Recovery efforts are underway to retrieve the debris from the downed balloon, Pentagon officials said. The balloon was shot down by an F-22. RELATED: Chinese spy balloon shot down off coast of South Carolina, DOD says https://bit.ly/3RxYtRb A U.S. warplane shot down the suspected Chinese spy balloon off the South Carolina coast Saturday afternoon, sending its surveillance gear into relatively shallow water where recovery efforts began immediately, Pentagon officials announced. The balloon was downed after it passed into U.S. territorial waters, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a statement.The balloon, which carried a large payload of spy gear according to U.S. officials, had soared over several strategic sites, including nuclear missile silos, and became the latest flashpoint in tensions between Washington and Beijing. President Joe Biden ordered the Pentagon to down the balloon on Wednesday but commanders worried about debris killing people on the ground. » Subscribe to USA TODAY: http://bit.ly/1xa3XAh » Watch more on this and other topics from USA TODAY: https://bit.ly/3QYKjbc » USA TODAY delivers current local and national news, sports, entertainment, finance, technology, and more through award-winning journalism, photos, videos and VR. #China #Spy #Balloon