US military officials have released a dramatic, declassified video of the moment a Russian fighter jet collided with a US drone over the Black Sea earlier this week.
The footage shared Thursday morning by the US European Command (EUCOM) was captured by the underside camera of the MQ-9 Reaper drone as the Su-27 fighter jet twice attempted to spray it with jet fuel.
On the second try, the jet collides with the drone’s rear propeller, and the screen pixelates as communication goes down.
The video of Tuesday’s incident was released less than one day after Gen. Mark Miley said it “remains to be seen” whether the downing was intentional.
On Wednesday, Anatoly Antonov, Russia’s ambassador to Washington, said the collision was part of a response to the US “deliberately and provocatively” encroaching on Moscow’s airspace.
The incident is believed to be the first time since the Cold War era that an American aircraft was downed following an encounter with Russian forces.