This is the dramatic moment a Russian Su-25 attack jet was shot out of the sky by a giant fireball after being hit by Ukrainian defenders.
The missile can be seen hitting the left wing and tail of the Russian combat plane – valued at up to £19.5million – which then bursts into flames.
Russian military sources confirmed the strike occurred in the Pokrovsk vicinity of occupied Donetsk region. The area has become known as the Pokrovsk Triangle – with several warplanes shot down previously.
The source also claimed the pilot had ejected safely and ‘everything is fine with him’. The jet was one of two which was down by a portable anti-aircraft.
It comes after an overnight Russian air attack damaged an energy facility in Ukraine’s northern Sumy region, cutting power to 50,400 consumers, Ukrainian officials said.
A Ukrainian military channel said: ‘Two Russian pilots had the insanity to actually fly close to our positions. One of them was instantly punished for his insolence.’
‘It’s burning, I see the plane burning,’ said an exultant voice as well after the strike.
In the overnight attack on Sumy, Ukraine’s air force said on Telegram that its air defence systems destroyed seven out of the eight Russia-launched drones.
Russia also sent a Kh-69 guided air missile, the air force said, but added that as a result of its forces’ countermeasures, the missile “did not reach its target”.
The energy ministry that reported power cuts did not specify the weapon that damaged the facility. According to its statement on Telegram, power has so far been restored to about 24,500 consumers.
There were no casualties in the attack, the region’s military administration said on Telegram.
Russia renewed its long-range strikes on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure this spring, targeting thermal and hydropower stations as well as gas storage facilities.
Ukraine says such strikes have destroyed 9 Gigawatt of power generating capacity across the country, which has led to blackouts in many regions and affected GDP growth.
Today a Ukrainian drone attack is also said to have damaged a ferry and killed one person in Russia’s Port Kavkaz in the southern Krasnodar region.
A fire at the port resulting from the drone strike was later extinguished, the RIA state news agency reported, citing an emergency services source.
Port Kavkaz is located on a narrow spit of land opposite the Crimean peninsula. Ferries based there help to connect Russia’s mainland with Crimea, which Moscow annexed from Ukraine in 2014.