(Maj Gen Harvijay Singh, SM)

 A brilliant operation for the history books. Ukrainian President Zelenskyy

Op Spider’s Web – A high-profile drone strike deep (upto 4000 kms) inside Russia carried out on 1 June 2025, led by Sluzhba Bezpeky Ukrayiny or Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU). Interestingly, the drones were launched from inside Russian territory …. hidden in wooden cabins mounted on flatbed trucks …. designed to look like ordinary mobile homes .… remotely operated roofs that opened to ….. free the hunters. Interestingly the load was delivered simultaneously to designated places with unsuspecting drivers guided on mobiles. Then the roofs opened, and the drones flew ….. some drivers threw stones at them …. others must have fainted in shock. A modern-day Trojan Horse. The drones were controlled over the Russian 4 G Networks and OFC spools used for the last mile to evade jamming. 117 FPV drones targeted five Russian airbases: Belaya, Dyagilevo, Ivanovo Severny, Olenya, and Ukrainka with phenomenal precision. The pilots, working from Ukraine, aimed at vulnerable points such as fuel tanks in the wings with penny packet load of explosives. Plan like chessmasters … strike like pirates. At the centre was the Osa Drone – Ukrainian for “Wasp” an indigenous FPV quadcopter. Key Specs – Payload: Up to 3.3 kg (enough for a shaped charge or incendiary device). Flight Time: ~15 minutes. Top Speed: 150 km/h. • Each drone had its own pilot, using ArduPilot software (a powerful, open-source autopilot software suite that enables autonomous control of unmanned vehicles). • To avoid jamming, drones used dead reckoning navigation – a technique that estimates a vehicle’s current position based on a previously known location, factoring in speed, direction, and elapsed time – without relying on external signals like GPS. And, • AI-based target recognition in case of signal loss enabling drones to autonomously identify, classify, and engage targets with min human inputs. At the core of this capability are machine learning (ML) and deep learning algorithms trained on vast datasets of images and sensor data. Some drones were trained to identify and strike fuel tanks on aircraft for maximum damage – and they did.

The Impact – both financial and strategic: • Ukraine claims that the strike damaged/ destroyed 41 aircraft, including Tu-95s, Tu-22M3s, and A-50s, and estimates $7 billion in losses to Russia’s strategic aviation. Cost of the Osa Drone – $ 2000. • Ukraine’s deepest strike into Russian territory – over 4,000 km in some cases. It exposed serious vulnerabilities in Russia’s internal security. It also sent a powerful message that Ukraine can hit high value targets anywhere, anytime. • There were No boots on the ground – just technology, timing, and deep analysis of the terrain. • The strike damaged Russia’s long-range strategic bomber fleet, some of a vintage that they cannot be repaired or replaced crippling their strategic reach. Lessons • In modern warfare, the battlefield can be anywhere. There is no FLOT – Front Line of Own Troops, just a tangled web of hybrid tactics, psychological manoeuvres, and technological infiltration. • Strategy, planning and preparedness are essential but audacious and outlandish execution gets the bull’s eye. Master the fundamentals, then blow the doors off convention. • Surprise and deception remain crucial factors in modern warfare. Tough but essential in a world overflowing with data, sensors, and satellite eyes. • About a 100 Drones may have been assembled surreptitiously within Russia. Such indifference can destroy civilizations. Citizens have to be aware and accountable on issues of national security. • Propaganda and sabre-rattling are tools of perception warfare meant to blur the truth, twist the narrative, and create just enough doubt to stall decision-making. Wars are not however always about ‘noise’ many victories squeeze in quietly. • Suicide bombers are a thing of the past … switches will be pressed 1000s of miles away. Everything that needs to be secured must be secured, and pronto. Finally, • Drones are rewriting Operational Art, they are being used in wildly creative ways – is the next step swarm autonomy or something more disruptive? Countermeasures will require multi domain shields and doctrines …. not as afterthought though.