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The Pentagon released the MQ-9 video showing the Su-27 Flanker making one pass dumping fuel and another pass leading to the collision.
As already reported on Mar. 14, 2023, a Russian Su-27 Flanker fighter jet and a US MQ-9 Reaper Remotely Piloted Aircraft were involved in an inflight collision over the Black Sea earlier. The mid-air collision damaged the American unmanned aircraft and the U.S. Air Force was forced to ditch in international waters.
“At approximately 7:03 AM (CET), one of the Russian Su-27 aircraft struck the propeller of the MQ-9, causing U.S. forces to have to bring the MQ-9 down in international waters. Several times before the collision, the Su-27s dumped fuel on and flew in front of the MQ-9 in a reckless, environmentally unsound and unprofessional manner. This incident demonstrates a lack of competence in addition to being unsafe and unprofessional,” said the U.S. European Command in a public statement.
Eventually, the video of the intercept was released by the U.S. DoD.
It’s just a 42-second clip, that basically shows a Su-27 approaching the MQ-9 from astern and beginning to dump fuel. At about 00:09 mark, the Flanker flies over the MQ-9 still dumping fuel. The live video transmission is disrupted but the MQ-9 later appears to remain undamaged. Later you can see a Russian Su-27 on a second approach towards the MQ-9. Again, the Flanker dumps fuel but the pass is closer and at 00:29 the camera feed is lost as the two aircraft seem to collide. When the feed is restored, we can get a view at the propellers of the Reaper and one appears to be bent.
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