Ukraine’s military has begun using specialized aerial rescue drones to evacuate wounded soldiers from the battlefield, carrying two stranded troops to safety near the Russian border in the first such operations, an elite military unit said Monday.

The newly developed StarGate drone, a six-rotor aircraft fitted with an enclosed evacuation capsule, was used in two separate missions over the past week, according to the 475th Separate Assault Regiment.

One of the rescued servicemen, a 24-year-old from the 1st Territorial Defense Brigade identified by his call sign, “Izyum,” told The Associated Press he waited two days to be evacuated and was unable to walk 20 kilometers (12 miles) out of the combat zone. The soldier's name was not given for security reasons and in accordance with Ukraine's military protocol.

“The injury tore off half of my foot, so a lot of blood was lost already,” he said in a video interview from his hospital room.…