A Russian fighter jet collided with a U.S. surveillance drone in international airspace above the Black Sea, forcing the American aircraft to crash, the U.S. said.
The Su-27 warplane, accompanied by a second Russian jet, struck the propeller of the MQ-9 Reaper drone in what was an “unsafe and unprofessional” intercept at around 7 a.m. local time, U.S. European Command said. The two Russian fighter jets flew in front of and dumped fuel on the drone before the strike, it said.
“Our MQ-9 aircraft was conducting routine operations in international airspace when it was intercepted and hit by a Russian aircraft, resulting in a crash and complete loss of the MQ-9,” Air Force Gen. James Hecker said. “In fact, this unsafe and unprofessional act by the Russians nearly caused both aircraft to crash.”
