Latest news with #A50
Telegraph
a day ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
Ukraine strikes Putin's prized spy planes
Ukraine has damaged at least two of Russia's rare A-50 surveillance aircraft in its audacious drone attack on Vladimir Putin's strategic bomber fleet, according to intelligence shared with The Telegraph. Footage shared with this publication clearly showed one of the Ukrainian drones hitting the radar dome of a hulking Soviet-era spy plane sitting on the apron of an air base. The aircraft was protected with what appeared to be sandbags aligned across its wings. A second A-50, shielded by tyres carefully lined across its airframe, also appeared to be hit by a Ukrainian-piloted drone, again landing on its radar dome. The fresh intelligence sheds new light on what has been likened to Russia's 'Pearl Harbour moment' – in reference to the surprise Japanese attack that brought the US into the Second World War. It is not clear whether the Russian A-50s were destroyed, but even damaging the aircraft would be considered a prized scalp by the Ukrainians. Moscow was believed to only have seven operational versions of the spy planes, which are estimated to be worth £235 million each, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies. The A-50s are considered highly important for organising Russia's air defences and coordinating fighter jets and bomber aircraft attacking Ukraine. Ukrainian officials had claimed to have struck at least one of the spy planes before, but the footage shared with The Telegraph remains the only proof of their apparent success. The three-minute-long video clip showed an array of Tupolev bombers engulfed in flames after direct hits from Ukrainian drones, which were launched from modified shipping containers parked near four air bases deep inside Russia. Open source satellite images taken by Maxar Technologies on May 2, almost a month before the Ukrainian attack, appeared to show two A-50s parked alongside each other at Ivanovo Severny air base, one of the bases targeted. The two aircraft were spotted being shielded with debris lined up carefully across their wings, as in the drone footage shared with The Telegraph. It was clear from the footage that it is the two same A-50s, as one of their radar hulls is tinged with a brownish colouring. Many of the other Russian planes targeted in the Ukrainian strikes appeared to also be shrouded beneath similar makeshift defences. Operation Spider's Web, as Ukraine dubbed it, was coordinated by the country's SBU security service. Officials said around 40 Russian aircraft were destroyed or damaged in the operation, which took 18 months to plan for and execute. Western intelligence officials have claimed that a lower number, around 11, Russian aircraft were likely destroyed or damaged in the strikes. Although sources said Western agencies continue to assess new data as they receive it. The surprise attack was celebrated by European capitals as a demonstration of Ukrainian ingenuity. But they later said it did little to change the picture on the battlefield, where Russia continues to make grinding gains through eastern Ukraine at high cost. 'This does not change the battlefield equation,' one official said. 'And the hard reality is that in the Donbas, over the last couple of months, the Russians are making progress square kilometre by square kilometres. At a high cost, but a minimum of 200 square kilometres every month.'
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Zelensky salutes drone attack on Russia: ‘Absolutely brilliant result'
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday touted the 'absolutely brilliant result' of a large-scale drone attack on Russian strategic bombers. 'Head of the Security Service of Ukraine Vasyl Maliuk delivered a report regarding today's operation. An absolutely brilliant result,' Zelensky said in an afternoon post on the social platform X. 'A result achieved solely by Ukraine. One year, six months, and nine days from the start of planning to effective execution. Our most long-range operation,' he continued. A military official told The Associated Press that the drones hit 41 planes stationed at military airfields on Sunday afternoon, including A-50, Tu-95 and Tu-22M aircraft. Moscow has previously used Tupolev Tu-95 and Tu-22 long-range bombers to launch missiles at Ukraine, while A-50s are used to coordinate targets and detect air defenses and guided missiles, the AP reported. The military source said the complex attack included smuggling of first-person view drones into Russia, where they were then placed in mobile wooden houses. 'Later, drones were hidden under the roofs of these houses while already placed on trucks. At the right moment, the roofs of the houses were remotely opened, and the drones flew to hit Russian bombers,' the official told the AP, speaking on condition of anonymity to disclose details of the military operation. Zelensky said Ukrainian officials involved in planning of the operation were withdrawn from Russia with enough time to spare. 'Of course, not everything can be revealed at this moment, but these are Ukrainian actions that will undoubtedly be in history books,' Zelensky added in his post. 'Ukraine is defending itself, and rightly so — we are doing everything to make Russia feel the need to end this war. Russia started this war, Russia must end it. Glory to Ukraine!' he continued. The attack comes a day ahead of the next scheduled ceasefire talks in Turkey with Russia. Reuters reported on Sunday that it had obtained a copy of Ukraine's demands in the talks, which include 'full and unconditional ceasefire' and not making Kyiv stay diplomatically neutral, among other issues. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Ukraine says it hit more than 40 Russian bombers in drone attack
The Security Service of Ukraine oversaw a drone operation on Sunday that struck dozens of Russia's strategic bombers just ahead of planned peace talks in Istanbul. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed the 'absolutely brilliant' outcome of the attack, which he described as 'our most long-range operation' to date. Zelensky said the attack had been in planning for more than one and a half years. 'Of course, not everything can be revealed at this moment, but these are Ukrainian actions that will undoubtedly be in history books,' Zelensky said Sunday in a post on the social platform X. 'Ukraine is defending itself, and rightly so — we are doing everything to make Russia feel the need to end this war. Russia started this war, Russia must end it. Glory to Ukraine!' he continued. A military official told The Associated Press that the drones hit 41 planes stationed at military airfields on Sunday afternoon, including A-50, Tu-95 and Tu-22M aircraft. Moscow has previously used Tupolev Tu-95 and Tu-22 long-range bombers to launch missiles at Ukraine, while A-50s are used to coordinate targets and detect air defenses and guided missiles. The military source told the AP that the complex attack included the smuggling of first-person view drones into Russia, where they were then placed in mobile wooden houses. 'Later, drones were hidden under the roofs of these houses while already placed on trucks. At the right moment, the roofs of the houses were remotely opened, and the drones flew to hit Russian bombers,' the official told the AP, speaking on condition of anonymity to disclose details of the military operation. Zelensky said the Ukrainian officials involved in planning the operation were withdrawn from Russia with enough time to spare. The Russian Foreign Ministry confirmed the attack in a social media post but said the attacks only caught fire in the regions of Murmansk and Irkutsk, according to a Google translation of the statement. Russia said the fires had been put out with no casualties among service members or civilians. Russia also said it had detained 'some participants' of the attack. The Associated Press contributed. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Ukraine conducts ‘large-scale' operation targeting Russian airbases, security source says
Ukraine has carried out large-scale drone strikes against four airbases deep inside Russia, destroying multiple combat planes, according to a source in the Ukrainian Security Service (SBU). If confirmed, the attacks would be the most ambitious simultaneous strikes on Russian airbases carried out by Ukraine since the war began. The SBU source said that Russian bombers were 'burning en masse' at four airbases hundreds of miles apart, adding that drones had been launched from trucks inside Russia. More than 40 aircraft were known to have been hit, according to the source, including TU-95 and Tu-22M3 strategic bombers and one of Russia's few remaining A-50 surveillance planes. The airfields targeted included Belaya in Irkutsk, some 4,500 kilometers (2,800 miles) from Ukraine's border with Russia, and the Dyagilevo base in Ryazan in western Russia, about 520 kilometers (320 miles) from Ukraine, which is a training center for Russia's strategic bomber force. The Olenya base near Murmansk in the Arctic Circle, more than 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) from Ukraine, was also struck, according to the source, as well as the Ivanovo airbase, more than 800 kilometers (500 miles) from Ukraine. Ivanovo is a base for Russian military transport aircraft. There has been no comment from the Russian Defense Ministry on the attacks. But the governor of Irkutsk region, Igor Kobziev, said that drones had been launched from a truck near the Belaya base. Kobziev said on Telegram that the exact number of drones deployed had not been determined. Emergency and security services were at the site, he added. SBU drones were targeting aircraft that bomb Ukrainian cities every night, the SBU source said – estimating the damage caused to the Russian side at more than $2 billion. One video supplied by the source purportedly shows the Belaya airfield in flames and the voice of the head of the SBU, Lt. Gen. Vasyl Malyuk, commenting on the situation. 'How beautiful Belaya airfield looks now. Enemy's strategic aircraft,' he says. CNN was able to confirm the location of that video, as well as two others posted on social media showing smoke rising from the Belaya airbase. It was not immediately able to independently verify other videos provided by the SBU. The SBU source said that the operation was 'extremely complicated from a logistical point of view,' with the drones carried inside wooden mobile homes that had been carried into Russia on board trucks. 'The drones were hidden under the roofs of the houses, which were already placed on trucks. At the right moment, the roofs were remotely opened, and the drones flew to hit Russian bombers.' One video purportedly of one attack appears to show drones rising from a truck, as vehicles pass on a nearby highway. Another image shows the roof of the truck on the ground. The source added that people involved were already back in Ukraine. CNN's Frankie Vetch and Eve Brennan contributed to this report.
CNN
3 days ago
- General
- CNN
Ukraine conducts ‘large-scale' operation targeting Russian airbases, security source says
Ukraine has carried out large-scale drone strikes against four airbases deep inside Russia, destroying multiple combat planes, according to a source in the Ukrainian Security Service (SBU). If confirmed, the attacks would be the most ambitious simultaneous strikes on Russian airbases carried out by Ukraine since the war began. The SBU source said that Russian bombers were 'burning en masse' at four airbases hundreds of miles apart, adding that drones had been launched from trucks inside Russia. More than 40 aircraft were known to have been hit, according to the source, including TU-95 and Tu-22M3 strategic bombers and one of Russia's few remaining A-50 surveillance planes. The airfields targeted included Belaya in Irkutsk, some 4,500 kilometers (2,800 miles) from Ukraine's border with Russia, and the Dyagilevo base in Ryazan in western Russia, about 520 kilometers (320 miles) from Ukraine, which is a training center for Russia's strategic bomber force. The Olenya base near Murmansk in the Arctic Circle, more than 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) from Ukraine, was also struck, according to the source, as well as the Ivanovo airbase, more than 800 kilometers (500 miles) from Ukraine. Ivanovo is a base for Russian military transport aircraft. There has been no comment from the Russian Defense Ministry on the attacks. But the governor of Irkutsk region, Igor Kobziev, said that drones had been launched from a truck near the Belaya base. Kobziev said on Telegram that the exact number of drones deployed had not been determined. Emergency and security services were at the site, he added. SBU drones were targeting aircraft that bomb Ukrainian cities every night, the SBU source said – estimating the damage caused to the Russian side at more than $2 billion. One video supplied by the source purportedly shows the Belaya airfield in flames and the voice of the head of the SBU, Lt. Gen. Vasyl Malyuk, commenting on the situation. 'How beautiful Belaya airfield looks now. Enemy's strategic aircraft,' he says. CNN was able to confirm the location of that video, as well as two others posted on social media showing smoke rising from the Belaya airbase. It was not immediately able to independently verify other videos provided by the SBU. The SBU source said that the operation was 'extremely complicated from a logistical point of view,' with the drones carried inside wooden mobile homes that had been carried into Russia on board trucks. 'The drones were hidden under the roofs of the houses, which were already placed on trucks. At the right moment, the roofs were remotely opened, and the drones flew to hit Russian bombers.' One video purportedly of one attack appears to show drones rising from a truck, as vehicles pass on a nearby highway. Another image shows the roof of the truck on the ground. The source added that people involved were already back in Ukraine. CNN's Frankie Vetch and Eve Brennan contributed to this report.
