Russian fighter jet collides with American surveillance aircraft over Black Sea

A Russian fighter jet has collided with a US surveillance drone, causing enough damage to force the unmanned aircraft to crash-land in international waters.

A statement from the US European Command says that prior to the collision, two Russian military Su-27 aircraft conducted an "unsafe and unprofessional intercept" with the US Air Force MQ-9 aircraft operating over the Black Sea.

"Our MQ-9 aircraft was conducting routine operations in international airspace when it was intercepted and hit by a Russian aircraft, resulting in a crash and complete loss of the MQ-9," said US Air Force General James B Hecker, commander, US Air Forces Europe and Air Forces Africa.

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He added: "In fact, this unsafe and unprofessional act by the Russians nearly caused both aircraft to crash."

The MQ-9 Reaper is a remotely piloted medium-altitude, long-endurance aircraft designed for Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance (ISTAR), and attack missions.