Democracy Dies in Darkness

Opinion The U.S. — and its troops abroad — are vulnerable to low-flying drones

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April 22, 2024 at 2:14 p.m. EDT
Sailors recover a high-altitude surveillance balloon off the coast of Myrtle Beach, S.C., on Feb. 5, 2023. (U.S. Navy via AP)
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Sen. Jack Reed (R.I.), a Democrat, is the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee. Sen. Roger Wicker (Miss.) is the ranking Republican of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Last year, Americans watched, transfixed, as a Chinese spy balloon the size of several school buses made its way across the United States before it was shot down by the Air Force off the coast of South Carolina.