$32millon Reaper drone downed by Russian jets has SUNK, US claims

The top US general on Wednesday rejected Russian claims it would attempt to recover a downed US drone, saying it had likely broken and sunk in thousands of feet of water.

In the first direct confrontation between Russia and the US since the start of the war in Ukraine, a Russian Su-27 fighter jet struck an unmanned MQ-9 aircraft, forcing operators to ditch the drone in the Black Sea.

“It probably sank to a considerable depth, so any salvage operation from a technical point of view would be very difficult,” the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley, told reporters.

Moscow insists its jetliner failed to make contact with the $32 million drone, instead blaming “sharp maneuvering” for the crash.

Experts say it was likely an accidental collision as Russian pilots used increasingly aggressive tactics to force the drone to change course.

According to US officials, the MQ-9 Reaper drone was intercepted by two Russian Su-27 jets that dumped fuel on the drone before clipping the propeller and forcing it to crash

“We know the interception was intentional. We know the aggressive behavior was intentional,” Milley said, though it was unclear whether the collision itself was intentional.

Yet the incident over international waters has raised fears that such a mistake or misunderstanding could lead to an escalation of hostilities.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said he had spoken with his Russian counterpart on Wednesday for the first time since October.

“I just got off the phone with my Russian counterpart, Secretary Shoigu,” Austin said at a Pentagon news conference.

“As I have said repeatedly, it is important that great powers be models of transparency and communication, and the United States will continue to fly and operate where international law allows.”

Russia said it made it clear in the call that it sees things differently and that US air operations in the region are a threat.

“Flights by US strategic lethal drones along the coast of Crimea were noted as being provocative in nature and creating conditions for an escalation of the situation in the Black Sea region,” the statement from the Defense Ministry said following Shoigu’s telephone conversation with Austin. .

Earlier, the Kremlin said it would try to retrieve the remains of the drone.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin (left) said he spoke to his Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu (right) for the first time since October on Wednesday

A Russian fighter jet collided with a US MQ-9 Reaper drone (as seen above) over the Black Sea, the US military announced on Tuesday

Two Russian Su-27 fighter jets (file photo) performed an ‘unsafe and unprofessional interception’ in international airspace, US says

“I don’t know if we can get it back or not, but it has to be done. And we will definitely work on it. Of course, I hope for success,” Kremlin Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev told TV channel Rossiya-1,” Reuters reported.

However, Milley downplayed the prospect of losing sensitive technology. He said it sank in four or five thousand feet of water.

“We have no ships there. But we have many allies and friends in the area who will assist in recovery operations,” he said.

“That’s American property, and we’ll leave it at that for now.

“But it probably broke up. There’s probably not much to fix, frankly,

“As for the loss of something sensitive…intelligence etc…as usual we would take – and we’ve taken mitigation measures – so we’re pretty sure anything that was of value is no longer of value.”

Milley and Austin added their voices to those of other officials who had previously said the crash would not prevent the US from flying wherever international law allows, including over the Black Sea.