Before-and-After Satellite Images Reveal Russian 'Pearl Harbor' Devastation
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
Newly available satellite imagery reveals the devastating aftermath of Ukraine's long-range drone strike on multiple Russian airbases in what pro-Moscow bloggers are calling "Russia's Pearl Harbor."
The operation, codenamed "Operation Spiderweb," saw the deployment of 117 drones that targeted at least four strategic sites deep inside Russian territory. The drones were smuggled across the border, placed in wooden containers with removable roofs fixed on trucks.
The Belaya air base in Irkutsk Oblast, more than 2,500 miles from Ukraine's border, bore the brunt of the assault. Ukrainian intelligence reported the destruction of at least 13 aircraft across all targeted sites. Satellite images provided to Newsweek from Maxar Technologies shows rows of strategic bombers reduced to scorched wreckage.
A wide-angle before-and-after image of Belaya air base shows intact bomber aircraft in revetments replaced by charred remains and blackened craters.
Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) stated that the drone barrage disabled 34 percent of Russia's cruise missile bomber fleet and inflicted an estimated $7 billion in damage. Among the aircraft confirmed destroyed at Belaya were at least three Tu-95MS bombers and one Tu-22M3 aircraft. Others were damaged but not obliterated, according to Ukrainian officials.
A close-up image shows a cluster of Tu-95MS bombers with visible fire damage and blast debris surrounding their parking spots.
Satellite images that captured the damage at multiple airfields show previously pristine runways now marked by burn scars and aircraft fragments.
A detailed damage shot captures melted fuselage sections, crumpled wings, and residual fire damage across the concrete apron.
Blast Zone and Aircraft Wreckage in the Belaya Air Base.
Blast Zone and Aircraft Wreckage in the Belaya Air Base.
MAXAR TECHNOLOGIES
Russia's Ministry of Defense admitted that aircraft caught fire at multiple sites but framed the strikes as "terrorist attacks" by the Kyiv regime. In a statement to Tass, the ministry said some drones were intercepted and added that several perpetrators had been detained. It denied any casualties among servicemen or civilians.
Other airbases targeted included Olenya in Murmansk Oblast and Diaghilev in Ryazan Oblast. The Kyiv Independent cited Ukrainian sources who said the drones were smuggled into Russia in trucks outfitted with wooden cabins and deployed from beneath removable roofs.
Wreckage of two Russian bombers at the Olenya base.
Wreckage of two Russian bombers at the Olenya base.
MAXAR TECHNOLOGIES
Analysts at the Institute for the Study of War noted that the operation "will likely force Moscow to reconfigure its air defenses," possibly expanding coverage and introducing mobile air defense groups to counter future drone threats.
Open-source analysis has suggested one A-50 spy plane was damaged or destroyed at Ivanovo air base, as well as four Tu-95 aircraft and three Tu-22M3 bombers at the Belaya air base, the U.S.-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) think tank said on Monday.
Satellite imagery showing two Russian A-50 airborne early warning and control aircraft with tires and debris on the wings at the Ivanovo air base, Russia, on May 3, 2025.
Satellite imagery showing two Russian A-50 airborne early warning and control aircraft with tires and debris on the wings at the Ivanovo air base, Russia, on May 3, 2025.
Satellite image ©2025 Maxar Technologies
The drone strikes came on the eve of fresh rounds of face-to-face talks between Russian and Ukrainian officials in Turkey. Initial discussions last month produced the largest prisoner swap of the war but little shuffling toward a peace deal that U.S. President Donald Trump vowed to broker.
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