Ukraine shoots down two Russian spy aircraft in south-east

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Ukraine said it had shot down two Russian spy planes over the Sea of Azov region, dealing a significant blow to Moscow’s air power.

“Soldiers of the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine destroyed the enemy A-50 long-range radar detection aircraft and the Il-22 airborne command post of the enemy,” Ukraine’s commander-in-chief of the armed forces Valeriy Zaluzhny confirmed on Telegram on Monday.

He shared a clip from a radar screen that appeared to show the planes disappearing over the sea and thanked the air force for “the excellently planned and conducted operation in Azov region” late on Sunday.

If proven, the downing of the two command and control aircraft represents a significant boost to Ukraine’s counteroffensive nearly two years since Russia launched its full-scale invasion. The sophisticated surveillance planes are key to Russia’s co-ordination of ground operations.

Mykola Oleshchuk, Ukraine’s air force commander further confirmed the attacks, writing on Telegram: “This is for Dnipro! Burn in hell, you bastards!” referring to recent Russian air strikes on the south-eastern city.

Ukrainian defence sources said the A-50, an airborne early warning and control jet, was shot down shortly after take-off near Kyrylivka, a coastal town on the northern Azov coast in the occupied region of Zaporizhzhia, at 9.10pm local time. Around the same time, the Il-22 airborne command post was struck and damaged.

The Sea of Azov, which is situated north of the annexed peninsula of Crimea and the Black Sea, lies between Ukraine and Russia but is wholly controlled by the latter since the war began.

Ukraine’s military did not say what was used to strike the planes and it has few domestically produced…