Russia shoots down U.S. drone over the Black Sea
A Russian fighter jet struck the unmanned aircraft, which was performing a routine flight. The incident is under investigation.
A Russian Su-27 fighter shot down a U.S. Reaper drone that was flying over the Black Sea. According to General James Hecker, commander of U.S. forces in Europe and Africa, the Russian aircraft collided with one of the drone's propellers, causing it to crash, as reported by CNN:
The incident is already under investigation. John Kirby, Department of Defense press secretary, said it is not the first U.S. drone intercepted by Russian fighters, although he added that it was a "reckless" and "unique" act because the Air Force will no longer be able to rely on the downed MQ-9 Reaper.
Since the start of the war in Ukraine, the Black Sea has been a heavily guarded area by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Therefore, routine reconnaissance flights such as the one the U.S. drone was doing are conducted.
In November 2022, the U.S. deployed several MQ-9 Reaper drones to the military base in Larissa, Greece, as reported by Business Insider. These models can fly for 27 hours at a time and can reach an altitude of 50,000 feet.