Moscow (AFP) - Russian air defense forces shot down a Ukrainian drone on Sunday night as it approached an air base in southern Russia, killing three people when its wreckage fell, Russian news agencies reported.

"On December 26, at around 01:35 Moscow time (22:35 GMT), a Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicle was shot down at low altitude as it approached the Engels military airfield in the Saratov region," said TASS news agency, quoting the Russian Defense Ministry. .

She added that "as a result of the fall of the wreckage of the plane, three Russian servicemen and technicians who were at the airport were fatally wounded."

On December 5, Moscow reported that Ukrainian drones had caused explosions at Engels Airport and another base in the Ryazan region.

The TASS news agency quoted the Defense Ministry as confirming that no planes were damaged.