Ukrainian intelligence sources are reporting that a sweeping drone strike has dealt a devastating blow to Russia’s air power, allegedly destroying numerous aircraft—some with nuclear capabilities—at airbases far from the front lines.
According to a report in the Kyiv Independent, Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) executed the mission using first-person-view (FPV) drones. The assault reportedly struck 41 large Russian warplanes at four different bases located thousands of miles inside Russian territory.
The drones used in the mission are said to have been covertly transported into Russia, camouflaged within cargo trucks.
Among the aircraft Ukraine claims to have hit were TU-95 “Bear” bombers capable of carrying nuclear payloads, TU-22 “Backfire” supersonic bombers, and A-50 “Mainstay” early-warning and control planes.
One of the airfields struck was located in the Irkutsk region of Siberia, roughly 2,500 miles from Ukraine. The remaining targets included installations in Murmansk near the Arctic Circle, Ryazan to the southeast of Moscow, and Ivanovo, situated northeast of the capital.
The covert campaign, reportedly called “Web,” is said to have taken a year and a half of meticulous planning. If confirmed, the strike could severely impair Russia’s capacity to launch strategic missile attacks on Ukraine from a distance.
“The SBU first transported FPV drones to Russia, and later on the territory of the Russian Federation, the drones were hidden under the roofs of mobile wooden cabins, already placed on trucks,” the source claimed.
“At the right moment, the roofs of the cabins were opened remotely, and the drones flew to hit Russian bombers.”
{Matzav.com}