Ukrainian intelligence officials released new footage on Tuesday showing a dramatic series of drone strikes on Russian airfields, targeting some of Moscow’s most strategic, nuclear-capable aircraft.

The video, set to dramatic music, depicts more than 35 first-person view (FPV) drones slamming into Russian military aircraft thousands of miles from the front lines. Among the primary targets were Russia’s TU-95 and TU-22 bombers, which have been used to launch cruise missiles at Ukrainian cities.

Even more damaging, officials said, were strikes on two A-50 airborne radar planes — a critical surveillance asset often referred to as the “eyes and ears” of the Russian air force.

The footage also revealed trucks transporting what appeared to be prefabricated structures. Inside, drones were hidden and positioned near Russian air bases. In one clip, a rooftop slides open and drones are launched into the sky.

Ukrainian officials said the drones employed artificial intelligence. When communication links were severed, the drones automatically switched to autonomous mode, followed pre-programmed routes and used machine vision to identify and strike explosive targets.

A high-level Ukrainian delegation is currently in Washington, D.C., and is expected to show more of the footage to members of Congress as part of an effort to secure additional U.S. weapons sales.

When Ukraine unleashed a swarm of drones deep inside Russia on June 1, it sent a message that nowhere is safe.

Operation “Spider’s Web” showed how cheap drones could bypass Russia’s air defences and destroy billions of dollars worth of military bombers.

Reaching as far as Siberia, Ukraine struck at least four air bases across the country simultaneously.

The attack has been described as one of the most audacious operations in modern military history.

Military analysts say it marks the next phase in tactical drone warfare, and all countries — including Australia — need to take note.

The rise of FPV drones

Kyiv claims it took just 117 first-person view (FPV) drones smuggled over the border to take out $US7 billion ($10.9 billion) worth of Russian military equipment.

How Ukraine pulled off its drone attack on Russia Photo shows A drone hovers above a trucks trailer with a plume of smoke in the background. Ukraine’s security services say they have destroyed 34 per cent of Russia’s air missile carriers with a bold drone attack. Here’s what we know.

The drones — with an estimated cost of about $4,000 each — were aimed at some of Russia’s most prized, nuclear-capable long-range bomber planes.

The full extent of the damage remains disputed, but satellite imagery verified by Reuters shows multiple strategic warplanes were destroyed.

Among them were Tu-95 heavy bombers and Tu-22 Backfires — long-range, supersonic strategic bombers — which have been used in attacks on Ukrainian cities.

Satellite images of the Belaya airfield, before and after the Ukrainian drone attack. (Reuters: Planet Labs PBC & Capella Space handout)

Operated using a remote controller and a headset providing a front-on-view camera feed, FPV drones were originally designed for civilian racers.

But over the past two years, they have become a central pillar of Ukraine’s war effort.

The Ukrainian government set out to make one million FPV drones locally last year.

By early 2025, Ukraine claimed to be producing 200,000 per month.

Pilots wear goggles with a live front-on-view camera feed to steer the drones. (Supplied: Defence Intelligence of Ukraine/Starlife)

Although they carry fairly small warheads, the drones are capable of destroying tanks and other high-tech military equipment.

A recent report by RUSI, a defence and security think tank with headquarters in London, estimated that tactical drones now accounted for about 70 per cent of damaged and destroyed Russian systems.

The racing drones have strong motors that enable them to carry RPGs. (ABC News graphic: Jarrod Fankhauser)

Stephan Fruehling from the ANU’s Strategic and Defence Studies Centres said the drones had limits, but with mass production and experimentation, they had re-invented land warfare.

“They’re not completely replacing traditional systems, but they definitely have completely changed the way that land warfare operates along the front lines,” he said.

Tactical innovation on display

When looking at Ukraine’s Operation Spider’s Web, the innovative way drones were used stood out, Professor Fruehling said.

Ukraine extended the impact of FPV drones through coordinated timing and infiltration tactics.

The Security Service of Ukraine said it covertly smuggled the drones into Russia, packed in wooden house-like structures with remote-controlled lids.

“At the right moment, the roofs of the houses were remotely opened, and the drones flew to hit Russian bombers,” a Ukrainian security source told AP.

The drones (not to scale) were launched from kit homes loaded onto trucks. (ABC News: Lindsay Dunbar)

These types of low-flying drones were already difficult to defend against, sneaking through unguarded gaps.

And given they were launched directly from within the trucks, in close proximity to the air bases, Russia had little chance to respond.

The drones had already been transported beyond Russia’s layered air defence systems.

Drone warfare expert Oleksandra Molloy, senior lecturer in aviation at UNSW, said the operation was “precise and exceptionally well-executed”.

“What we actually have is the next stage in the development of drone warfare,” she told the ABC.

The multi-drone approach

Dr Molloy said it appeared Ukraine strategically dispersed a combination of different types of FPV drones.

The “multi-drone approach” likely involved a number of fibre optic drones that were better at evading signal jammers.

Fibre optics drones have been gaining battlefield prominence since the end of 2024.

They are fitted with a cable that transmits signals from the drone to the operator, which makes it difficult for an electronic warfare system to interrupt the frequency.

Ukraine released images said to show the drones used in the attack on Russian air bases. (Reuters)

“Potentially the fibre optic drones went first and destroyed Russia’s electronic warfare systems placed around targets,” Dr Molloy said.

Then more attack drones would have followed to take out the bombers, she added.

AI-enabled precision

While the operation was not fully autonomous, analysis from the US Center for Strategic and International Studies said evidence suggested that artificial intelligence likely played a supporting role to home in on the Russian warplanes.

The AI-enabled drones could have also been used to identify vulnerable components of the high-value aircraft.

Ukrainian defence outlet Defense Express reported that there was evidence that Ukraine used its new ‘Osa’ FPV drones, which have AI functions.

It said photos purporting to show the drones used in the attack had the model’s distinctive “thick and massive closed frame” that is used to house the electronics.

An AI-enabled drone flies in Ukraine’s Kyiv region. (Reuters: Gleb Garanich)

According to the Ukrainian manufacturer First Contact, Osa FPV drones have AI capabilities and can carry payloads of up to 3.3 kg.

Dr Molloy said it was possible the AI-enabled drones were among the fleet used in the attack.

“I think there was a mix of different types,” she said.

“What this highlights is that regardless of size, drones carrying 1 to 5 kilograms of explosives can cause major damage when guided with strategic precision.”

Dr Oleksandra Molloy recently wrote about how drones are changing modern warfare for the Australian Army Research Centre. (ABC News: Nick Haggerty)

Worldwide wake-up call

Russia would have assumed that distance and its air defence systems could keep its prized aircraft safe.

But the attack exposed vulnerabilities not just for Russia but militaries worldwide.

Ukraine’s drone attack was 18 months in the making and timed to perfection Photo shows Putin looks very sad Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy sent delegates to Istanbul to talk peace, but Ukraine had already sent its message, writes Emily Clark.

Dr Molloy said the attack was a wake-up call that the threat of drones needed to be taken more seriously, even in Australia.

It was becoming more difficult to protect both large and small assets from cheap and expendable technology that could be “anywhere, anytime”.

“I’m pretty sure that every military leader, after the events we’ve seen this week, would have started thinking a little bit differently,” she said.

“As we’ve seen the long-range capabilities of drones, I think that Australia should also look into the importance of keeping up with innovations and adaptations.”

Loading…

She said Australia was making some progress in the drone space, but still prioritised “large, expensive systems”.

“We do need to pay attention to drones, and the development of these drones,” she said.

” We need to keep up with the pace of 21st-century modern warfare. ”

Ukrainian troops watch footage from drones on screens in their bunker. (Four Corners: Ryan Sheridan)

Some military analysts have criticised Australia for investing in big-cost projects such as AUKUS that focus on building large warships that take decades to get in the water.

What exactly is AUKUS? Photo shows A submarine at the surface with morning sun on its right flank, the ocean stretches behind it The final details of Australia’s first nuclear submarine fleet have been unveiled — along with the price tag.

Micheal Shoebridge, founder and director of Strategic Analysis Australia, said Australia’s military leaders continued to downplay the impact of small autonomous systems.

“The problem is that others — including Australia’s potential adversaries — are far more open-minded and open to learning the lessons Ukraine keeps teaching not just the Russians but anyone interested in military systems and war-fighting,” he said.

He added that Australian medium and small companies made some of the best drone and counter-drone systems available.

But they were not being fully utilised to equip the Australian military with locally developed and produced systems.

“Because they might show the flaws in multi-billion-dollar decades-long ‘investment’ plans, which our bureaucrats seem to have the greatest incentive to defend,” he said.

We’re pausing our coverage

Thanks for following our coverage of the war in Ukraine today.

We’re pausing our live updates for now. Before we go, here’s a summary of the day’s key developments:

Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin held their latest phone call, lasting an hour and 15 minutes.

Trump said the pair discussed Ukraine’s attack on multiple airbases deep inside Russia over the weekend and revealed that Putin said he would have to respond to the attack.

He described the call as a “good conversation” but said it was not one that will lead to “immediate peace”.

It was the first time the two leaders have spoken since their previous call on 19 May.

Watch this report from our Moscow correspondent Ivor Bennett

An aide to Putin told reporters that they vowed to stay in constant contact, with the Russian president telling Trump that recent talks between Russian and Ukrainian officials in Istanbul were useful.

But that’s not the only person Putin had on the phone today – with Russia’s president also calling Pope Leo XIV.

The Vatican has said the pontiff urged Russia to take a step to support peace in its war with Ukraine, and also underlined the importance of dialogue in finding solutions to the conflict.

Over in Brussels, defence ministers met as part of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group.

Zelenskyy kicked things off by remotely addressing the group, saying “we are fighting against death, the death that Russia is bringing to our land”.

Speaking after the meeting, UK Defence Secretary John Healey said “hats off to Ukraine” for its operation Spider’s Web, adding that it reminds us “Ukraine can inflict deep damage on the Russian military”.

But he was speaking on the backdrop of what was the latest call from the US to rapidly increase defence spending.

Matthew Whitaker, Trump’s ambassador to the NATO alliance, said the UK and all other NATO allies must agree to spend at least 5% of national income on defence and security “starting now”.

Elsewhere, our security and defence analyst Michael Clarke answered your questions on the war in Ukraine.

Here’s a sample of what he responded to:

Could Russia go nuclear after Ukraine’s daring attacks?

How has drone warfare affected other forms of war tactics?

Why is Trump being so quiet?

You can watch back the Q&A session in the video below.

Are the surprise airfield attacks a turning point for Ukraine?

1 hour ago Share Save Paul Adams Diplomatic correspondent Reporting from Kyiv, Ukraine Share Save

SBU A screengrab of some of the drone footage released by Ukrainian authorities on Wednesday

Three days on, and Ukraine is still digesting the full implications of Operation Spider’s Web, Sunday’s massive assault on Russia’s strategic aviation. On Wednesday, the agency which orchestrated the attack, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), released additional, vivid footage of the attacks in progress, as well as tantalising glimpses into how the whole complex operation was conducted. Satellite images that have emerged since Sunday, showing the wrecked outlines of planes sitting on the tarmac at the Olenya, Ivanovo, Dyagilevo and Belaya airbases, also help tell the story of the operation’s unprecedented success. For Ukrainian observers, the whole operation, a year-and-a -half in the making, remains a marvel. “This can be considered one of the most brilliant operations in our history,” Roman Pohorlyi, founder of the DeepState, a group of Ukrainian military analysts, told me. “We’ve shown that we can be strong, we can be creative and we can destroy our enemies no matter how far away they are.”

Ukraine releases drone footage of operation ‘Spider Web’

It’s important to note that almost all the information that has emerged since Sunday has been released by the SBU itself. Flushed with its own success, it is keen to cast the operation in the best possible light. Its information campaign has been helped by the fact that the Kremlin has said almost nothing. Speaking to the media on Wednesday after handing out medals to SBU officers involved in the operation, the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky repeated the claim that 41 aircraft had been damaged or destroyed. “Half of them cannot be restored,” he said, “and some will take years to repair, if they can be restored at all.” Had a ceasefire been in place, he added, Operation Spider’s Web would not have happened.

The latest four-minute compilation released by the SBU shows a number of key details. Shot from the perspective of some of the 117 drones involved, we see Russian strategic bombers, transport aircraft and airborne warning and control (AWACS) being hunted down. Fires can be seen raging on a number of stricken planes. For the first time, we get glimpses under the wings of some of the bombers, revealing that they were already armed with cruise missiles, which Russia has used to devastating effect in its air raids on Ukraine. The drones, many flown remotely by a separate pilot, sitting far away in Ukraine, are carefully and precisely aimed at vulnerable points, including fuel tanks located in the wings. Some of the resulting fireballs also suggest the tanks were full of fuel, ready for take off.

PLANET LABS/REUTERS A satellite view shows military aircraft, some destroyed, at the Belaya air base on 4 June

One significant section of the video shows drones homing in on two Beriev A-50s, giant AWACS aircraft first produced in the Soviet Union. Of all the aircraft targeted by Operation Spider’s Web, the A-50, with its radar capable of seeing targets and threats more than 600km (372 miles) away, is arguably the most important. Before the full-scale invasion in 2022, Russia was thought to operate around nine A-50s. Before last Sunday, as many as three had been shot down or damaged in an earlier drone attack. The latest footage strongly implies that drones hit the circular radar domes of the two A-50s parked at the Ivanovo Severny airbase, north-east of Moscow. However, since the video feed cuts out at the moment of impact, this is hard to completely verify. Satellite imagery, which clearly displays the wreckage of numerous bombers, is inconclusive when it comes to the A-50. But Russia’s fleet of these crucial aircraft could now be down to as few as four. “Restarting production of the A-50 is presently highly unlikely, due to difficulties with import substitution and the destruction of production facilities,” defence analyst Serhii Kuzan told me. “As such, every loss of this type of aircraft constitutes a strategic problem for Russia, one it cannot quickly compensate for.”

Getty Images Satellite imagery is inconclusive when it comes to the A-50, seen here above Moscow

Earlier on Wednesday, the SBU offered a brief glimpse into another of Sunday’s remarkable features: the use of specially constructed containers, mounted on flatbed trucks, to transport armed drones to sites close to the four Russian airbases. Two videos show a truck carrying what appear to be two wooden mobile homes, complete with windows and doors. In one video, roof panels are clearly visible. Reports suggest these were retracted or otherwise removed shortly before the attacks began, allowing dozens of drones stored inside to take off. It’s not known when or where the videos were filmed, although snow visible beside the road in one suggests it could have been weeks or months ago. In another video, posted on a Russian Telegram channel on Sunday, a police officer was seen entering the back of one of the containers in the wake of the attack. Seconds later, the container exploded, suggesting it may have been booby-trapped.

SBU The SBU said the drones were stashed in wooden cabins concealed inside lorries

How to assess the impact of such a spectacular operation? “From a military point of view, this is a turning point in the war,” aviation expert Anatolii Khrapchynskyi told me. “Because we have dealt a significant blow to Russia’s image and the capabilities of the Russian Federation.” A little over three months after Donald Trump berated Volodymyr Zelensky, telling him he had “no cards,” Ukraine has offered an emphatic riposte. “Ukraine has shown the whole world that Russia is actually weak and cannot defend itself internally,” Khrapchynskyi said. But that doesn’t mean that Russia is about to change course. After his latest conversation with Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump said the two leaders had discussed Ukraine’s attacks. “It was a good conversation,” President Trump posted on Truth Social, “but not a conversation that will lead to immediate Peace.” “President Putin did say, and very strongly, that he will have to respond to the recent attack on the airfields.”

Before and after shows damage after Ukrainian drone attack at the Belaya Air Base

New satellite images have revealed the destruction at a Russian air base following a massive Ukrainian drone attack, with the wreckage of several warplanes seen on the tarmac.

The photos by Planet Labs PBC, showed at least seven destroyed Russian bombers at the Belaya Air Base in eastern Siberia. It was among a number of airfields struck by Ukrainian drones across five regions in Russia on Sunday.

Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT

The images showed at least three destroyed Tu-95 bombers and four Tu-22Ms, The Associated Press reported. Other planes appeared to be undamaged.

Ukraine said 41 aircraft were damaged or destroyed in the large-scale operation dubbed “Spiderweb.”

Ukraine’s Security Service claimed it destroyed 34 percent of Russia’s strategic cruise missile carriers worth around $7 billion in the attack. Russia refuted the claims, saying Ukraine’s figures were exaggerated.