The crash occurred in the early morning around 3:40 am at Diori Hamani International airport, according to AFP, which added that the runway was closed for nearly nine hours to enable crews to repair the damage.
In a statement by the US Air Forces in Europe and Africa, it was revealed that the drone was an unarmed MQ-9 Reaper, which is remotely operated and capable of maintaining airborne surveillance efforts for dozens of hours.
"The US government is working closely with the government of Niger to secure the scene and mitigate inconveniences caused by the incident," the statement read, as quoted by AFP. "The cause of the incident is currently under investigation."
The use of surveillance drones over Niger has been a common occurrence since 2013, when the United States started the practice in an attempt to bolster French troops battling Islamist militants in neighboring Mali. Roughly 1,200 French soldiers are trying to contain an insurgency that erupted in 2012.
Comment: Are you in the UK?
Did you even know this was going on?
But you are certainly aware that Occupy protests are taking place in Hong Kong.
Strange that, don't you think?
Anyway, the police cleared the protesters out of Parliament Square this morning... because it's illegal to protest in London without state approval.