President Volodymyr Zelensky has sacked the commander of Ukraine’s air force amid debate over the destruction of one of the country’s valuable new F-16 fighter jets.

Mr Zelensky did not specify the reason for dismissing Lt Gen Mykola Oleshchuk, but said he had a responsibility to “take care of all our warriors”.

The US-made F-16 – one of several delivered earlier this month by Ukraine’s Western allies – went down on Monday, killing the pilot.

Even though it happened during a barrage of Russian missiles, Ukraine said the cause of the crash was not a direct result of an enemy strike, and Lt Gen Oleshchuk sparred with some politicians over who was to blame for the loss.