An incident with the potential to further strain relations between USA and Russia as a result of the war Ukraine and even to promote an uncontrolled war escalation has taken place this Tuesday on the waters of the black sea, south of Ukraine. A Russian fighter plane SU-27 has collided with an American unmanned device MQ-9 Reapers, which forced the US authorities to shoot it down over the sea. The US side has blamed “the dangerous maneuvers” carried out by the Russian pilots of the serious air incident, the first of these characteristics that happens since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, while the Russian side has not yet offered your version of the facts.
According to the general James Heckercommander of the US Air Force in Europe (USEUCOM), the drone of the US Air Force Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance service was intercepted by two Russian fighters, one of those aircraft being the one that caused the accident by hitting one of the US aircraft’s propellers. “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 the total loss of the MQ-9,” General Hecker said in a statement.
The same source has given an account of the previous maneuvers carried out by the Russian planes, maneuvers that in his opinion seriously endangered not only the US apparatus, but also the integrity of the Russian planes. On several occasions, one of the Russian Sukhoi “dumped fuel“and flew in front of the drone”in an irresponsible, environmentally questionable, and unprofessional manner, narrowly avoiding a total crash. The US has no intention of giving up surveillance flights over the Black Sea, something that greatly irritates Moscow. In his note, the General Hecker has emphasized that aircraft USA and its allies “will continue to operate in international airspace. “We call on the Russians to behave safely and professionally,” he continued, before concluding that such an attitude “could lead to error and unintentional escalation“.
diplomatic protest
Washington has no intention of letting the incident go without raising a diplomatic protest to the Russian counterpart. According to the Pentagon spokesman, John Kirby, the State Department will summon the Russian ambassador to express Washington’s “concern” “at this unprofessional and unsafe interception.” “The Black Sea does not belong to any particular nation and we will continue to do what is necessary to ensure our national security in this part of the world,” the spokesman stressed.
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For the moment, Moscow has not yet reacted, has not offered his version of the facts nor has it informed of the luck who has run his plane. The MQ-9 is a drone great wingspan, with a wingspan of 20 meters (wing to wing), and has a flight range of 23 hours when fully armed. It is capable of covering distances of more 1,850 kilometers at an altitude of 15,000 meters at a maximum speed of 480 kilometers an hour and a cruising speed of 280 kilometers per hour.
For his part, he Sukhoi 27 It is a single-seat fighter designed by the Soviet Union in the 1970s, it is considered one of the best in the world and is capable of carrying out flights of more than 3,350 kilometers. Since the annexation of Crimea in 2014 and the increase in tensions between Moscow and the West, the Black Sea has become the scene of frequent incidents, both air and sea. The West does not recognize the annexation of Crimeawhile Moscow alleges that NATO ships and planes should not patrol the area because they violate its sovereignty and sometimes enter its airspace and territorial waters. Brussels responds that three countries bordering the Black Sea –Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey– are member states of the Atlantic Alliance.