Russia struggled to push the Ukrainians into the river after its planes were shot down, intel says, showing how a surprising failure at the war's start is still a problem

• Russia had relied on air support to attack Ukrainian advances in a southern sector of the front.
• But Kyiv recently shot down several fighter jets, putting that strategy in jeopardy.  
• It all comes back to key failures Russia made at the start of the war, Western intelligence says.

Russia has been unable to effectively drive Ukrainian forces from a key battlefield sector after the recent loss of several aircraft in combat. It shows how a surprising failure at the start of the full-scale war continues to haunt Moscow, according to Western intelligence.