871
submitted 1 week ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

The Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) reported that the June 1 “Spider Web” drone operation caused approximately $7 billion in damages and disabled 34% of cruise missile bombers in key Russian airbases.

The agency confirmed that more details about the attack will be revealed later.

“And you thought Ukraine was easy? Ukraine is exceptional. Ukraine is unique. All the steamrollers of history have rolled over it. It has withstood every kind of trial. It is tempered by the highest degree. In today’s world, its value is beyond measure,” the SBU wrote, quoting Ukrainian poet Lina Kostenko.

They also vowed to continue to drive Russian forces out of Ukrainian territory.

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[-] [email protected] 21 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

When you phrase losses of aircraft in percentages of your fleet, you're talking about a disaster.

[-] [email protected] 3 points 5 days ago

Yeah, but the wording is weird. "34% of cruise missile bombers in key Russian airbases"

Does that mean "34% of all Russian cruise missile bombers were destroyed by hitting those sitting in key Russian airbases" or does that mean "34% of the Russian cruise missile bombers that were currently present in these specific key Russian airbases were destroyed"?

That's two very different statements with very different meanings.

[-] [email protected] 6 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

The estimate is 130-140 aircraft existed in the entire fleet, so sounds like the former.

[-] [email protected] 2 points 5 days ago

That's good to hear. The former is big news, the second option would be not nearly as relevant.

[-] [email protected] 36 points 6 days ago

Even if it wasn't the 40 planes claimed, even if it's only the 5 we saw in the video , this is huge. Now Russia has to move MORE anti air assets, and more men, to these airfields and away from the front. Some bombers will be moved farther away, reducing the pace of operations. And if they have to start building bunkers for their big bombers that's tens of thousands of tons of concrete not going to buildings fortifications on the front lines. Not going to road repair. Not going to factories. And that's thousands of workers not doing other, more productive things. The success of this operation cannot be overstated

[-] [email protected] 16 points 5 days ago

they also hit vladivostok.

on the other side of the continent. all the way from europe to the end of asia.

SLAVA UKRAINE, goddamn

[-] [email protected] 3 points 5 days ago

According to a Kyiv Independent SBU source, first-person-view (FPV) drones were covertly transported deep into Russian territory and hidden inside trucks before being launched against four major airfields.

Holy shit that's embarrassing. I mean, those operatives are going to have to flee to Japan to in order to get home, but wow. That's incredible.

[-] [email protected] 3 points 5 days ago

Did they hit that city in the same operation? Care to share any sources?

[-] [email protected] 2 points 5 days ago
[-] [email protected] 3 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

lots of shit behind paywalls :|

TWZ has some excellent coverage of the event with nary a paywall.

https://www.twz.com/news-features/what-we-know-about-ukraines-mass-drone-assault-on-russian-bombers

[-] [email protected] 2 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

TY!

tho no mention of vladivostok in that link, which I think was the purpose of the person I replied to

[-] [email protected] 16 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

their ICBM fleet is poorly maintained - both land based and submarine launched; this event is a solid kick in the strategic nutsack.

SLAVA UKRAINE!

[-] [email protected] 28 points 6 days ago

I very much hope Ukraine's reported success is as good as they claim. Deleting 1/3 of the Russia's bomber capacity against Ukraine is nice.

[-] [email protected] 18 points 6 days ago

By every account I've read from both sides, seems pretty fucking successful.

Awesome.

"Dozens of long range bombers destroyed"

[-] [email protected] 42 points 1 week ago

Just as well they didn't let the US (AKA as Putin's bitch) know about it beforehand

[-] [email protected] 18 points 6 days ago

Oh yeah. The US leadership is filled with Russian assets and Putin playthings.

[-] [email protected] 14 points 6 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago)

I don't think it's because Trump is a Russian asset which is why they haven't told the White House, but because Ukrainians have had bad experience with their plans being leaked before. The 2023 Ukrainian offensive failed because the Russian knew they were coming, and everyone including the media and their mothers shouted it across the rooftops for weeks. Back then, I thought "isn't this a bad idea to report it on the media"? But then I am an armchair analyst so I guess the Ukrainians and Bidem knew what they were doing (turns out they didn't). Since then, Ukrainians choose to hide their intentions.

Edit: incorrect year

[-] [email protected] 6 points 6 days ago

The 2022 offensive failed because there wasn't enough support. Ukraine was saying they needed X tanks, shells, guns, whatever from the West, and they actually got around X/3. Even with that, they very nearly made it far enough that Crimea would have been logistically cut off. Russia would have either needed to come to terms or else Crimea literally and metaphorically starves.

There isn't really a way to hide what you're doing. You have to build up forces at your bases, move a lot of material, etc. The timing wasn't going to be a surprise, either, because local seasonal weather changes put a demand on when you do things.

[-] [email protected] 7 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

The Ukrainians were far from cutting off Crimea in 2022. They barely made it like 5-10 kilometres? And unfortunately, the area they recaptured is being slowly grounded away by Russian counterattacks in the past two years. The Ukrainians were hoping that Russia at the time haven't learned their lesson and could replicate Ukrainian rapid offensive in Kharkiv in autumn of 2021.

The surprise Ukrainian offensive into Kursk proved you can hide your intentions. It isn't like Ukraine haven't learned their lesson beforehand. Speaking of which, the incursion wasn't told to the White House either when Biden was president.

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[-] [email protected] 10 points 5 days ago

Genuine question, what is the end game objectively do you think? Rdors Russia retreat unable to carry the war and then recoil into a depression economy? I seriously don't see Ukraine slowing down at all. The longer this goes on it seems like Russia takes one step and Ukraine takes 1.2 steps forward.

[-] [email protected] 14 points 5 days ago

Most likely ends when Putin loses the loyalty of the top brass and oligarchal mobsters. This attack goes a long way to having the question being asked, surely there has already been hushed tones, if this is the fight they want to ruin Russia for. They have been successful in terms of land gains, not to any great value - ~20% after 12 years is embarrassing. They have lost a lot of goodwill, marketability, economic growth not to mention brain drain, population etc., and they are now facing budget cuts because of oil prices.

[-] [email protected] 5 points 5 days ago

Or Putin dies of natural causes. Which isn't too farfetched. Then the oligarchs find themselves a Deng Xiaoping-like figure who says "ok, all that was bad, let's do something else".

Probably, Russia will have to face the facts that they can't build their own fighter jets, bombers, tanks, or fighting ships larger than a destroyer anymore. Not on the scale they need. Even if you assume some of the designs they're putting out are good (a big assumption), they can't possibly build them at scale. China is sitting right over there with the factories for those things. Xi Jinping will be happy to take their check, but will make sure it clears first.

[-] [email protected] 8 points 5 days ago

That's more than 1/3rd of ALL of their aircraft, holy shit. This just makes it insanely difficult for Russia to save face. ANY truck could be holding hundreds of suicide drones deep into Russian territory. The Russian authorities are gonna be so paranoid they won't be able to coordinate anything.

[-] [email protected] 15 points 6 days ago

Glory to our Ukranian HEROESSSS!!!!!! 👑🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻 Insane, utmost respect!!!!!!

[-] [email protected] 13 points 6 days ago

The more Ukraine do that, the less everyone else have to do it. Good.

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this post was submitted on 01 Jun 2025
871 points (99.1% liked)

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