Myanmar pro-democracy guerillas on Friday claimed a drone attack that shut the nation's second-biggest airport, saying they targeted military jets stationed at the aviation hub.
Mandalay airport in central Myanmar was raided by six "suicide drones" on Thursday afternoon, the military-backed government said in a statement, causing no casualties but disrupting flight schedules.
The statement accused rebels of targeting "a non-military, public transportation system".
The People's Defence Forces rebel group, claiming responsibility for the attack, said they had targeted Russian-made Yak-130 fighter jets housed by the runway.
The People's Defence Forces are the largest pro-democracy guerilla group to form after the military triggered civil war with a 2021 coup ousting the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi.
A statement shared on the group's Facebook page said three of its members had been killed staging the attack.
It accused the government of "disseminating deceptive propaganda to make it appear as though civic Mandalay International Airport, located opposite the airbase, was the target".
A security source told AFP the airport was "closed protectively" for most of Friday before being reopened around 4:00 pm (0930 GMT).
Mandalay airport is an international and domestic travel hub, but civilian air raid warning groups frequently identify it as a runway for military jets launching sorties in the civil war.
After five years of conflict, the military is now on the offensive against the myriad of pro-democracy and ethnic minority guerrilla groups it is battling.
Thursday's apparent drone raid was a rare acknowledged rebel attack in one of Myanmar's large urban areas, which have generally remained a stronghold for the military.
It was not possible to verify the civilian or military nature of the attack site, but AFP reporters have in the past seen military aircraft flying over Mandalay airport.
Rebel groups and Myanmar's military are both now using drones in the civil war, which some monitors say has killed more than 100,000 people.
However, the military's air force, stocked with Chinese- and Russian-made jets, has proven vital in fending off opposition factions, analysts say.
The air wing has also been accused of targeting civilians at schools, monasteries and public festivals -- inflicting mass casualties flagged by rights groups as potential war crimes.
