WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE MORE
TRANSPARENCY WE’RE HEARING FROM
THE CONGRESS FROM THE
WHITE HOUSE.
BACK TO YOU.
NEIL: I WANT TO GO TO ALASKA
GOVERNOR MIKE DUNLEAVY, HE IS
VERY CONCERNED ABOUT THE
NOTIFICATION HE GETS, THE HEADS
UP HE GETS PARTICULARLY THIS ONE
SHOT OVER 40,000 FEET IN THE AIR
OVER THE SKIES OF ALASKA.
THE GOVERNOR IS WITH US NOW.
GOVERNOR, WERE YOU GIVEN A HEADS
IN THAT PARTICULAR CASE?
>> NO, NOT REALLY.
OUR NATIONAL GUARD WAS CONTACTED
AND THIS WAS BEING FOLLOWED
OBVIOUSLY OUR U.S. MILITARY
EXPERTS AND THEN OUR NAG GUARD
BUT THIS OBJECT APPARENTLY WAS
FLOATING OUR WAY OBVIOUSLY FOR
SOME TIME.
WE HAD, WE HAD PLANES DIVERTED,
I BELIEVE IT WAS THURSDAY,
FRIDAY, SO THAT IT WOULD BE OUT
OF THE AIRSPACE OF THIS THING
UNTIL IT WAS ASCERTAINED WHAT
THIS WAS AND NO, ACTUALLY WE’RE
STILL TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT
IT WAS.
MORE IMPORTANTLY WHAT WAS ITS
PAYLOAD?
I THINK THAT IS THE BIGGER
QUESTION PEOPLE SHOULD BE
ASKING.
NEIL: A LOT OF PEOPLE SEIZED ON
THE FACT THIS WAS QUICKLY SHOT
DOWN UNLIKE THE BALLOON PASSED
OVER YOUR SKIES, GOT INTO
CANADA, OVER THE UNITED STATES,
FULLY INTO THE CONTINENTAL
UNITED STATES BEFORE BEING SHOT
DOWN OVER THE ATLANTIC RIGHT
EAST OF THE CAROLINAS BUT THIS
ONE WAS QUICKLY SHOT DOWN WE’RE
TOLD BECAUSE IT WAS FLYING
ROUGHLY THE SAME ALTITUDE
COMMERCIAL JETS FLY.
COULD DO YOU BUY THAT?
>> CERTAINLY COMMERCIAL JETS FLY
AT THAT ALTITUDE.
I’LL GLAD IT WAS SHOT DOWN
QUICKLY.
WE’RE TWO MILES FROM RUSSIAN
TERRITORY, TWO MILES SEPARATE
US, 50 MILES FROM THE MAINLAND.
WE DON’T GET MUCH OF A WARNING
ON ANYTHING.
WE HAVE RUSSIANS INTRUDING OUR
AIRSPACE ON CONSISTENT BASIS.
THE ISSUE MORE WHAT THE PAYLOAD
IS.
WE STILL DON’T KNOW WHAT THAT IS
AND WE’RE CONCERNED THIS MAY BE
A LOW-TECH WAY OF DELIVERING A
CERTAIN TYPE OF PAYLOAD.
ALASKA WOULD BE THE FIRST
OBVIOUSLY BECAUSE WE ARE THE
FURTHEST WESTERN STATE IN THE
UNITED STATES TO POTENTIALLY
FEEL THE EFFECTS OF THIS.
SO THIS IS CONCERNING.
WE HAVE A VERY GOOD MILITARY
PRESENCE UP HERE IN TERMS OF AIR
FORCE AND ARMY BUT NONETHELESS
THIS I THINK, THIS IS CATCHING
EVERYONE BY SURPRISE.
WHY ARE THESE BALLOONS COMING?
WHY DIDN’T WE KNOW BEFORE AND
AGAIN WHAT IS THEIR PAYLOAD?
NEIL: THE ONE THAT WAS SHOT DOWN
OVER CANADIAN SKIES OR AT LEAST
HAD GOTTEN INTO CANADIAN
AIRSPACE WE’RE TOLD PRIME
MINISTER TRUDEAU OKAYED THAT
SHOOTDOWN.
MAYBE YOU CAN EXPLAIN TO ME
NORAD OR NORAD-RELATED RULES IN
THE EVENT LIKE THIS.
YOU’RE GOVERNOR OF A LARGEST
PHYSICAL STATE IN THE COUNTRY
THIS WOULD BE AFFECTED AND
AFFECTED BY ALL OF THIS.
TELL US.
>> WE HAVE A VERY TIGHT
RELATIONSHIP WITH THE CANADIANS
THROUGH NORAD.
WE HAVE JOINT OPERATIONS WITH
THE CANADIANS.
WE ACT AS ONE WHEN IT COMES TO
SITUATIONS LIKE THIS, BUT
NONETHELESS, WHEN THAT BALLOON
FLOATED WE THINK IT WAS A
BALLOON FLOATED INTO CANADIAN
AIRSPACE OF COURSE THE
AUTHORITIES IN CANADA, THE PRIME
MINISTER ARE AN INTEGRAL PART OF
WHAT THE DECISION MAKING WILL BE
ON THAT BUT NONETHELESS OF I
BELIEVE THAT PARTICULAR BALLOON
WAS SHOT DOWN BY AN AMERICAN AIRCRAFT, FLOWN BY AN AMERICAN
AIRCRAFT, FLOWN BY AN AMERICAN
UNDER THE THE NORAD AND CANADIAN
AUTHORITIES.
I’M NOT SURE WHAT TYPE OF NOTICE
THEY GOT AS WELL.
THIS IS AN ISSUE WE CONFRONTED
FOR SAME TIME, FRANKLY THE
EXISTENCE OF OUR STATE AND THE
COLD WAR.
WE’RE NOT SURE, WE’RE NOT SURE
IF THIS IS A RUSSIAN VEHICLE, A
BALLOON, A CHINESE, OR AS WAS
STATED ON YOUR PROGRAM, SOME
OTHER TYPE OF BALLOON BUT
NONETHELESS I KEEP GOING BACK TO
THE PAYLOAD.
I THINK THAT THAT IS THE
QUESTION, WAS IT A SPY BALLOON,
RESEARCH BALLOON OR SOME OTHER
TYPE OF BALLOON MAY HAVE BEEN
TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO
DELIVER OR CARRY PAYLOADS OVER
NORTH AMERICA.
NEIL: SOUNDS LIKE YOU DON’T GET
THE HEADS UP YOU THINK A
GOVERNOR OF A STATE AFFECTED BY
THIS OR WHOSE SKIES WERE PART OF
THIS FROM THE WHITE HOUSE.
>> NO.
NEIL: WE MENTIONED THAT,
GOVERNOR, TO FOLLOW UP ON THAT
POINT WE ONLY FOUND OUT ABOUT
THIS OURSELVES, THE AMERICAN
PEOPLE BECAUSE IT WAS A QUESTION
THAT ACCIDENTALLY CAME UP 11
MINUTES INTO A BRIEFING LAST
FRIDAY.
OTHERWISE I DOUBT IT WOULD HAVE
BEEN KNOWN OR SHARED AT ALL.
WE HAVEN’T FOUND OUT FROM THE
WHITE HOUSE ABOUT THESE
INCIDENTS CERTAINLY SINCE.
WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF THAT?
>> QUITE FRANKLY I DON’T KNOW IF
THE VEHICLES, THESE BALANCE ARE
COMING TO OUR U.S. INTELLIGENCE
AS A COMPLETE SURPRISE AND
THEY’RE JUST HOLDING BACK
INFORMATION FOR A WHOLE HOST OF
REASONS, OR, THEY, THEY JUST ARE
SIMPLY NOT NOTIFYING US IN A
TIMELY MANNER.
BUT WE, YOU KNOW, WE WOULD
APPRECIATE A HEAD’S UP.
WE WANT TO BE PREPARED FOR WHAT
IS COMING OVER OUR AIRSPACE OF
OUR GREAT SPACE SO WE’LL
CONTINUE TO TRY TO WORK WITH
THIS ADMINISTRATION TO FIRM UP
OUR COMMUNICATIONS.
OFTEN TIMES THERE ARE A LOT OF
THINGS WE’RE NOT AWARE OF UNTIL
IT OCCURS.
NEIL: I’M HAPPY THAT EVERYONE IS
SAFE FOR THE TIME-BEING BUT,
GOVERNOR, THANK YOU FOR SHARING
ALL OF THIS WITH US.