Washington [US], July 26: A Russian fighter jet came "dangerously close" to an unmanned US military drone of the type MQ-9 on Sunday during its mission to fight the extremist milita organisation Islamic State over Syria, the
US military announced on Tuesday.
The Air Force said the Russian fighter aircraft was "harassing the MQ-9 and deploying flares from a position directly overhead, with only a few meters of separation between aircraft. One of the Russian flares struck the US MQ-9, severely damaging its propeller."
"Fortunately, the MQ-9 crew was able to maintain flight and safely recover the aircraft to its home base," they continued. "The Russian fighter's blatant disregard for flight safety detracts from our mission to ensure the enduring defeat of ISIS. We call upon the Russian forces in Syria to put an immediate end to this reckless, unprovoked, and unprofessional behaviour," the statement said.
The incident is similar to one in March, when an unmanned US military drone collided with a Russian fighter jet in international airspace over the Black Sea. After the collision the US forces had to bring the drone down.
Source: Qatar Tribune