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Shafaq News
07-06-2025
- Politics
- Shafaq News
Ukraine downs Russian Su-35 fighter jet
Shafaq News/ On Saturday, Ukraine's military said it shot down a Russian Su-35 fighter jet in the Kursk region during an air force operation. The Ukrainian military did not provide further details, and Russia has not commented on the claim. The Su-35 is one of Russia's most advanced multi-role fighter jets, capable of carrying precision-guided missiles and engaging both air and ground targets. Meanwhile, Russia's Ministry of Defense reported today that its air defenses shot down four Ukrainian drones over the Belgorod region, a border area that has seen frequent drone and artillery attacks in recent weeks. Ukraine has intensified drone strikes deep inside Russian territory. Last week, Kyiv's security service (SBU) launched a large drone attack targeting over 40 Russian military aircraft, damaging or destroying multiple Tu-95 and Tu-22 strategic bombers.
The Irish Sun
05-06-2025
- Business
- The Irish Sun
Army bosses plan to buy drones that can be fired from VANS after Ukraine's devastating attack on Russia
THE Army plans to buy drones which can be launched out of vans after Ukraine blitzed a third of Russia's bombers from lorries. Top Brass issued a request for a covert launcher that fits in a 'Sprinter truck or regular Transit van'. 2 Army bosses plan to buy drones that can be fired from vans after Ukraine's devastating attack on Russia Credit: Getty The weapon, codenamed Project Volley, must be robust, simple to use, weigh no more than 275kg, and fire at least five drones in four minutes at speeds of 200kmph. The MoD put out a message to industry, known as a 'notice for contracts', and will potentially give the launchers to Ukraine. It said: 'The user will use the launcher in a high-threat environment with persistent enemy surveillance. 'Therefore it must create a minimal signature — acoustic, heat, visual when used, eg hiding in plain sight.' read more on army It comes after Ukraine claimed to have destroyed at least 41 Russian aircraft on Sunday with 117 drones hidden on cargo trucks. They were in pre-fabricated sheds that were loaded on to flatbed trucks and driven across Russia. As they neared airfields, the roofs of the sheds flipped open and the drones took off. They destroyed Tu-95 and Tu-22 long-range bombers and prized A-50 Beriev command and control aircraft. Most read in The Sun Russia continues to launch drone strikes of its own, including one on a residential area in Kharkiv yesterday. The MoD's notice stressed urgency by saying that it is not interested in solutions 'that will not be ready for UK field demonstration or testing in October'. From tactical nuke to 7,600mph missile & 50k-troop assault…6 ways Putin could respond to Ukraine blitz after Trump call The MoD said Project Volley was part of a £5billion investment in 'advanced new weapons' based on lessons learned from Ukraine. It added: 'This investment will improve accuracy and lethality for our Armed Forces, while boosting UK export potential.' 2 Ukraine claimed to have destroyed at least 41 Russian aircraft on Sunday with 117 drones hidden on cargo trucks Credit: Getty Unlock even more award-winning articles as The Sun launches brand new membership programme - Sun Club.
Scottish Sun
05-06-2025
- Politics
- Scottish Sun
Army bosses plan to buy drones that can be fired from VANS after Ukraine's devastating attack on Russia
Ukraine destroyed Russian aircraft with drones hidden on cargo trucks on Sunday WHITE VAN WHAM Army bosses plan to buy drones that can be fired from VANS after Ukraine's devastating attack on Russia THE Army plans to buy drones which can be launched out of vans after Ukraine blitzed a third of Russia's bombers from lorries. Top Brass issued a request for a covert launcher that fits in a 'Sprinter truck or regular Transit van'. Advertisement 2 Army bosses plan to buy drones that can be fired from vans after Ukraine's devastating attack on Russia Credit: Getty The weapon, codenamed Project Volley, must be robust, simple to use, weigh no more than 275kg, and fire at least five drones in four minutes at speeds of 200kmph. The MoD put out a message to industry, known as a 'notice for contracts', and will potentially give the launchers to Ukraine. It said: 'The user will use the launcher in a high-threat environment with persistent enemy surveillance. 'Therefore it must create a minimal signature — acoustic, heat, visual when used, eg hiding in plain sight.' Advertisement It comes after Ukraine claimed to have destroyed at least 41 Russian aircraft on Sunday with 117 drones hidden on cargo trucks. They were in pre-fabricated sheds that were loaded on to flatbed trucks and driven across Russia. As they neared airfields, the roofs of the sheds flipped open and the drones took off. They destroyed Tu-95 and Tu-22 long-range bombers and prized A-50 Beriev command and control aircraft. Advertisement Russia continues to launch drone strikes of its own, including one on a residential area in Kharkiv yesterday. The MoD's notice stressed urgency by saying that it is not interested in solutions 'that will not be ready for UK field demonstration or testing in October'. From tactical nuke to 7,600mph missile & 50k-troop assault…6 ways Putin could respond to Ukraine blitz after Trump call The MoD said Project Volley was part of a £5billion investment in 'advanced new weapons' based on lessons learned from Ukraine. It added: 'This investment will improve accuracy and lethality for our Armed Forces, while boosting UK export potential.' Advertisement 2 Ukraine claimed to have destroyed at least 41 Russian aircraft on Sunday with 117 drones hidden on cargo trucks Credit: Getty Unlock even more award-winning articles as The Sun launches brand new membership programme - Sun Club.
New Indian Express
05-06-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Russia's Pearl Harbor? Ukraine's Operation Spider Web an attack of astonishing ingenuity
On June 1, Ukraine launched one of its largest ever drone-based operations on Russia, striking five airbases deep inside Russian territory. Following this, the Russian Defence Ministry said in a statement, "Today, the Kyiv regime staged a terror attack with the use of FPV drones on airfields in the Murmansk, Irkutsk, Ivanovo, Ryazan, and Amur Regions. All terror attacks were repelled. No casualties were reported either among servicemen or civilians. Some of those involved in the terror attacks were detained.' Ukraine, however, stated that at least 40 aircraft had been damaged, specifying that these included nuclear capable Tu-95 and Tu-22 strategic bombers earlier used to 'bomb Ukrainian cities'. Russia's Defence Ministry only confirmed that 'several aircraft caught fire.' Two of the airbases struck, Olenya and Belaya, are around 1,900 kilometres and 4,300 kilometres from Ukraine. The first is located in the Russian Arctic and the other in Eastern Siberia. The operation is also one more example of just how rapidly technology and innovative thinking are changing the battlefield. Operation The Ukrainian media claimed that the large-scale special operation was conducted by the SBU, Ukraine's Special Security Service. The planning and preparation started 18 months ago. Russia has highly capable air defence systems and so, it was impossible to strike it from Ukraine. Hence, a plan was made to hit Russia from within Russia, thereby bypassing its air defence wall. The operation has been launched under a special operation, code-named "Pavutyna" or "Spider Web", aimed at degrading Russia's long-range strike capabilities. Ukraine reportedly planned the attack for a year. The drones were packed onto pallets inside wooden containers with remote-controlled lids and then loaded onto cargo trucks, with the crates being rigged to self-destruct after the drones were released. These cargo trucks then smuggled the drones into Russia, blending with normal Russian highway traffic. The trucks were camouflaged with wooden structures, likely posing their payload as cargo shipments, such as lumber or construction materials. Some of these may also have had false license plates or forged documents to pass Russian checkpoints unnoticed. As an added advantage, Russia's vast road network and relatively porous internal transport system make it hard to monitor every vehicle. The trucks were then apparently driven to locations near airbases by drivers who were seemingly unaware of their cargo. Finally, the drones were launched and set upon their targets. Roofs of the wooden cabins carried by the trucks were opened by remote control, with the drones being simultaneously launched to attack Russian air bases. Once launched, these aerial vehicles relied on GPS/inertial guidance systems to fly autonomously toward distant Russian airbases. The drones were adapted to first-person-view (FPV) multirotor platforms, which allows the operator to get a first-person perspective from the aerial vehicle's onboard camera. Apparently, Ukraine used NATO-supplied satellite data and ISR (intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance) to identify the exact positions of Russian bombers, gaps in radar coverage, and safe launch zones deep inside Russia. Videos circulating online show the drones emerging from the roof of one of the vehicles involved. A lorry driver interviewed by Russian state outlet Ria Novosti claimed that he and other drivers tried to knock down drones flying out of a truck with rocks. "They were in the back of the truck and we threw stones to keep them from flying up, to keep them pinned down," he said. Using 117 drones, Ukraine was able to reach regions thousands of kilometres from the front, compared to its previous attacks,which generally focused on areas close to its borders. Once the drones were launched from within their territory, Russia's defences had very little time to react, as the aerial vehicles bypassed border surveillance. The SBU stated that the strikes had managed to hit Russian aircraft worth $7billion at four airbases. The cost curve, using relatively cheap systems to destroy billions of dollars' worth of Russian combat power, has also been turned on its head. Evaluation The idea behind Operation 'Spider Web' was to transport small, first-person-view drones close enough to Russian airfields to render traditional air defence systems useless. President Zelensky said the attack 'had an absolutely brilliant outcome' and dubbed it as 'Russia's Pearl Harbor', one that demonstrated Ukraine's capability to hit high-value targets anywhere on enemy turf, dealing a significant and humiliating blow to the Kremlin's stature and Moscow's war machine. 'Our people operated across several Russian regions in three different time zones. And the people who assisted us were withdrawn from Russian territory before the operation, they are now safe,' the Ukrainian President stated. Dr Steve Wright, a UK-based drone expert, told the BBC that the drones used were simple quadcopters carrying relatively heavy payloads. However, in his view, what made this attack "quite extraordinary" was the ability to smuggle them into Russia, and then launch and command them remotely. This, he concluded, had been potentially achieved through a link relayed through a satellite or the internet. Although the full extent of the damage from these Ukrainian strikes is unknown, the attacks showed that Kyiv was adapting and evolving in the face of a larger military with deeper resources. As per Justin Bronk of the Royal United Services Institute, 'If even half the total claim of 41 aircraft damaged/destroyed is confirmed, it will have a significant impact on the capacity of the Russian Long-Range Aviation force to keep up its regular large-scale cruise missile salvos against Ukrainian cities and infrastructure.' Conclusion This will undoubtedly go down as one of the most sophisticated covert operations of the Russia-Ukraine War so far. Ukraine, though outgunned by Russia, has responded by developing a cheap and sizeable inventory of attack drones. The innovative use of these drones has now been clearly exhibited, showcasing the strategic value of this asset. Nations treat their airspace as sovereign, a controlled environment that is mapped, regulated, and watched over. Air defence systems are built on the assumption that threats come from beyond national borders. Operation 'Spider Web' exposed what happens when countries are attacked from within. The drones flew low, through unmonitored gaps, exploiting assumptions about what kind of threat was faced and from where. In low-level airspace, responsibility fragments and detection tools evidently lose their edge. 'Spider Web' worked, not because of what each drone could do individually, but how the operation was designed. The cost of each drone was low but the overall effect was high. This isn't just asymmetric warfare, it's a different kind of offensive capability for which nations need to adapt. Beyond the battlefield, the impact of this operation is perhaps even more significant. What 'Spider Web' confirms is that the gaps in airspace can be used by an adversary with enough planning and the right technology. They can be exploited not just by states and not just in war. The technology is not rare and the tactics are not complicated. What Ukraine did was to combine them in a way that existing systems could not see the attack coming. Drones in low-level airspace are now a universal vulnerability and a defining challenge. It is difficult to keep out drones with unpredictable flight paths. The operation showed how little the margin for error is when cheap systems can be used precisely. As demonstrated, the cost of failure can be strategic. Though the consequences of the attacks on Russian military capabilities are difficult to estimate at this stage, their symbolic significance is important for Ukraine, as it has been facing setbacks on the battlefront. Ukraine, which has banked on expanding the use of domestically produced drones during the ongoing conflict, has now surprised Russia and the world with this new approach. However, the attacks are unlikely to alter the political calculus of President Putin or change Russia's belief that it holds an advantage over Ukraine, and that it sees a weakening resolve in some of Ukraine's allies. There is no doubt that this attack will go down as one of the finest out-of-the-box ideas of this conflict rendering the entire air defence system sterile and raising huge questions regarding the management of airspace with repercussions far beyond the conflict.
05-06-2025
- Politics
Aftermath of Ukraine drone strike on Russian airfields shown in satellite imagery
An analysis by multiple experts of new video and satellite images suggests that at least 11 Russian bomber aircraft and one large transport plane were badly damaged or destroyed in Ukraine's drone attack on Sunday. Video released on Wednesday by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) gives more details on the attack, the full extent of which has been unclear. Ukraine's government said over 40 aircraft were destroyed in an attack on at least four air bases on Monday. On Wednesday, two United States officials said around 10 planes had been destroyed and a total of around 20 were targeted in the attack. The video from the SBU released Wednesday opens with a view of the Olenya air base with multiple drones landing on Tu-95 and Tu-22 bombers and an An-12 transport plane. Explosions from other drones and burning planes can be seen in some of the clips. At Olenya, according to the defense intelligence firm Janes, a company using open-source information to provide intelligence, four Tu-95 bombers and one An-12 were destroyed. Janes said they based their analysis on video and multiple satellite images. Analysts with the private intelligence firm MAIAR wrote in a report, provided to ABC News, that no significant damage was visible at the base and that imagery suggested eight A-50s remained in the same position as seen in earlier images. Two A-50 aircraft are seen at Russia's Ivanovo air base in a video posted by SBU on June 4. After the appearance of the A-50s in the video from Ukraine's SBU released Wednesday, a series of clips shows drones landing on and around large airplanes at Russia's Dyagilevo air base. Scorch marks on the ground suggested Russia's Dyagilevo air base was likely targeted in the attack, according to Janes, but there was no visible evidence of damage to aircraft there. MAIAR's analysts also pointed to ground scarring near areas where aircraft had been stored. After reviewing the SBU's video, the open-source intelligence analyst Brady Africk told ABC News the video pointed to evidence of damage to at least one Tu-22. According to Africk, a damaged Tu-22 bomber is seen at Russia's Dyagilevo air base. The video from Ukraine's SBU closes with a series of clips from the Belaya air base, where several smoke plumes and fires are seen as drones target multiple planes. There, the wreckage of three Tu-95 and four Tu-22 bombers could be seen in a June 4 image from Planet Labs, according to an analysis by Janes. MAIAR's analysts reached the same conclusion, highlighting evidence in the satellite imagery of ground scarring and burned grass in two areas of the base. Africk, the open-source intelligence analyst, told ABC News that destroyed Tu-95 and Tu-22 bombers could be seen at the base.
