Video footage released by the U.S. Air Forces Central shows Russian fighter jets flying dangerously close to American drones over Syria on Wednesday, with the MQ-Reapers forced to take evasive action after the jets set off flares. The footage shows a Russian SU-35 flying close to a Reaper and dropping parachute flares into the drone’s flightpath. “Additionally, one Russian pilot positioned their aircraft in front of an MQ-9 and engaged afterburner, dynamically increasing speed and air pressure, which reduced the MQ-9 operator’s ability to safely operate the aircraft,” the U.S. Air Forces Central said in a statement. “These events represent a new level of unprofessional and unsafe action by Russian air forces operating in Syria.”
