Russian Fighter Jet Collides With US Drone Over Black Sea
- Russia’s Defense Ministry denies its jet struck the US drone
- US Says MQ-9 was in international airspace at time of incident
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A Russian fighter jet collided with a US surveillance drone in international airspace above the Black Sea, causing the American aircraft to crash, the Pentagon said, an incident that ratcheted up tensions already running high over the invasion of Ukraine.
Russia’s defense ministry denied the US claim, saying its jets didn’t come into contact with the drone, according to a statement posted on Telegram. The statement said the drone’s transponders were off, and it flew out of control and crashed “as a result of sharp maneuvering” and that the Russian aircraft returned safety to their base.