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Washington Post
a day ago
- Politics
- Washington Post
Ukraine's surprise drone strike underscores vulnerability of U.S. defenses
Ukraine's surprise Sunday strike that used relatively inexpensive drones to knock out a significant portion of Russia's long-range bomber capability was arguably the single largest blow to Moscow in its three-year war on its neighbor and a stunning display of asymmetric warfare. The out-of-the-blue drone blitz elicited glee among Ukraine's backers in Washington, but also a chilling realization: The United States is increasingly vulnerable to just such a low-tech, low-cost strike.
CTV News
2 days ago
- Politics
- CTV News
Ukraine's drone attack on Russian warplanes was a serious blow to the Kremlin's strategic arsenal
Russian Tu-95 strategic bombers fly past a Russian flag at the Kremlin complex during a rehearsal for the Victory Day military parade in Moscow, Russia, May 4, 2018. (AP Photo/Pavel Golovkin) A surprise Ukrainian drone attack that targeted several Russian air bases hosting nuclear-capable strategic bombers was unprecedented in its scope and sophistication and for the first time reached as far as Siberia in a heavy blow to the Russian military. Ukraine said over 40 bombers, or about a third of Russia's strategic bomber fleet, were damaged or destroyed Sunday, although Moscow said only several planes were struck. The conflicting claims couldn't be independently verified and video of the assault posted on social media showed only a couple of bombers hit. But the bold attack demonstrated Ukraine's capability to hit high-value targets anywhere in Russia, dealing a humiliating blow to the Kremlin and inflicting significant losses to Moscow's war machine. While some Russian military bloggers compared it to another infamous Sunday surprise attack — that of Japan's strike on the U.S. base at Pearl Harbor in 1941 — others rejected the analogy, arguing the actual damage was far less significant than Ukraine claimed. A look at what warplanes were reported hit: Russia's bomber assets For decades, long-range bombers have been part of the Soviet and Russian nuclear triad that also includes land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles and atomic-powered submarines carrying ICBMs. The strategic bombers have flown regular patrols around the globe showcasing Moscow's nuclear might. During the 3-year-old war in Ukraine, Russia has used the heavy planes to launch waves of cruise missile strikes across the country. The Tupolev Tu-95, which was code named Bear by NATO, is a four-engine turboprop plane designed in the 1950s to rival the U.S. B-52 bomber. The aircraft has an intercontinental range and carries eight long-range cruise missiles that can be equipped with conventional or nuclear warheads. Before Sunday, Russia was estimated to have a fleet of about 60 such aircraft. The Tupolev Tu-22M is a twin-engine supersonic bomber designed in the 1970s that was code named Backfire by NATO. It has a shorter range compared with the Tu-95, but during U.S.-Soviet arms control talks in the 1970s, Washington insisted on counting them as part of the Soviet strategic nuclear arsenal because of their capability to reach the U.S. if refueled in flight. The latest version of the plane, the Tu-22M3, carries Kh-22 cruise missiles that fly at more than three times the speed of sound. It dates to the 1970s, when it was designed by the Soviet Union to strike U.S. aircraft carriers. It packs a big punch, thanks to its supersonic speed and ability to carry 630 kilograms (nearly 1,400 pounds) of explosives, but its outdated guidance system could make it highly inaccurate against ground targets, raising the possibility of collateral damage. Some Tu-22Ms were lost in previous Ukrainian attacks, and Russia was estimated to have between 50 and 60 Tu-22M3s in service before Sunday's drone strike. The production of the Tu-95 and the Tu-22M ended after the 1991 collapse of the USSR, meaning that any lost can't be replaced. Russia also has another type of strategic nuclear-capable bomber, the supersonic Tu-160. Fewer than 20 of them are in service, and Russia has just begun production of its modernized version equipped with new engines and avionics. Russia lost a significant part of its heavy bomber fleet in the attack 'with no immediate ability to replace it,' said Douglas Barrie of the International Institute of Strategic Studies, noting that Moscow's announced plan to develop the next generation strategic bomber is still in its early phase. 'Ironically this might give impetus to that program, because if if you want to keep your bomber fleet up to size, then you're going to have to do something at some point,' he said. The A-50, which Ukrainian officials also said was hit in the strikes, is an early warning and control aircraft similar to the U.S. AWACS planes used to coordinate aerial attacks. Only a few such planes are in service with the Russian military, and any loss badly dents Russia's military capability. Relocating bombers and impromptu protection Repeated Ukrainian strikes on the Engels air base, the main base for Russian nuclear-capable strategic bombers near the Volga River city of Saratov, prompted Moscow to relocate the bombers to other bases farther from the conflict. One of them was Olenya on the Arctic Kola Peninsula, from where Tu-95s have flown multiple missions to launch cruise missiles at Ukraine. Several bombers at Olenya apparently were hit by the Ukrainian drones Sunday, according to analysts studying satellite images before and after the strike. Other drones targeted the Belaya air base in the Irkutsk region in eastern Siberia, destroying a few Tu-22M bombers, according to analysts. Ukraine said 41 aircraft — Tu-95s, Tu-22Ms and A-50s — were damaged or destroyed in the attack that it said was in the works for 18 months in which swarms of drones popped out of containers carried on trucks that were parked near four air bases. U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was briefed on the attack, which represented a level of sophistication that Washington had not seen before, a senior defence official said on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive matters. The Russian Defence Ministry said the attack set several warplanes ablaze at air bases in the Irkutsk region and the Murmansk region in the north, but the fires were extinguished. It said Ukraine also tried to strike two air bases in western Russia, as well as another one in the Amur region of Russia's Far East, but those attacks were repelled. The drone strikes produced an outcry from Russian military bloggers, who criticized the Defence Ministry for failing to learn from previous strikes and protect the bombers. Building shelters or hangars for such large planes is a daunting task, and the military has tried some impromptu solutions that were criticized as window dressing. Satellite images have shown Tu-95s at various air bases covered by layers of old tires — a measure of dubious efficiency that has drawn mockery on social media. ___ The Associated Press Associated Press Pentagon correspondent Tara Copp and Emma Burrows in London contributed.
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Kyiv's strategic plot leads to destruction of Russia's bomber aircraft
The attack was carried out exactly 29 years to the day after Ukraine handed over dozens of the same strategic bombers to Russia, along with up to 2,000 strategic nuclear warheads and 176 ICBMs in exchange for a promise not to be attacked, under the Budapest Memorandum. In their most daring attack of the war to date, Ukrainian special forces first smuggled 117 first-person view (FPV) kamikaze drones – which allow pilots to control them remotely through a live feed – into Russia. Then came mobile wooden cabins, whose roofs had hidden compartments into which the small flying weapons were stashed. They were loaded on to civilian trucks heading into enemy territory, their hired local drivers seemingly unaware of what they were carrying. Finally, yesterday afternoon, with all the lorries within range of five airfields stretching from northern Russia down to Siberia – a safe 2,500 miles from Ukraine – they struck. The roofs of the wooden cabins were opened remotely and the FPV drones took to the skies. With the help of front-positioned cameras, the missile-loaded drones headed straight for Russia's highly expensive bomber planes. Footage showed decimated enemy planes in flames on the runway and last night Ukrainian security sources claimed to have taken out 41 aircraft worth some £1.5billion. These, they say, include the nuclear capable Tu-95 and Tu-22M as well as the surveillance A-50 'Mainstay' plane, worth an estimated £250,000 that is used as a radar and command centre, of which Russia is only believed to have around ten in operation. 'Mainstays' are critical to coordinating Russian fighter jets and air defences, meaning that this will have severely hampered Putin's war effort. Moscow has long stopped producing any of these aircraft meaning, if confirmed, these assets could not be replaced. There are only around 120 Tu-95s and Tu-22Ms in operation and they are vital for Putin 's nightly bombing raids on Ukraine. They had been moved to bases thousands of miles away from Ukraine, out of reach of Western-donated Storm Shadows and ATACMS which have a range of up to 185 miles. The FPVs, which can reach just 12 miles, would have been the last thing on Russian minds. Mr Zelensky last night claimed that the operation took out a third of Russia's strategic bombers and had been conducted under the noses of its secret service. He said: 'What's most interesting, is that the 'office' of our operation on Russian territory was located directly next to FSB headquarters in one of their regions. In total, 117 drones were used in the operation, with a corresponding number of drone operators involved, and 34 per cent of the strategic cruise missile carriers stationed at air bases were hit. We will continue this work.' Military blogger Roman Alekhin said the incident will go down as 'Russia's Pearl Harbour' - a reference to the Japanese attack against the US in 1941 that prompted Washington to enter the Second World War. But experts also drew comparisons to the 1942 SAS raid on the Sidi Haneish airfield in Egypy, when elite British commandos put 40 Luftwaffe aircraft out of action using jeeps mounted with machine guns. While the attack wasn't a pivotal moment in the Desert War, it massively boosted British morale and disrupted Axis logistics in North Africa. It was also one of the pivotal events that helped forge the legendary status of the SAS. Former RAF pilot and military analyst Mikey Kay told the BBC : 'The Russians would never have expected something like this. I mean, it's genius, if you think about just the devastating effect that it's had on strategic assets of Putin.' Philip O'Brien, professor of strategic studies at St Andrews University, said the raid was 'the most remarkable and successful operation of the war.' He told The Times: 'This is a big blow to Russian strategic air power, which is hard to overestimate. We do not know what the Russian reaction will be, however we can assume it will be violent.' A Telegram channel called Fighterbomber, widely believed to be run by Captain Ilya Tumanov of the Russian Army, wrote of the attack: 'Today will later be called a black day for Russian long-range aviation. And the day is not over yet.' Mr Zelensky, who is said to have overseen the operation over the last year and a half, celebrated the strike on social media last night. The Ukrainian president wrote: '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 added: 'These are Ukrainian actions that will undoubtedly be in [the] history books.' A delegation from Kyiv is due to meet counterparts from Moscow for a second round of peace talks in Istanbul today but it was not clear last night if it would still go ahead. Ukraine has said that its proposals will include a full 30-day ceasefire followed by the return of all prisoners held by each side. Negotiators also want some 20,000 Ukrainian children who were kidnapped by Russia to be repatriated before Mr Zelensky and Putin meet. Russia has so far refused to agree to a 30-day pause in fighting and overnight on Saturday launched its largest strike of the war so far with 472 drones and seven missiles. Kyiv's Operation Spider's Web struck Belaya air base in the Irkutsk region of Siberia; Dyagilevo air base in Ryazan, western Russia; Olenya air base in Murmansk, northern Russia; and Ivanovo air base in Ivanovo, central Russia. The fifth air base was yet to be identified last night. The operation, led by Mr Zelensky and security service boss Lieutenant General Vasyl Malyuk, marks the first time Ukraine has struck targets inside Siberia. Kyiv put the cost of the damage at more than £1.5billion because each A-50 aircraft is valued at around £260million. Last night Russia was arresting the truck drivers, but hours earlier Ukraine had reported that its agents were safely home. FPV drones usually need a pilot within six miles which suggests Ukrainians may have been close to the airfields during the strikes. Hours before the drone strikes a wave of bomb attacks targeted Russian bridges and railway lines in regions bordering Ukraine. Russia declared them 'acts of terrorism' with seven killed and dozens injured when a passenger train travelling to Moscow was derailed by a collapsed bridge in Bryansk on Saturday night. Hours later, in neighbouring Kursk where Ukraine launched its major cross-border incursion last August, a freight train was derailed by another fallen bridge. A Russian missile strike on a Ukrainian army training area killed at least 12 soldiers yesterday and wounded more than 60 others, the Ukrainian army said. Kyiv has carried out a series of daring attacks on Russia since the start of the war, with one of first being the counter-offensive which liberated the city of Kherson in November 2022. Ukrainian armed forces also took swathes of territory in Kursk last August in what was the first occupation of Russian land since the Second World War . Putin only succeeded in pushing Ukraine out of the territory in March.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Ukraine Drone Strikes Hit Nuclear Bombers Deep Inside Russia
Ukraine staged a dramatic series of strikes across Russia, deploying drones hidden in trucks deep inside the country to hit strategic airfields as far away as eastern Siberia. Bloomberg's Michael Heath shares what we know so far.
