You have commented 339 times on Rantburg.

Your Name
Your e-mail (optional)
Website (optional)
My Original Nic        Pic-a-Nic        Sorry. Comments have been closed on this article.
Bold Italic Underline Strike Bullet Blockquote Small Big Link Squish Foto Photo
Submit your comments on this article
Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia
Russian Su-27 Collides with U.S MQ-9 Reaper Over the Black Sea
2023-03-14
[YouTube] A Russian Su-27 collided with a MQ-9 Reaper over the Black Sea, forcing it to land in international waters. The Su-27 likely flew from Belbek Air Base, home of the 38th Fighter Aviation Regiment.
The video that follows in the queue is CNN’s report of the incident. They claim the Russians acted deliberately.

Courtesy of Skidmark, update from Fox News at 2:45 p.m. ET:
A Russian Su-27 fighter plane collided with a U.S. MQ-9 Reaper drone over the Black Sea on Tuesday, a U.S. defense official told Fox News.

The jet in question was one of two Su-27's flying in tandem when the collision occurred in international airspace over international waters. The drone's propeller was damaged, forcing the unmanned aerial vehicle to ditch in the Black Sea, west of Crimea, the U.S. defense official told Fox News.

The Su-27 was headed toward Crimea and landed there after this incident, the official added. It is unknown if there was any damage to the Su-27.

U.S. European Command and U.S. Air Forces in Europe – Air Forces Africa (USAFE-AFAFRICA) issued a statement on the incident in which they reported the events leading up to the collision and admonished the Russian military for "a pattern of dangerous actions" in international airspace.
Posted by:DarthVader

#8  Russian ambassador accuses U.S. of 'act of provocation' and claims its fighter did NOT knock Reaper out of sky - after Pentagon revealed Su-27 dumped fuel on drone and forced it to crash into Black Sea
Posted by: Skidmark   2023-03-14 23:53  

#7  Speculation re fuel dump. The fuel dump entering the drones air intake would cause over speed of the turboprop engine causing the propeller to disintegrate due to excessive centrifugal force

Russian socialist media says the pilot just wanted to "piss" on the aircraft.
Posted by: badanov   2023-03-14 20:10  

#6  Speculation re fuel dump. The fuel dump entering the drones air intake would cause over speed of the turboprop engine causing the propeller to disintegrate due to excessive centrifugal force
Posted by: Griter Slash1619   2023-03-14 19:10  

#5  
Posted by: badanov   2023-03-14 18:24  

#4  My understanding was the Russians did a fuel dump (JP4 or 5 - I don’t know what they use) on the drone before deliberately ramming it several times. Meticulous escalation - this way they can say they didn’t shoot it down per se. Anticipate playing bumper cars with a Global Hawk will be the next step up.
Posted by: Griter Slash1619   2023-03-14 17:24  

#3  They claim the Russians acted deliberately.

Never underestimate the Russian willingness to play chicken.
Posted by: badanov   2023-03-14 16:35  

#2  Our drones now have kamikaze settings?

Yes. We have a lot of footage from the Ukrainians using them too. Reaper, unintentional kamikaze in this case.
Posted by: DarthVader   2023-03-14 15:28  

#1  Our drones now have kamikaze settings?
Posted by: Glenmore    2023-03-14 15:11  

00:00