Russia-Ukraine war: How Ukraine's drones broke through and hit vital Russian airbases
High-resolution satellite images
show Russian airbases deep inside Russia, packed with strategic bombers, transport planes, and airborne warning aircraft. Despite these visible defences, Ukraine's daring drone attacks under
Operation Spider Web
targeted five bases hundreds, even thousands, of kilometres inside Russian territory — some as far as 8,000 km from the frontline.
Inside the targeted airbases
The bases hit were Belaya in Siberia's Irkutsk region, Olenya in the Arctic Murmansk area, Ivanovo Severny near Ivanovo city, Dyagilevo in Ryazan, and Ukrainka in Russia's Far East.
At Belaya, satellite pictures show Russia's Tu-160 bombers — key to their air power — protected by tyres on their wings and fuselage. Decoys painted on the tarmac mimicked aircraft, designed to fool drones into attacking fake targets. Yet these measures failed. Videos from the airbase reveal plumes of black smoke rising after the strikes.
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Olenya air base showed Tu-22 and Tu-95 bombers parked side-by-side. The Tu-95, a nuclear-capable strategic bomber, suffered heavy damage. Satellite images reveal smoke billowing from the base, and Ukraine claims to have destroyed or damaged multiple aircraft there.
Ivanovo Severny housed Russia's advanced A-50 AWACS aircraft — prized for early warning. Several of these have been lost over the war, and Ukraine claims hits on the few remaining, threatening Russian air defence capability.
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At Dyagilevo, aerial refuelling tankers — Ilyushin IL-78s — were also camouflaged with painted decoys, but Ukraine's drones penetrated. Ukrainka, the farthest base, also had Tu-95 bombers visible in the images.
The attack and its impact
Ukraine launched 117 drones concealed in container trucks, striking with precision across the bases. This Trojan-horse style operation destroyed or damaged an estimated 41 Russian military jets, according to Kyiv.
Experts examining synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images from Capella Space, shared with Reuters, confirmed extensive damage. John Ford, research associate at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies, said: 'They showed what appeared to be the remnants of two destroyed Tu-22 Backfires.' He added the images, along with drone footage, indicated four heavy Tu-95 bombers were destroyed or severely damaged.
Open source analyst Brady Africk said, 'The attack on this airbase was very successful. The aircraft targeted were a mix of Tu-22 and Tu-95 bombers, both used by Russia to strike Ukraine.' He also noted the decoy aircraft at Belaya failed to mislead the Ukrainian drones.
A blow to Russian morale, a boost for Kyiv
Moscow had presumed its inner airbases were safe, given their distance from Ukraine. Western missile supplies like US ATACMS and UK-France's Storm Shadow lack the range to reach so deep into Russia. Yet Ukraine's drones circumvented this, delivering a major psychological blow to Russia's air force.
While Russia still holds air superiority overall, the strikes dent Moscow's morale and lift Kyiv's spirits.
Days before the drone strikes, Ukraine's SBU security service reported a major underwater explosion damaging the Kerch Bridge, connecting Russia to occupied Crimea. Lt Gen Vasyl Maliuk of the SBU called it 'an absolutely legitimate target' due to its use as a supply route by Russian forces.
Meanwhile, Russian rocket attacks in Ukrainian cities like Sumy and Kharkiv continued, killing civilians. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned these 'completely deliberate' strikes as proof of Russia's intent to prolong the war.
Peace talks in Istanbul recently stalled, with Russian officials signalling no desire for compromise. Zelenskyy's team accused Russia of manipulating talks to buy time and avoid sanctions.
In response, Britain announced a £350m package to supply 100,000 drones to Ukraine by April 2026, reinforcing Kyiv's growing drone warfare capabilities.
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