“ You really get a sense of how pulverized the payload was after the Sidewinder went off in proximity to it. ”
****************************************************************
Monday morning quarterbacking here but I really wish they could have deflated the balloon without blowing up the “payload”. That way the payload could have fallen intact (at least until impact with the water) with its terminal velocity somewhat slowed by the deflated balloon acting as a “streamer”. The payload would then have been easier to locate and the pieces would have been close together at the bottom.
I don’t want to think that destruction of the payload was INTENTIONAL but that is a possibility,
Yeah, I know what you mean, but the fact is that the F-22 was at around 59,000 feet moving mach 1.2, and the balloon was at 64,000 feet moving at 15 knots. The Sidewinder was fired 8 miles away from the target.
There is no weapon that the F-22 can carry that would be able to target the balloon that precisely.