incident over Syria
Russian jet apparently damages US drone
07/25/2023, 7:11 p.m
The US air force speaks of a “blatant disregard for flight safety”: A Russian fighter jet apparently fires flares near a US military drone over Syria. According to US information, their propeller was “seriously damaged”.
According to the US military, there was a military incident between the air forces of the USA and Russia over Syria. A Russian fighter jet flew “dangerously close” to an unmanned US military drone of the type MQ-9 on Sunday, the responsible said US Air Force Regional Command with. The US drone was part of a mission to combat the terrorist organization Islamic State (IS).
It was also said that the Russian fighter jet fired flares “within a few meters” directly above the drone, which “severely damaged” its propeller. However, the US military managed to bring the drone back safely to the US military base. The US military said the “blatant disregard for flight safety” by the Russian air force was hampering the United States in its fight against IS. “We call on the Russian forces in Syria to put an immediate end to this reckless, unjustified and unprofessional behavior.”
The incident is reminiscent of an incident in March, when an unmanned US military drone collided with a Russian fighter jet in international airspace over the Black Sea. US forces had to crash the drone after the collision. The incident sparked new tensions between the US and Russia.
The US military is deployed in Syria in areas controlled by the Kurdish militia YPG and its allies. The US forces are supporting their fight there against the IS, which controlled large areas in Syria and neighboring Iraq. Despite the military victory over the militia announced in 2019, their cells are still active in the country and carry out attacks.