Unmanned US drone crashes on Seychelles

An American military drone, which had been used to monitor piracy off the East African coast, has crashed at an airport on the Seychelles during a routine patrol, officials said yesterday.

The US embassy in Mauritius said the unmanned US Air Force MQ-9 Reaper was not armed and that the crash caused no injuries. The crash sparked a fire that was quickly extinguished.

Yesterday's crash follows last week's claim by Iran that it seized a drone identified as the RQ-170 Sentinel. Tehran said it was captured over the country's east. The drone was displayed on state TV.