A Russian Su-27 aircraft struck part of an unmanned, U.S. drone over the Black Sea, causing the MQ-9 aircraft to crash into the water, the U.S. military claimed in a statement published Tuesday afternoon.
The collision happened around 7 A.M. in the morning, local time, or about 2 A.M. eastern time on Tuesday, per the U.S. European Command. Prior to the collision itself, the military’s statement describes two Russian jets engaging in “an unsafe and unprofessional intercept” of the American drone.
“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. This incident demonstrates a lack of competence in addition to being unsafe and unprofessional,” the U.S. Air Forces Europe wrote.
The military further expressed that this particular collision “follows a pattern of dangerous actions by Russian pilots while interacting with U.S. and Allied aircraft over international airspace.” As to why the U.S. had a drone over the Black Sea, the military claimed to be conducting “routine operations in international airspace.”
Additional details are sparse at this time, but White House spokesman John Kirby told the Washington Post that President Biden was briefed on the incident this morning. From WaPo:
While intercepts of aircraft are not uncommon, Kirby said, “this one obviously is noteworthy because of how unsafe [and] indeed reckless that was in causing the downing of one of our aircraft.”
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The Pentagon is holding a press briefing this afternoon, scheduled to begin at 2:30 P.M. ET.
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