The Russian leadership ordered the pilots flying the Su-27 fighter jets on Tuesday to be aggressive in intercepting the US MQ-9 Reaper drone, several senior US officials confirmed to Fox News.
A Russian Su-27 fighter jet collided with a US MQ-9 Reaper drone while flying over the Black Sea on Tuesday. The collision occurred over international airspace and waters, with the jet in question being one of two Su-27s flying in tandem. A Defense Ministry official said the drone’s propeller was damaged, forcing it to be dropped in the West Sea west of Crimea.
The senior US officials could not confirm whether the pilots of the Su-27 fighter jets were specifically instructed to shut down the drone, saying cutting off the drone’s propeller could have been pilot error.
US European Command and US Air Forces in Europe – Air Forces Africa said in a statement Tuesday that the Russian jet dumped fuel on the US drone before the collision.
US VIDEO SHOWS MOMENT WHEN RUSSIAN FIGHTER JET COLLIDES WITH US DRONE
The US European Command on Thursday released video of a Russian Su-27 fighter jet colliding with a US MQ-9 Reaper drone over the Black Sea on March 14. A screenshot shows a jet dumping fuel. (European US Command)
“At approximately 7:03 a.m. (CET), one of the Russian Su-27 aircraft struck the propeller of the MQ-9, resulting in US forces having to down the MQ-9 in international waters. Several times before the collision, the Su-27s dumped fuel and flew in front of the MQ-9s in a reckless, polluting, and unprofessional manner. This incident demonstrates a lack of competence, in addition to being unsafe and unprofessional,” the statement said.
Russian officials said Wednesday operations were underway to collect the remains of the US drone, but US officials said the Russians had not recovered anything of value with the drone. The US has not asked any allies in the region to try to find the drone, but one country has offered its help, the official said.
RUSSIA ATTEMPTS TO RECOVER DETACHED US DRONE
The US European Command on Thursday released video of a Russian Su-27 fighter jet colliding with a US MQ-9 Reaper drone over the Black Sea on March 14. A screenshot shows a jet dumping fuel. (European US Command)
“It’s probably broken and probably not much to recover, to be honest. As for the loss of sensitive information etc., as usual we would and have taken mitigating action. So we’re pretty confident that whatever was of value is no longer of value,” Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mark Milley said during a news conference on Wednesday.
Milley added that “we are clearly not looking for an armed conflict with Russia.”
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin described the incident as a continuation of Russia’s risky behavior.
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A map shows the locations where a US MQ-9 Reaper drone was intercepted and then hit by a Russian Su-27 fighter jet and where the drone crashed in the Black Sea on March 14, 2023. (US Air Forces Europe/Fox News)
“This dangerous episode is part of a pattern of aggressive, risky and unsafe actions by Russian pilots in international airspace,” Austin said.
Source : www.foxnews.com