Russian Pilot ‘tried To Shoot Down’ UK’s RAF Plane With 30 People Onboard Over Black Sea
In a startling incident that could have had severe international repercussions, a Russian pilot fired two missiles towards an UK RAF surveillance plane over the Black Sea. This incident, which occurred last September, has recently come to light, shedding new insights into the tensions between Russia and NATO forces.
The incident, initially attributed to a “technical malfunction” by Russia, has taken a perplexing turn as intercepted communications reveal that one of the Russian pilots believed they had been given permission to target the aircraft following an ambiguous command from a Russian ground station. This misinterpretation of orders set off a chain of events that could have had dire consequences.
Close call for RAF plane
After the pilot’s belief that they had the green light to engage, the first missile was fired but fortunately missed the RAF plane. The second missile, however, failed to launch successfully, sparing the surveillance aircraft from potential catastrophe. Had it reached its intended target, it could have drawn a NATO member into a military confrontation with Russia, escalating tensions in the region.
The encounter took place over the Black Sea, an international airspace, involving two Russian SU-27 fighter jets and an RAF plane carrying a crew of up to 30 people. The situation escalated when one of the Russian pilots received what was interpreted as a command to engage the target. The subsequent release of the air-to-air missile led to a heated argument between the Russian pilots, as the second pilot did not share the same interpretation of the orders.
International response and tensions
The incident’s gravity cannot be overstated, as it was labeled a “near shoot-down” by the US military. The New York Times reported that the incident was far more serious than initially portrayed and could have amounted to an act of war.
In response to these developments, the UK government confirmed the incident and described it as a “potentially dangerous engagement.” Former UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace stated, “We do not consider this incident to constitute a deliberate escalation on the part of the Russians, and our analysis concurs that it was due to a malfunction.”
The UK Ministry of Defence has stated that “this incident is a stark reminder of the potential consequences of Putin’s barbaric invasion of Ukraine.” Since the incident, RAF surveillance flights have been escorted by Typhoon fighter jets armed with air-to-air missiles, underscoring the heightened tensions in the region.
