KYIV — Ukraine’s intelligence chief stood over a satellite map dotted with airfields stretching thousands of miles across Russia. Just hours earlier, dozens of Russian bombers had been hit. Some burned on the tarmac. Others were reduced to mangled wreckage. The operation code-named Spider Web was one of the most ambitious Kyiv has ever claimed.
It had taken 18 months to plan.
On the night of 1 June, over 100 drones took off from inside Russia itself, striking air bases across five regions from Murmansk in the Arctic north to Amur in the Far East, more than 8,000 kilometres from Ukraine’s border.
President Volodymyr Zelensky, who said he personally oversaw the mission, called it a “historic operation.”
“Each drone had its own pilot. Each target was carefully chosen. It took one year, six months and nine days,” he said in a national address. “These are actions that will be written in history books.”
A network hidden in plain sight
Ukrainian officials have not detailed how the drones got so deep into enemy territory. But Vasyl Maliuk, head of Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU), revealed that they were smuggled across the border in wooden cabins mounted on lorries. The trucks had false roofs, removable by remote control.
Videos circulating online some verified by the press show drones lifting off from inside one such lorry. Drivers, apparently unaware of what they were carrying, said they had been paid by anonymous “businessmen” to deliver cabins to remote sites. One man, speaking to Russian state media, said he tried to stop the drones with stones after realising what was happening.
“They were flying out the back,” he said. “We threw rocks to knock them down.”
According to Ukrainian intelligence, the drones were assembled and stored inside Russian warehouses before the launch. Some were reportedly stashed in Chelyabinsk, a major industrial city in central Russia.
High-value targets
Ukraine claims the strike damaged or destroyed 41 strategic bombers heavy aircraft capable of launching cruise missiles at Ukrainian cities. Moscow confirmed attacks in five regions but said only a handful of planes had been hit. It did not specify which ones.
Satellite images from Capella Space, along with drone footage released by Kyiv, appear to show significant damage at at least two air bases Belaya in Irkutsk and Olenegorsk in Murmansk. Charred remains of Tu-95 bombers, Russia’s workhorse long-range strike aircraft, were visible on the ground.
These bombers are not easily replaced. None are still in production.
“The losses Russia suffered here are tangible and just,” Zelensky said. “These are aircraft that bomb our peaceful cities.”
In addition to the bombers, Ukrainian sources say several A-50 radar planes were targeted. These airborne command centres are rare and difficult to protect. Kyiv believes Russia has fewer than ten in service.
The cost of war
Kyiv estimates the damage at around $7 billion (£5.2bn), though that figure cannot be independently verified. Ukrainian officials say no personnel involved in the attack remain on Russian soil. Moscow has made arrests, but hasn’t revealed the suspects or their roles.
In Irkutsk, local authorities briefly posted then deleted a notice seeking a Ukrainian-born man in connection with the Belaya strike.
Dr Steve Wright, a British drone expert, called the operation “extraordinary.”
“To smuggle drones into Russia, assemble them, and then launch from inside the country without being intercepted is highly sophisticated,” he said. “It would have required deep planning, satellite relays, and perhaps help from inside Russia.”
The drones themselves were relatively simple quadcopters, each carrying a small but powerful payload. That simplicity made them hard to track and easy to move in pieces.
Though Kyiv has not confirmed whether the drones were made domestically, it has developed a thriving drone industry during the war. Officials have hinted at expanding their use beyond the battlefield.
Muted response in Moscow
Russian state media largely ignored the attacks. By Monday morning, the story had vanished from major broadcasts. Online, however, military bloggers vented their frustration over the apparent security lapse.
In Ukraine, the mood was jubilant.
“This was a titanic effort,” one commenter wrote on Telegram. “It’s proof that Ukraine can strike where it hurts.”
Still, the risks are growing. Russia has vowed retaliation, and the line between conventional and covert warfare is blurring fast. But in Kyiv, the message was clear.
“We struck military airfields. We hit bombers that level our homes,” said SBU chief Maliuk. “We acted within the laws of war.”
