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By Brendan Cole
Senior Reporter
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A Ukrainian intelligence chief has revealed details of the secret planning that preceded an audacious drone attack on Russia which damaged a significant chunk of Moscow's air capability.
Vasyl Malyuk, head of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), said Ukrainian agents set up a front company in the Russian city of Chelyabinsk from where they prepared Operation Spider Web which targeted strategic Russian military airfields on June 1.
Why It Matters
The deep-strike operation used FPV (First Person View) drones smuggled into Russia to target five airbases across three time zones, thousands of miles from the front line, in the three-and-a-half-year war's largest such strike on Russia.
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The operation was a major security failure for Moscow and dealt Russian President Vladimir Putin's military machine a blow, damaging an estimated 10 percent of his forces' military aircraft.
Yaniv Benbenisti, chief product officer at D-Fend Solutions, a counter-drone technology firm which analyzed Operation Spider Web, told Newsweek the Ukrainian strikes "revealed the soft belly of traditional air defense systems."
Newsweek has contacted the Russian defense ministry for comment.
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Malyuk's comments detailing the preparation illustrate both an intelligence failure for Moscow, as well as the coordination required for such a technological success, as Ukraine looks likely to continue targeting strategic sites deep inside Russian territory.
What To Know
Malyuk described the months of covert planning that took place before the bold attack in an interview with the We-Ukraine TV channel, as reported by the SBU press service.
Ukrainian agents set up a logistics firm in Chelyabinsk, some 900 miles east of Moscow, renting office space and warehouses next to the local Federal Security Service (FSB) department, he said.
Agents bought five lorries, and hired drivers who transported various goods to maintain their cover.
After the 150 FPV drones were delivered, the premises had to maintain them using EcoFlow power sources, solar panels and other equipment to keep the devices working in temperatures that went as low as minus 40 degrees, added Malyuk.
He also revealed some details about the drones which, while looking like regular FPVs, were fitted with unique features.
Their combat component consisted of two parts weighing 800 grams that contained "a special-mixture explosive that we developed specifically for this operation.
"It had a cumulative-high-explosive effect to burn through the body of the aircraft itself and cause an explosion inside," he said, according to a translation.
The agents had already left Russia by the time the truck drivers left for the targeted airfields, in order to return to Ukraine safely.
Just after the attacks, Ukrainian intelligence described how the drones had been placed in wooden containers with removable roofs fixed on trucks that were opened remotely.
Their targets included Russia's nuclear-capable bombers and at least one of Moscow's A-50 spy planes, and an estimated $7 billion of damage was caused.
Benbenisti told Newsweek Operation Spider Web was the first time Ukraine had used small commercial drones for such an attack.
It was, he added, a wake-up call which revealed the limitations of traditional air defense systems capable of repelling large long-distance drones like the Shahed, "but not designed to withstand small drones at close range, flying at a very low altitude."
What People Are Saying
SBU chief Vasyl Malyuk said of the agents who carried out Operation Spider Web: "They came to me at one of the combat control points and I had the honor of personally thanking them."
D-Fend's Yaniv Benbenisti told Newsweek: "The whole world needs to understand what Spider Web actually revealed is the soft belly of the air defense, traditional air defense systems.
"It is another example of what Ukraine has done with pretty limited resources and technology while creating a devastating effect."
What Happens Next
President Donald Trump and Putin are meeting in Alaska on Friday to discuss ending Russia's war in Ukraine, with territorial control top of the agenda. It has the potential to be a turning point in the bloody and destructive conflict.
Ukraine and its European allies, not invited to the talks, are urging Trump to avoid agreeing to any land concessions without Kyiv's consent. Ukraine says it will not concede any of its territory seized by Russia, citing its constitution.
In the absence of a ceasefire agreement, Ukraine is likely to continue to try and launch drone strikes deep inside Russian territory, targeting energy and military infrastructure.
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