The United States Air Force (USAF) released the images generated by the MQ-9A Reaper drone that was crashed by one of the two Sukhoi Su-27 fighters of the Russian Air Force (RuAF) on March 14.
The U.S. European Command (USEUCOM) had reported that two Russian Sukhoi Su-27 aircraft intercepted, «in an unsafe and unprofessional manner,» an USAF MQ-9 Reaper Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance unmanned aircraft operating within international airspace over the Black Sea.
The command said in a statement that «at approximately 7:03 AM (CET), one of the Russian Su-27 fighters struck the MQ-9’s propeller, causing U.S. forces to have to down the MQ-9 in international waters. »
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The video clearly shows the drone’s propeller affected by the collision. It can also be seen how, on approach, the Su-27 drops fuel on the unmanned vehicle.
USEUCOM said that several times before the collision, «the Su-27s dumped fuel and flew in front of the MQ-9 in a reckless, environmentally unfriendly and unprofessional manner» and that this incident «demonstrates a lack of competence in addition to being unsafe and unprofessional.»
«U.S. and allied aircraft will continue to operate in international airspace, and we call on the Russians to conduct themselves in a professional and safe manner,» said General James B. Hecker, US Air Forces commander in Europe and Africa.
European Operations Command warned that «this incident follows a pattern of dangerous actions by Russian pilots when interacting with U.S. and allied aircraft over international airspace, including over the Black Sea. These aggressive actions by Russian aircrew are dangerous and could lead to miscalculation and inadvertent escalation.»
The U.S. Department of Defense’s DVIDS (Defense Visual Information Distribution Service) clarified that the video is edited but retains the timeline sequence.
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