Russian aircraft fired missile close to unarmed RAF plane over Black Sea

While updating MPs over the Ukraine war, United Kingdom's Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said that a Russian aircraft had released a missile close to an unarmed RAF plane over the Black Sea. The defence secretary stated that the incident occurred on September 29, and Russia acknowledged that it happened in international airspace.

He said the RAF jet was on its routine patrol during which it was "shadowed" by two Russian armed SU-27 planes. One of those two Russian armed aircraft released a missile near the RAF plane, Wallace added.

However, he noted that the incident did not seem to be a "deliberate escalation." But he called it a "potentially dangerous engagement." Wallace also said that the incident showed that the Russian military was "not beyond" deciding that the rules did not "apply to them."


The defence secretary also stressed that this was not the first time a Russian fighter has come "very close" to the US and UK NATO aircraft. Wallace termed it "reckless" as it can put many lives at risk.




According to Russia, the Black Sea incident occurred due to a "technical malfunction." The British defence secretary stated that their investigation had also found the same reason behind the incident.

He said that the total interaction time between the Rivet Joint and the Russian aircraft was around 90 minutes, and the RAF plane returned to the base after completing the patrol.

FAQs

1. . Where did the Russian aircraft release a missile close to an unarmed RAF plane?
   The incident occurred over the Black Sea.
2. Who is Ben Wallace?
   Ben Wallace is the British defence secretary.