Ukraine Says It Shot Down Another Russian A-50 Surveillance Plane

(MENAFN- IANS) Kiev, Feb 24 (IANS) Ukrainian Air Force Commander Mykola Oleschuk has said that the Ukrainian military shot down another Russian A-50 surveillance aircraft.

"I am grateful to the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry and all those who ensured the result," Oleschuk said in a Telegram post on Friday.

The Ukrainian forces continue their work, Oleschuk added.

The Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said in a statement that the plane lost speed and height near the city of Yeysk in Russia's southern Krasnodar region, Xinhua news agency reported.

Russia used the plane as an air command post for long-range radar detection, control and guidance for strikes on Ukraine with missiles from strategic aviation, the intelligence said.

It estimated the aircraft's value at $350 million.

Last month, Valery Zaluzhny, then a chief commander of the armed forces of Ukraine, said the Ukrainian air force had destroyed a Russian A-50 plane in an area close to the Sea of Azov.

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