Major General Lipovoy: the MQ-9 that fell in the Black Sea could conduct reconnaissance of the Turkish StreamMOSCOW, 17 Mar – RIA Novosti.
The American MQ-9 Reaper drone that fell in the Black Sea flew over the part of the Black Sea where the Turkish Stream gas pipeline runs, which indirectly indicates possible plans of the States to carry out sabotage on it, according to the chairman of the presidium of the All-Russian organization "Officers of Russia" Hero of Russia Major General Sergei Lipovoy.
"The drone in that area turned out to be no coincidence. It was located where the Turkish Stream pipeline runs along the bottom of the Black Sea. This once again shows that America does not abandon the goals that it pursued in the Baltic Sea, and now it pursues these goals in the Black Sea," he said on Friday during a press conference "Who will get the American drone that fell into the Black Sea?". According to him, the exploration in the area of the Turkish Stream can be considered as "new indirect evidence of US involvement in the explosion on the "Northern Streams" in the Baltic Sea."
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| Infographic; The MQ-9 incident. |
| Source: ria.ru |
As reported by the Russian Defense Ministry, on Tuesday morning, an American MQ-9 Reaper drone with its transponders turned off violated the boundaries of the area over the Black Sea, where a temporary regime for the use of airspace was established during its operation. According to the ministry, the UAV was flying towards the Russian border in Crimea, Russian fighter jets were lifted into the air to identify the intruder. Due to the abrupt maneuvering, the drone went into an uncontrolled flight with a loss of altitude and fell into the water, the Ministry of Defense noted.
The Russian fighters, according to the statement of the military department, did not come into contact with the MQ-9, did not use airborne weapons and returned safely to the home airfield.
Meanwhile, the European command of the US Armed Forces claims that a Russian Su-27 aircraft allegedly collided with an American MQ-9 unmanned aerial vehicle, as a result of which the latter fell into international waters near the Black Sea.