Posters displayed in the northwestern city of Saint Petersburg showed a plane against a national flag. But instead of a Russian jet, it was in fact a Chinese Chengdu J-10, or Vigorous Dragon.

The slip, reproduced in around 250 posters, was an error by the designer, who was unfamiliar with military planes, said the head of the city's media committee, Alexander Korennikov.

"It was the designer's fault. If you are not a specialist in military hardware, it is an easy thing to do," he said.

"The problem was that the images were printed and put up before being checked and agreed with the media committee."

The mistake was spotted at the end of last week and the posters were due to be removed by the end of Tuesday, on the eve of the holiday, Korennikov said.

On Wednesday, Russians celebrate the Day of the Defenders of the Fatherland, a public holiday when women traditionally give cards and gifts to men who served in the armed forces, although it has lately expanded to include all men.

China suffered a similar loss of face in January, when Internet users noticed that a state television report on air force manoeuvres featured footage from the 1980s Hollywood film "Top Gun".

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