The Russian aircraft fired flares at a US drone flying over Syria, damaging its propeller, the US military said. Lieutenant General Alex Grynkewichhead of US Air Forces Central Said Sunday's incident occurred when the Russian fighter jet came close to the US MQ-9 drone on a defeat-ISIS mission and deployed flares from a spot directly overhead. The flare position is coming dangerously close to the UAS with only a few meters separation.

One of the Russian flares damaged the US MQ-9 badly, destroying its propeller. However, after sustaining damage, the MQ-9 crew managed to maintain flight and safely brought it back to its base. Grynkewich said he was concerned about a Russian fighter’s disregard for flight safety, which diminishes the mission to defeat ISIS. He told Russian forces in Syria to stop such reckless and impolite behavior immediately.

Incidents are in the series of encounters between Russian fighter jets and US aircraft in Syrian airspace. Earlier incidents have also been reported, where Russian jets engaged in unsafe and unprofessional behavior near US aircraft. Currently, American analysts are trying to find the reasons behind the heightened aggressive actions by Russian forces.

The American military is begging Russia to live up to professional norms of behavior and not have accidents with potential loss of life. The tense situation in Syrian airspace calls for all parties to display caution and respect established norms and protocols, and avoid any further escalations.