Ukrainian Operation Spider's Web

Last updated on June 13, 2025

Background and Strategic Context

On June 1, 2025, Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) initiated Operation Spider’s Web, a carefully planned covert drone assault targeting five Russian air bases—Belaya, Dyagilevo, Ivanovo Severny, Olenya, and Ukrainka—spanning five time zones deep inside Russian territory. The operation was the culmination of over 18 months of preparation, managed under the direct guidance of SBU head Vasyl Malyuk and President Zelenskyy .

Planning, Logistics, and Tradecraft

Drone deployment leveraged 117 Ukrainian-made Osa FPV quadcopters, each carrying explosive payloads. These drones were covertly smuggled into Russia hidden inside wooden modular cabins mounted on flatbed trucks driven by unwitting Russian drivers . As the trucks neared target bases, drivers received phone instructions to park, remotely raised the cabin roofs, and released the drones . Agents assembled and loaded the drones in a warehouse near Chelyabinsk, then safely departed before launch .

Technology and Targeting Systems

Navigation relied on ArduPilot, a nearly 20‑year‑old open‑source autopilot software enabling waypoint navigation and resilience to GPS jamming . Real-time targeting employed AI-assisted image recognition to identify aircraft features such as wing fuel tanks; deep-learning models were trained using imagery of Tu-22M3 from the Poltava museum . The FPV drones had fail-safe autonomy to complete missions even if communications dropped .

Execution and Damage Assessment

The strike inflicted damage across multiple air bases:

• Olenya (Murmansk region): Four Tu-95 bombers and an An-12 transport were destroyed by drones launched from a fuel station-used truck; local reports confirm at least ten separate blasts .
• Belaya (Irkutsk Oblast, Siberia): Confirmed destruction of three Tu-95 and one Tu-22M3, with evidence of additional damage—marking the first Ukrainian strike in Siberia .
• Ivanovo Severny: A-50 AWACS radar domes and strategic bombers were struck, though assessments vary on exact damage scope .
• Dyagilevo: Several explosions occurred, but no bombing aircraft were confirmed destroyed; some peripheral infrastructure was damaged .
• Ukrainka: Targeting attempt failed when the transport truck caught fire before drone deployment .

Ukrainian official figures asserting 41 aircraft hit with at least 13 destroyed, while U.S. assessments report 20 struck, including 10 destroyed—together representing roughly one-third of Russia’s strategic bomber force . The financial damage totaled approximately US $7 billion, achieved with drones costing barely a few thousand dollars each .

Technological and Tactical Innovations

• FPV drones + AI: Capable of autonomous navigation and lock-on even without satellite guidance. Their success highlights a potent combination of affordability, autonomy, and precision.

• Tradecraft: The operation fused skilled espionage—recruitment of sleeper agents, covert assembly sites near Chelyabinsk, and coordination of launch logistics—with advanced tech, amplifying operational stealth.

• Logistics depth: Demonstrated Ukraine’s capacity to infiltrate deep into Russia, smuggling entire arsenals, while maintaining plausible deniability and minimal exposure of SBU assets.

Strategic and Psychological Effects

• Military revision: Russia has dispersed its remaining bomber fleet and relocated aircraft to more distant bases—confirmed by satellite imagery as of June 12, 2025.

• Air-defense ramp-up: Kremlin is testing advanced anti-drone laser systems and intensifying multi-layered air defenses.

• Escalatory pressure: U.S. envoy Keith Kellogg warned the attack “increased risk levels,” touching on nuclear brinkmanship.

• Psychological blow: The unprecedented penetration into Russia’s "safe zones" has eroded confidence in airbase invulnerability and prompted NATO to reevaluate basing vulnerability and drone-defense postures.