An “incident” involving a US-made Reaper drone of unknown nationality occurred in the Black Sea, two Western military sources told AFP on Tuesday.
“Something happened,” said a military source without being able to give details about the nature of the “incident,” according to the second source. “We have no confirmation that the drone has been shot down. There is an ongoing investigation,” said one of these sources.
The Black Sea is an area closely monitored by NATO since the start of the war in Ukraine. Its sky is often the theater of interactions between drones and aircraft from NATO countries and the Russian armed forces. “It is possible that diplomatic channels soften what happened” given the highly inflammable situation with Russia, this military source commented.
Drone with flight autonomy of 24 hours of flight
The Reaper drone, manufactured by the American company General Atomics, is a remotely piloted aircraft of the MALE type, -medium altitude and long range. The device is equipped with ultramodern sensors to be able to carry out surveillance operations at a cruising speed of 335km/h.
With a wingspan of 20 meters, it has a range of more than 24 hours of flight. It can also carry various types of weapons, such as laser- or GPS-guided bombs or Hellfire missiles. The crew on the ground is made up of four people.
In addition to the United States, several European militaries have Reaper drones, including the United Kingdom, Italy, France, and Spain.
