Ukraine's 'Operation Spider Web': Ingenious Drone Attack on Russian Air Bases

Operation Spider Web: The Attack

• 🎯 Ukrainian forces executed a complex attack on five Russian air bases deep inside Russia, utilizing drones to strike dozens of nuclear bombers and other aircraft.
• 💥 The operation, dubbed 'Operation Spider Web,' caught Russian forces by complete surprise, resulting in significant damage and destruction.
• 💰 The estimated cost of the destroyed aircraft, many of which are no longer manufactured by Russia, is at least $7 billion.
• ⚠️ Ukraine claims to have destroyed over one-third of Russia's strategic bombers, critical components of its nuclear deterrent.

The Ingenious Deployment Method

• 💡 The core of the operation involved an ingenious method: attack drones were stashed inside the roofs of wooden sheds.
• 🚚 These sheds were loaded onto trucks and driven to the perimeter of the air bases.
• ⚙️ At the opportune moment, a remotely activated device lifted the roof panels, allowing the 117 drones to launch and execute their attacks.

Preparation and Execution

• 🕵️‍♂️ Ukrainian operatives involved in the attack were smuggled back out of Russia on the eve of the operation.
• ⏳ The entire operation, which reportedly did not have prior White House warning, took more than a year and a half to prepare.
• 📰 Pro-Moscow military bloggers have described the strike as the 'Russian Pearl Harbor' due to its shocking success.
• ✈️ The targeted aircraft, originally designed for nuclear deterrence, had been converted and were being used to launch cruise missiles against Ukraine.