Preventive reception: what could lead to the fall of the American UAV MQ-9 Reaper in the Black Sea

The European Command of the US Armed Forces (EUCOM) published a video recording of the incident with the Russian Su-27 fighter and the American MQ-9 Reaper drone that fell into the Black Sea.

"On March 14, 2023, two Russian Su-27 aircraft made an unsafe and unprofessional interception of the MQ-9 reconnaissance, surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft of the US Air Force operating in international airspace over the Black Sea. Russian Su-27s dropped fuel on the MQ-9 and struck its propeller, as a result of which American forces had to allow the MQ-9 to fall in international waters, "the description under the video published on the EUCOM YouTube channel says.

Later, the coordinator for strategic communications at the White House National Security Council, John Kirby, said that the United States will continue to conduct intelligence missions in the international space and support Ukraine.

"In general terms, I can say that we continue and will continue these reconnaissance and observation flights in support of our national security interests in the Black Sea region, for the sake of our support for Ukraine and its ability to defend itself," TASS quoted him as saying.

He added that the American side will not comply with the restrictions that Russia has imposed in the airspace in the Black Sea region in connection with the special operation.

The Fall of the Reaper

Recall, on March 14, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reported that over the Black Sea in the area of the Crimean peninsula was recorded the flight of the MQ-9 Reaper ("Reaper") drone in the direction of the state border of the country. The department clarified that the American UAV flew with the transponders turned off and in violation of the boundaries of the area of the temporary regime for the use of airspace established for the purpose of conducting the SVO - information about this sector was previously communicated to all users of international airspace in accordance with international standards.

"In order to identify the intruder, fighters from the air defense duty forces were lifted into the air. As a result of sharp maneuvering at about 09:30 Moscow time, the MQ-9 unmanned aerial vehicle went into uncontrolled flight with a loss of altitude and collided with the water surface, "the MoD noted.

They also stressed that the Russian fighters did not use on-board weapons, did not come into contact with UAVs and safely returned to the home airfield.

After that, the State Department summoned Russian Ambassador Anatoly Antonov for a conversation with Deputy Secretary of State Karen Donfried. The diplomat rejected the accusations against the Russian military and at the same time criticized the activities of the United States near the borders of the Russian Federation.

"The unacceptable activities of the US military in the immediate vicinity of our borders are of concern. We are well aware of the purpose for which such unmanned reconnaissance and strike vehicles are used," Antonov said in a statement published by the embassy's press service.

Later, at the initiative of Washington, telephone conversations were held on the incident between Defense Ministers Sergei Shoigu and Lloyd Austin, as well as the Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces Valery Gerasimov and the Chairman of the Committee of Chiefs of Staff of the US Armed Forces Mark Milley.

According to the press service of the Ministry of Defense, Shoigu pointed out to his American counterpart that the cause of the incident with the drone was the failure of the American side to comply with the flight restriction zone. He also noted that the flights of US strategic drones off the coast of Crimea are provocative, which creates prerequisites for the escalation of the situation in the Black Sea zone.

The minister stressed that Russia is not interested in such a development of events, but will continue to respond to all provocations "proportionately."

Commenting on the situation, the Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation Nikolai Patrushev said in an interview with the author of the program "Moscow. Kremlin. Putin" to Pavel Zarubin that Russia will try to raise the wreckage of the MQ-9 Reaper to the surface and "will definitely do it." And the head of the SVR, Sergei Naryshkin, stressed that the Russian Federation has the technical capabilities to detect and study the wreckage of the American UAV.

At the same time, CNN journalists, citing government sources, reported that the Pentagon allegedly remotely erased the software of the fallen MQ-9 Reaper to prevent classified information from falling into the hands of the Russian military.

Shock Scout

The MQ-9 Reaper is a reconnaissance and strike drone developed by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems. This UAV made its first flight in 2001.

"Reaper is used primarily for intelligence gathering and secondarily for hitting dynamic targets. Given its ability to stay in the air for a considerable time, as well as the presence of broad-spectrum sensors, a multi-mode communication complex and high-precision weapons, it provides a unique opportunity to strike, coordinate and conduct reconnaissance against high-value, fast-moving and chronologically sensitive targets, "the description of the UAV on the official website of the US Air Force says.

• MQ-9 Reaper
• Legion-Media
• © Piemags

According to Western media, it was the MQ-9 Reaper that was used to deliver the strike, which killed the commander of the Al-Quds Special Forces of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, General Qasem Soleimani.

The power of its engine is 900 liters. c., the maximum take-off weight is 4.7 tons with a maximum flight altitude of 15.2 km. It can accelerate to 445 km / h with a maximum range of use of 1.85 thousand km.

The MQ-9 Reaper is capable of carrying AGM-114 Hellfire missiles, as well as various types of laser-guided aerial bombs of the GBU family. The cost of one such UAV is up to $ 30 million.

No contact

Military expert Yuri Lyamin, commenting on the video published by the US military, stated that it serves as additional evidence that Russian aircraft did not use weapons against the MQ-9 Reaper.

"Judging by the video, they maneuvered near the UAV, trying to force it to turn around and leave the airspace without using weapons. For this, fuel dumping was used, "the expert explained in an interview with RT.

At the same time, the video does not shed light on how exactly the Reaper received the damage that led to its fall into the Black Sea, Lyamin noted.

"The dumping of fuel itself is a precautionary technique that was used during the Cold War to force the offending aircraft to change course. By itself, dumping fuel cannot cause a drone to fall. However, the video does not show the alleged contact between the Su-27 and the drone, as stated in the Pentagon, "the military analyst explained.

In turn, the honored military pilot of the Russian Federation, retired Major General Vladimir Popov, in a conversation with RT, suggested that its incorrect maneuvering most likely led to the fall of the American UAV.

"From the passing aircraft there is a turbulent trace, there is a disruption of the flow of flow around the wing. When the maximum mode of operation of the engine is turned on at this time, the turbulence in the air masses increases significantly, and the flow around the straight wing of such a large span (in the MQ-9 Reaper it is 20 m) is much more susceptible to large turbulent changes. Somewhere the disruption of the flow occurred, somewhere the lifting force decreased or increased, his control systems could not even cope. All this could lead to his breakdown into a corkscrew, into an uncontrolled flight. The specialists who controlled it could hurry up to change the flight mode and introduce additional deviations into the control system, "the pilot said.

At the same time, he expressed the opinion that it is necessary to first assess the condition of the wreckage of the American drone, and only then try to raise it from the bottom of the Black Sea.

"All strategic drones have self-destruction systems. It is possible that it could be put into action. Therefore, it is necessary to assess the depth and area of the fall, to calculate the cost of the operation, so that the search and evacuation of debris are justified, "Popov believes.

From his point of view, the incident with the American UAV is unlikely to have any impact on the security of Crimea. "We will continue to defend our interests, the air defense system will continue to work. Only now Russia will control this part of the airspace even more tightly, "the expert concluded.