Video shows moment Russian fighter jet hits US drone over Black Sea

US subject has released footage of a Russian pitchy crashing into 1 of its drones implicit the Black Sea.

The US said the harm to the ample drone meant it had to beryllium brought down into the h2o adjacent Ukraine connected Tuesday.

Russia denied its SU-27 combatant pitchy clipped the propeller of the drone, but the video appears to backmost up the American mentation of events.

It was successful the Pentagon's involvement to merchandise this video - not slightest to verify its mentation of events.

The BBC has not seen the events earlier oregon aft the collision. The US initially said the confrontation lasted astir 30-40 minutes.

On Wednesday night, US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said: "We stay assured successful the facts we've conveyed truthful far."

He said past the Pentagon was looking astatine what video could beryllium released. It is not antithetic for militaries to instrumentality immoderate clip to declassify video footage earlier making it public.

Mr Austin antecedently described Russia's actions arsenic dangerous and reckless - and the edited video released appears to backmost that up.

A provender from a camera fitted nether the fuselage of the surveillance drone shows a Russian SU-27 making 2 highly adjacent passes portion releasing, what appears to be, substance arsenic it approaches.

In the archetypal walk it seems to mire the lens of the camera. The 2nd walk is adjacent person - disrupting the video provender from the remotely piloted aircraft.

When the representation returns a leaf of the drone's propeller astatine the backmost of the craft tin beryllium seen bent retired of shape.

Russia has claimed the drone was approaching its territory, but each we tin spot from the video is sea, entity and cloud.

The US insists the drone was being operated successful planetary aerial space.

In a connection released hours aft the crash, the US said Russian jets dumped substance connected the drone respective times earlier the collision.

Pentagon spokesperson Brig Gen Pat Ryder told reporters the drone was "unflyable and uncontrollable", adding the collision besides apt damaged the Russian aircraft.

Russia's defence ministry said the drone crashed aft a "sharp manoeuvre", and that it was flying with its transponders (communication devices) turned off.

The Kremlin has not yet responded to the merchandise of the US video.