CNN: Russian fighter jet forces down US drone over Black Sea after deliberate mid-air collision
A Russian fighter jet forced down an American MQ-9 Reaper drone over international waters of the Black Sea on March 14, CNN reported.
According to an unnamed U.S. official quoted by CNN, a Russian Su-27 Flanker jet deliberately flew ahead of the drone and released fuel in its path "several times" before damaging the drone's rear propeller.
The Reaper drone was then forced to come down in international waters, according to CNN's sources.
The U.S. official, as quoted by CNN, critcized the Russian jet for operating in an "environmentally unsound and unprofessional manner."
U.S. National Security Council communications coordinator John Kirby, who is also quoted by CNN in the report, said that it is "not uncommon" for Russian fighter jets to intercept U.S. aircraft over the Black Sea, and that this is not the first time it happened.
Nonetheless, Kirby characterized Russia's action as "unsafe, unprofessional, and reckless," despite the fact that it has occurred before.
According to CNN, the U.S. has been conducting reconnaissance operations over the Black Sea using Reaper drones since before the start of Russia's all-out war.
