Moment Russian-held bridge disappears in cloud of smoke after attack by British drones

Ukrainian forces have used British drones to destroy a crucial Russian-held bridge in the occupied Kherson region, southern Ukraine, in a first-of-its-kind operation. The mission, which took place in March last year, saw the crossing, over the Konka River, repeatedly attacked by Malloy T-150 heavy-lift drones during a two-month campaign.

This is believed to be the first case of a drone-led combat operation taking out a bridge. The mission was initially deemed impossible, but eventually the barrage of attacks saw two sections of the bridge go crashing into the river in a huge cloud of smoke. It largely wrecked Vladimir Putin's army's ability to strike the besieged city of Kherson on the right bank of the River Dnipro. "Bridges are relatively easy to destroy from underneath," Col Oleksii Bulakhov said. "But they are engineered in a way that makes them extremely robust from the outside."

The T-150 drones are manufactured by Malloy Aeronautics, a subsidiary of British defence company BAE Systems. These were not originally designed to be used as weapons - they were created to herd cattle in the Australian outback.

The bridge had been earlier struck in the war, but was still usable for military supplies until the drone attacks. The strike was close to the occupied town of Oleshky and reportedly came as a "complete shock" to the occupying Russians, inside the only regional capital occupied by Russia since Moscow's full-scale invasion.

The UK has supplied Ukraine with extensive military aid, including advanced weapons like Storm Shadow missiles, Challenger 2 tanks and M270 long-range rocket systems. These systems, along with anti-tank (NLAW) and air-defence missiles, like Starstreak and RAVEN, are heavily used to target Russian military infrastructure, including in deep strikes against targets inside Russia.

Storm Shadow missiles have been used to strike high-value Russian military sites, such as chemical plants producing explosives, penetrating Russian air defences. Challenger 2 tanks, AS90 armoured 155mm howitzers and M270 multiple-launch rocket systems (MLRS), meanwhile, have been used to counter Russian artillery.

The UK is now also developing powerful long-range ballistic missiles that can destroy Russian targets from over 300 miles away. Nightfall rockets - which are packed with 200 kilo warheads, can be fired in quick succession and reach as far as Moscow.

The Ministry of Defence has sought British firms to design, develop and deliver the first three test missiles under a £9million contract.