Moment one of Putin’s 228million nuclear bombers tailspins to the ground while on fire over Russia after being blasted by Ukrainian missile [Video]

This is the moment a £228mn Russian nuclear bomber hurtled to the ground in flames over Russia after being struck by a Ukrainian missile this morning.

Video showed the abrupt descent of one of Putin‘s Tu-22M3 strategic bombers, pluming smoke before crashing over the Stavropol region in southern Russia.

The Ukrainian military claimed responsibility for the crash, saying in a statement that it knocked the plane out of the air with anti-aircraft missiles.

All four crew members were reported to have ejected from the stricken plane. They were initially said by Russian sources to be ‘alive’ and were rushed to hospital.

However, a later update corrected that one had died and that rescue teams were still looking for another, reported missing. 

Ukraine has continued to inflict significant losses on Putin’s airforce in recent months, reportedly destroying jets 20 times faster than Russia can replace them.