US drone intercepted by Russian planes before crashing

The video shows how a Russian fighter sprays fuel on the US drone in a clearly aggressive maneuver.

Tensions rise between USA y Russia, following Washington released Thursday images of the moment in which a US drone was intercepted by Russian planes over the Black Sea before it crashed. The images were posted on the website of the United States European Command and last regarding 40 seconds. These show how one of the fighters sprays fuel on the drone in a clearly aggressive maneuver.

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. @HQUSAFEAFAF @DeptofDefense @NATO pic.twitter.com/LB3BzqkBpY

— U.S. European Command (@US_EUCOM) March 16, 2023

In the pictures you can see a Sukhoi 27 Russian passing directly over the drone twice, following approaching it from behind. In the first pass, no impact can be seen between the two aircraft, nor are there any indications that the drone fell. The maneuver “interrupted video streaming”, details the website, indicating, however, that it can be seen that the drone’s propeller “is intact”. During a second pass (without being able to establish whether it is the same fighter aircraft or another) the maneuver is similar, but this time the aircraft passes even closer to the drone. The transmission of images is interrupted once more, and when it resumes, “you can see that one of the propeller blades is damaged”, indicates the US Air Force.

#BlackSeaCollision USA-Russia

???? ▶️ Declassified material from the US reveals that the American drone that crossed the Black Sea was shot down by a Russian fighter plane.

Russia denies this and orders a search for the remains in the waters.

pic.twitter.com/40WiUsWMsy

— the Ñ (@laeneHispana) March 16, 2023

On Tuesday, General James Hecker, commander of the US Air Force in Europe, stated that a MQ-9 Reaper What did he do?routine operations in international airspace” had been intercepted by fighters Su-27 and then “hit by a Russian aircraft, causing the crash and lossfrom the drone.

Russia, for its part, acknowledged that two fighters had intercepted the drone, but claimed it was not responsible for its crash. In addition, he ordered the recovery of the drone to, according to Moscow, demonstrate Washington’s involvement in the operations in Ukraine.

On Wednesday, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu specified that one of the causes of the incident was the “booster” of US espionage operations.

It is the first time since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, that a NATO country has admitted to losing equipment it operated with in the volatile region.

*With information from AFP

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