“On July 23, the Russian fighter flew “dangerously close” to the Reaper and then dropped flares into the drone’s path while just a few meters away from the U.S. aircraft, said Air Force Lt. Gen. Alex Grynkewich, head of U.S. Air Forces Central Command.
One of the flare’s severely damaged the Reaper’s propeller, but the drone’s crew was able to fly it back to its home base, Grynkewich said in a Tuesday news release.”