At the end of 2021, while Russia reinforced its troops on the borders of Ukraine, several NATO countries, in particular the United States, Great Britain and France, carried out intelligence missions in the region of the black Sea. Obviously, this activity increased after the start of the war, which could have given rise to several incidents.
Thus, in February, the Minister of the Armed Forces, Sébastien Lecornu, revealed that a “Russian air control system threatened to shoot down French planes in the Black Sea while they were in an internationally free zone”. Earlier, it was reported by its British counterpart that a Su-27 “Flanker” fighter fired an air-to-air missile near a Royal Air Force RC-135 Rivet Joint intelligence aircraft. [RAF]. Officially, the Russian pilot allegedly “misinterpreted the orders”…
To date, the only incident resulting in the loss of an aircraft occurred on March 14, 2023. On that day, an Su-27 collided with a MALE drone [Moyenne Altitude Longue Endurance] MQ-9 Reaper of the US Air Force, while operating in the international airspace of the Black Sea. But the Pentagon was careful not to speak openly of an intentional act.
In any case, intelligence missions continue…at a pace that is undoubtedly even higher. Especially since the American forces have deployed new means, such as the MQ-4C Triton, a HALE drone [Haute Altitude Longue Endurance] equipped with a battery of radars, electro-optical cameras and enhanced electronic warfare capabilities. Operating from the Sigonella base, this aircraft is regularly sent over the Black Sea, but also off the coast of Libya.
Other HALE drones, such as the MQ-4 Global Hawk, are also requested for such missions, alongside different types of aircraft dedicated to intelligence. The US Air Force has them, as does NATO, under the title of the “allied ground surveillance capability” [AGS – Alliance Ground Surveillance].
However, for several days, the Russian authorities have been raising their voice with regard to this activity, which they suspect of having the aim of helping Ukraine prepare and carry out strikes against their military infrastructure. After threatening to shoot down American drones used for ISR missions [renseignement, surveillance, reconnaissance]the Russian General Staff recently announced the deployment in the Black Sea region of MiG-31 “Foxhound” fighters, capable of shooting down a Global Hawk or Triton flying at an altitude of over 18,000 meters.
This announcement was quickly followed by a “fox”, Russian military bloggers having claimed, on June 24, that a MiG-31 had shot down an American Global Hawk. This allegation was quickly denied, including by the Kremlin.
It all started with an article in the Russian daily Izvestia, which reported that the day before, a Global Hawk was not far from Crimea at the time of a strike launched by Ukrainian forces with ATACMS missiles against Sevastopol. Although the strike was foiled by Russian air defenses, the debris from the devices destroyed in flight killed at least four people and injured more than 150 among those who were on a beach.
According to real-time air traffic tracking sites, a Global Hawk was very close to Crimea at the time of the strike… but returned safely to Sigonella a few hours later.
Regardless, the Russians are convinced: these drones provide targeting data to the Ukrainians. After Moscow threatened Washington with retaliatory measures following the June 23 strike, the Russian Defense Ministry issued a new warning.
American drone flights in the Black Sea “increase the likelihood of incidents in the airspace with aircraft of the Russian Aerospace Forces, which increases the risk of a direct confrontation between NATO and the Russian Federation. The NATO countries would be responsible,” he first warned, on June 28, via a press release.
And added that the Minister of Defense, Andrei Beloussov, had ordered “to take measures to respond quickly to provocations”. It remains to be seen whether the Russian Aerospace Forces will move from words to action…
