Two Russian fighter jets were reportedly harassing a U.S. military drone over international waters on Tuesday morning when one of the fighter jets collided with the drone, forcing the drone to crash into the Black Sea.
The U.S. European Command said in a statement that one of the Russian Su-27 aircraft struck the propeller of the $32 million unmanned MQ-9 Reaper drone, causing U.S. forces to have to bring the MQ-9 down in international waters.
The statement said that multiple times before the incident occurred that both of the Russian Su-27s dumped fuel on and flew in front of the MQ-9 in a reckless manner that was environmentally unsound and demonstrated a “lack of competence in addition to being unsafe and unprofessional.”
“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 U.S. Air Force Gen. James B. Hecker, commander, U.S. Air Forces Europe and Air Forces Africa. “In fact, this unsafe and unprofessional act by the Russians nearly caused both aircraft to crash.”
“U.S. and Allied aircraft will continue to operate in international airspace and we call on the Russians to conduct themselves professionally and safely,” Hecker added.
The statement said that the incident followed a “pattern of dangerous actions” by Russian pilots while interacting with U.S. and Allied aircraft over international airspace that could “lead to miscalculation and unintended escalation.”
“U.S. Air Forces in Europe – Air Forces Africa routinely fly aircraft throughout Europe over sovereign territory and throughout international airspace in coordination with applicable host nation and international laws,” the statement added. “In order to bolster collective European defense and security, these missions support Allied, partner, and U.S. national objectives.”
This report has been updated to include additional information.