An "incident" involving
a US-made Reaper drone and a Russian plane
occurred in the
Black Sea
on Tuesday .
Military sources from the North American country affirmed that a Russian-flagged fighter
acted in a "reckless" manner
, for which they decided to shoot down their own unmanned aircraft that was carrying out investigative maneuvers.
The Biden government summons the Russian ambassador after the incident.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Commander of the Alliance in Europe, US General Christopher Cavoli, has informed the NATO allies" about the fact.
"Something happened," said one of the Western military sources consulted in principle, without being able to give details about the nature of the incident.
"We have no confirmation that the drone was shot down. There is an ongoing investigation," she said.
But later, it was General James Hecker himself, commander of the US Air Force in Europe, who gave more details of what happened.
"Our MQ-9 aircraft was conducting routine operations in international airspace when
it was intercepted and struck by a Russian aircraft
, resulting in a crash and total loss of the MQ-9," Hecker said in a statement.
The Black Sea has been an area closely monitored by NATO since the start of the
war in Ukraine
and its sky is often the scene of interactions between drones and aircraft from treaty countries and the Russian armed forces.
According to the statement, the drone of the US Air Force Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance service was
intercepted by two Russian fighters
, one of those aircraft causing the accident.
According to USEUCOM, on several occasions one of the Russian planes "dumped fuel" and flew in front of the drone
"in an irresponsible, environmentally questionable, and unprofessional manner
. "
For that reason, according to the statement, the US was forced to shoot down its own drone in the waters of the Black Sea.
The event took place around 07:03 in the morning local time.
Russian air interceptions in the area are common, but this one "is noteworthy for how unsafe and unprofessional it was,
in fact it was reckless
," US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters.
In the note, General Hecker assured that the aircraft of the United States and its allies "will continue to operate in international airspace, and we call on the Russians to behave safely and professionally."
A United States Air Force Draper drone.
AFP photo
The Reaper drone, manufactured by the American company General Atomics, is a medium-altitude, long-range, remotely piloted aircraft of the MALE type.
The device is equipped with ultramodern sensors to be able to carry out surveillance operations at a cruising speed of 335km/h.
With a wingspan of 20 meters, it has a range of more than 24 hours of flight.
It can also carry various types of weapons, such as laser- or GPS-guided bombs or Hellfire missiles.
The crew on the ground is made up of four people.
In addition to the United States, several European militaries have Reaper drones, including the United Kingdom, Italy, France, and Spain.
With information from agencies.