The Security Service of Ukraine reported that Kyiv destroyed more than 40 military aircraft during a drone attack deep in Russian territory.
The attack came on Sunday as Russia carried out missile and drone strikes on Ukraine just hours before the two sides were set to meet again for direct talks in Istanbul.
A military source said that this large-scale operation had been in preparation for more than a year and a half and was organized under the personal leadership of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
In his evening address, Mr Zelensky said 117 drones were involved in the operation.
He claimed that the operation was planned from an office located next to the local FSB office. The FSB is Russia's intelligence and security service.
A military source said it was an “extremely sophisticated” operation, involving smuggling first-person view (FPV) drones into Russia, where they were then housed in mobile wooden homes.
“Later, the drones were hidden under the roofs of these houses, which were already on trucks. At the right moment, the roofs of the houses were opened remotely, and the drones flew out to attack the Russian bombers,” the source said.
Social media footage posted by Russian media appears to show drones rising from containers while other panels are strewn across the road. One video appears to show men attempting to stop the drones by climbing onto a truck.
According to the official, on Sunday afternoon, drones attacked 41 aircraft located at military airfields, including A-50, Tu-95 and Tu-22M aircraft.
Moscow has previously used Tu-95 and Tu-22 long-range bombers to launch missiles at Ukraine, while the A-50s are used to coordinate targets and detect air defense systems and guided missiles.
Ukraine's security service said the operation, code-named “Spider Web,” destroyed 34 percent of Russia's aircraft carrier fleet, with damage estimated at $7 billion. The claim could not be independently verified.
Russia's Defense Ministry confirmed in a statement the attacks, which damaged planes and caused fires at air bases in the Irkutsk region, more than 2,500 miles from Ukraine, and in the Murmansk region in the north of the country, according to the information.
According to the ministry, strikes were also recorded in the Amur region in Russia's Far East, as well as in the western Ivanovo and Ryazan regions.
Also on Sunday, Russia's top investigative agency reported
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
