Tension has been increasing between the US and Russia since the drone crash incident. Meanwhile, footage posted on Twitter by the US European Command showed Russian jets coming up behind a US Air Force MQ-9 unmanned drone, which began to release fuel as it passed over it.
New Delhi: The US military has released video footage of what it says is an encounter between Russian fighter jets and an American drone over the Black Sea. The details and cause may be disputed, but it appears that on March 14, 2023, an American drone crashed into the Black Sea after colliding with a Russian aircraft. However, America is gathering information regarding this development.
According to the US response to the event, an unarmed MQ-9 surveillance drone was flying in international airspace when two Russian fighter jets shot it down in violation of international law.
Footage posted on Twitter by the US European Command shows the Russian jet coming up behind a US Air Force MQ-9 unmanned drone, which begins to release fuel as it passes over it. The video broadcast suddenly stops as the Russian jet passes. The propeller of the drone can be seen intact, and the Russian jet then makes a second attempt. It dumps fuel on it again, while passing even closer this time. One propeller can be seen damaged after the second maneuvering attempt.
VIDEO: Two #Russian Su-27s conducted an unsafe & unprofessional intercept w/a @usairforce intelligence, surveillance & reconnaissance unmanned MQ-9 operating w/i international airspace over the #BlackSea March 14. https://t.co/gMbKYNtIeQ @HQUSAFEAFAF @DeptofDefense @NATO pic.twitter.com/LB3BzqkBpY
— U.S. European Command (@US_EUCOM) March 16, 2023
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Video of Russian SU-27 fighter jet colliding with MQ-9 drone as it attempts to spray fuel on it, view from the drone's camera. Shows two passes by Russian jets , released by @US_EUCOM https://t.co/Dg0KSD4iPV pic.twitter.com/WZ0zHoKDHP via @LMartinezABC #Ukraine
— Liveuamap (@Liveuamap) March 16, 2023
The Russian fighter jet had on Tuesday dumped fuel on the American drone and then collided with it, causing the drone to crash, the US military had said, slamming the manoeuvre as “reckless”.
The US military had said that “several times before the collision, the Su-27s dumped fuel on and flew in front of the MQ-9 in a reckless, environmentally unsound and unprofessional manner.”
Moscow had denied causing the crash of the drone, which the Pentagon said was on a routine ISR (intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance) mission.
“As a result of a sharp manoeuvre… the MQ-9 unmanned aerial vehicle entered an uncontrolled flight with loss of altitude and collided with the surface of the water,” the Russian Defence Ministry said, adding that the two Russian jets had no contact with the US aircraft and did not use their weapons.
