US fighter jet shoots down 'unidentified object' over Canadian airspace

Canada's prime minister says another unidentified object has been shot down over North American airspace.

Justin Trudeau confirmed in a tweet that it violated Canadian airspace and was shot down on his orders over the Yukon in the northwest of the country.

He said a "US F-22 fighter jet successfully fired at the object" after Canadian and American aircraft were scrambled.

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Mr Trudeau said Canadian forces will recover and analyse the wreckage.

Following this object being shot down, it now marks the third time in one week that US aircraft have shot down an object in North American airspace.

This incident follows the downing of an unidentified flying object the size of a car, confirmed on Friday off the Northern coast of Alaska, and the shooting down of a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon on 4 February by a US F-22 fighter jet.

It remains unclear whether the identity of the object shot down over Canada is related to the spy balloon shot down last week or even the unidentified object shot down over Alaska.

Both US President Joe Biden and Mr Trudeau approved the "takedown" of the object, according to White House reports.

Also, according to the White House statement in regard to the call, the leaders "discussed the importance of recovering the object in order to determine more details on its purpose or origin".

A statement from Pentagon spokesman Brigader General Patrick Ryder said the object shot down on Saturday was first noticed over Alaska on Friday evening.

Two F-22 fighter jets "monitored the object" with the help of the Alaska Air National Guard, with Ryder's statement saying they were "tracking it closely and taking time to characterize the nature of the object".

"Monitoring continued today as the object crossed into Canadian airspace, with Canadian CF-18 and CP-140 aircraft joining the formation to further assess the object. A US F-22 shot down the object in Canadian territory using an AIM 9X missile," his statement went on.

He added: "As Canadian authorities conduct recovery operations to help our countries learn more about the object, the Federal Bureau of Investigation will be working closely with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police."