Russian fighter jet collides with US drone – the most important in 7 points To counter China: US and Britain equip Australia with submarines

What happened?

A military incident over the Black Sea has sparked tensions between the US and Russia. An unmanned US military drone collided with a Russian fighter jet over international waters on Tuesday, the US military said. US forces should have crashed the drone after the collision.

The US military said two Russian fighter jets intercepted the US MQ-9 Reaper drone flying in international airspace over the Black Sea.

One of the fighter jets hit the propeller of the US drone. Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder said the Russian fighter jet actually flew into the drone. Before the collision, the Russian jets dumped fuel over the US drone several times and flew in front of it. After that, the drone was no longer maneuverable, so US troops had to take it out of the sky and drop it into the sea. The drone was completely lost in the crash. The spokesman initially did not want to comment on the issue of a possible salvage of the aircraft.

However, Ryder stressed that the incident likely caused damage to the Russian fighter jet as well. It landed again after the incident – ​​he didn’t say where. The two Russian fighter jets remained close to the US drone for about 30 to 40 minutes before the collision occurred.

What is the US saying about this?

The Americans criticized Russia for apparently behaving “unsafely and unprofessionally” and as being responsible for the incident. At the same time, the government made every effort not to end up in a spiral of escalation.

John Kirby, director of communications for the National Security Council, stressed that such interception maneuvers are not uncommon in themselves. However, this case is notable for the unsafe and unprofessional approach of the Russian side, which led to the complete loss of the drone. US President Joe Biden was notified of the incident.

What does Russia say about this?

The Russian Defense Ministry has denied any responsibility regarding the crash. The drone was not shot at or otherwise attacked, according to a statement released by the state agency TASS.

A Russian Air Force alert team was deployed to identify an unknown intruder over the Black Sea. During a sharp evasive manoeuvre, the drone quickly lost altitude and fell into the sea, the Russian military said. “The Russian fighter jets did not use any weapons on board, did not come into contact with the unmanned aerial vehicle and returned safely to their home airport.”

What was the drone doing over the Black Sea?

The MQ-9 Reaper drone is mainly used for reconnaissance, but can also perform precision strikes. It can stay in the air for a long time and has sensors that cover a large area. The drone is controlled remotely.

It was conducting a routine operation in international airspace “when it was intercepted and hit by a Russian aircraft, resulting in the crash and complete loss of the MQ-9 aircraft,” said James Hecker, commander of the United States Air Force Europe and Africa. . “U.S. and allied aircraft will continue to operate in international airspace and we urge Russians to conduct themselves professionally and safely.”

Are there recordings?

When asked if there was video footage of the incident and if it could be made public, Pentagon spokesman Ryder pointed out that a declassification process would need to be followed to declassify such footage. The Ministry will inform the public about this.

Are there similar incidents?

Tuesday’s incident is not the first of its kind. It is one in a series of dangerous actions by Russian pilots against US and allied aircraft in international airspace, including over the Black Sea, the US military said.

However, there is no reason for the US to withdraw from the airspace of this region. “Because that’s not going to happen,” Kirby pointed out. “We will continue to fly and operate in international airspace over international waters. The Black Sea does not belong to a single nation.”

What happens now?

As Ned Price, spokesman for the US State Department, confirmed, the US wants to summon the Russian ambassador to Washington. Price said he expected the ambassador to attend the high-level meeting at the State Department later Tuesday. He would be informed of the “strong objections to the clearly unsafe and unprofessional interception” of the drone. Price stressed that when the US learned the details of the incident, it notified its allies and partners at the highest level.

(dab/sda)