A Russian Su-27 fighter jet launched a missile at a British Boeing RC-135W Rivet Joint reconnaissance aircraft over the Black Sea

By: Maksim Panasovskiy | 20.10.2022, 22:09
A Russian Su-27 fighter jet launched a missile at a British Boeing RC-135W Rivet Joint reconnaissance aircraft over the Black Sea

British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said that a Russian fighter jet launched a missile at an unarmed British plane in September.

Here's What We Know

The incident occurred on September 29 over the Black Sea. A Boeing RC-135W Rivet Joint strategic reconnaissance aircraft of the British Royal Air Force was on a territory patrol mission. When it encountered two Su-27s, one of the Russian fighters fired a missile.

After the incident, Ben Wallace spoke to Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and expressed concern about the "potentially dangerous" actions of the Russian pilots. Russia said it conducted an investigation, which found that the rocket launch was due to a technical failure. Moscow also acknowledged that the incident took place in international airspace.

After the launch of the missile, Britain temporarily halted flights. Now the Boeing RC-135W Rivet Joint continues patrolling, but now accompanied by fighters of the Royal Air Force of Great Britain.

Source: The Telegraph