floated off course.

  • The suspected Chinese spy balloon drifts to the ocean after being shot down off the US coast, as seen from South Carolina. Reuters
    The suspected Chinese spy balloon drifts to the ocean after being shot down off the US coast, as seen from South Carolina. Reuters
  • President Joe Biden congratulated fighter pilots for taking down the suspected spy balloon. AFP
    President Joe Biden congratulated fighter pilots for taking down the suspected spy balloon. AFP
  • The balloon seen from Holden Beach. Reuters
    The balloon seen from Holden Beach. Reuters
  • Spectators watch from the coast. Reuters
    Spectators watch from the coast. Reuters
  • A jet flies by the balloon. Reuters
    A jet flies by the balloon. Reuters
  • Another spectator watches after the balloon was shot down. Reuters
    Another spectator watches after the balloon was shot down. Reuters
  • The suspected Chinese spy balloon over Billings, Montana. AFP
    The suspected Chinese spy balloon over Billings, Montana. AFP

White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby on Monday confirmed that propellers and steering gave the vessel some control, which is not typical of weather balloons.

"It is true that this balloon had the ability manoeuvre itself, to speed up, to slow down and to turn," Mr Kirby said.

"So it had propellers, it had a rudder, if you will, to allow it to change direction. But the most important navigational vector was the jet stream itself, the winds at such a high altitude."

US officials said they were studying the debris of the vessel, which was 60 metres wide and the same distance tall, to learn more about China's surveillance operations.

Beijing filed a formal complaint with Washington and said the US was responsible for an "attack on a Chinese civilian unmanned airship by military force".

It said China could "take further action” against the US's “obvious overreaction and a serious violation of international practice".

The two superpowers have long experienced strained relations affecting economic communications, climate change efforts, technology and military operations.

After the incident, Washington postponed Secretary of State Antony Blinken's trip to Beijing, which would have made him the highest-ranked US official to visit in years.

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

Updated: February 08, 2023, 5:12 PM
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