The unmanned drone, U.S. MQ-9 Reaper was hit by the Russian fighter jet Su-27 in the international airspace over international waters, at the Black Sea on Tuesday around 7 am (CET), Fox News reported. According to the U.S. defense official, one of two Su-27s flew in tandem when the collision happened in the international airspace over the Black Sea. The SU-27 landed in Crimea after the incident, and the situation of the fighter jet is unknown.

The State Department is summoning the Russian Ambassador to the U.S. Anatoly Antonov to express its “strong objections” to the intercept. “U.S. European Command and U.S. Air Forces in Europe – Air Forces Africa (USAFE-AFAFRICA) issued a statement on the incident in which they reported the events leading up to the collision and admonished the Russian military for a ‘pattern of dangerous actions’ in international airspace.”

Su-27 attempted to humiliate the unmanned drone by “fuel dumping, flying in front of the MQ-9 in a reckless, environmentally unsound, and unprofessional manner” before striking the propeller of the MQ-9. The statement said, “This incident demonstrates a lack of competence in addition to being unsafe and unprofessional,” According to Fox News.

“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,” said Gen. James B. Hecker, commander, USAFE-AFAFRICA. “In fact, this unsafe and unprofessional act by the Russians nearly caused both aircraft to crash.”

The U.S. MQ-9 being downed by the Russian SU-27 in international airspace is a very sensitive issue under the Russia-Ukraine war and neighboring countries.

코리일보/COREEDAILY Coree ILBO copyright © 2013-2023. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed in whole or part without written permission.