In scenes reminiscent of a Cold War spy thriller, footage of the devastating aftermath of a covert Ukrainian operation on Russian soil reveals how the mission was orchestrated, leading to the destruction of dozens of Putin's most valuable military aircraft.

Dubbed “Operation Spiderweb,” the mission — orchestrated in secret by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky himself — used hundreds of first-person-view (FPV) attack drones smuggled into Russia in wooden containers disguised as prefabricated houses.

Innocent-looking Russian trucks, driven by unsuspecting drivers, were parked next to strategic air bases. Their roofs were then opened remotely and swarms of drones rose up to strike Russian bombers on the ground. The strikes were carried out on Sunday, with videos posted by pro-Putin military bloggers showing flames engulfing aircraft in several locations, including deep in Siberia, some 4,200 km from the front line in Ukraine.

At least four other strategic Russian air bases were hit: Olenya in the Arctic, Diaghilev in western Russia, Ivanovo northeast of Moscow, and the Moscow Region.

Sources from the Ukrainian security service SBU claim that the operation has crippled 34% of Russia's long-range strategic bombers, including the nuclear-armed Tu-95 and Tu-22M3, used to launch cruise missiles at Ukraine, writes the Daily Mail.

These aircraft are no longer in production and cannot be replaced.

"At the right moment, the cabin roofs opened remotely and the drones flew towards the Russian bombers," an intelligence source told the Kyiv Independent. The SBU said at least 41 long-range aircraft were damaged or destroyed.

The deadly cargo was hidden in what the drivers thought were prefabricated houses – delivered to airports in Murmansk, Irkutsk, Ryazan and Ivanovo.

Images released by Ukrainian secret services show wooden containers filled with 117 FPV kamikaze drones, controlled by pilots via real-time video link.

Dozens of black drones were arranged in mobile wooden cabins, with secret compartments in the roofs where they were hidden.

These boxes were loaded onto civilian trucks, whose hired drivers were unsuspecting. Yesterday afternoon, after all the trucks were within range of five air bases from northern Russia to Siberia, the strike began.

Several drivers, currently being questioned by Russian authorities, claim they were unaware they were transporting Ukrainian drones.

According to the Baza Telegram channel, 55-year-old Alexander Z. from Chelyabinsk received an order from an entrepreneur from the Murmansk region to deliver four prefabricated houses to the Kola region. While he was traveling, a stranger called him with instructions on where and when to stop.

The truck was parked next to a Rosneft gas station near Murmansk airport when its roof opened and dozens of drones took off.

Using forward-facing cameras, drones with warheads aimed straight at the expensive Russian bombers.

Footage from the scene in Irkutsk shows drones taking off from an unsuspecting truck. A similar incident occurred with 61-year-old Andrey M., who was delivering"houses" to the region, but when he stopped at a restaurant in Usolye-Sibirskoye, drones began to take off from the truck.

Similar stories were shared by drivers in Ryazan and Ivanovo. Sergey, 46, said he was transporting a modular house from Chelyabinsk. As he entered Ryazan, the roof of his truck exploded and drones flew out.

The fourth truck involved in the strike on the Ivanovo airport was also loaded in Chelyabinsk.

The self-destruct system ensures that no traces or technology will be left behind that could fall into Russian hands — preventing reverse engineering.

All the trucks are linked to a mysterious man named Artyom, 37, possibly Ukrainian. All the drivers received encrypted calls with precise instructions hours before the attack.

Videos shared on social media show smoke coming out of the roofs of the trucks and parts of the wooden crates rolling along the road.

Footage shows destroyed enemy aircraft in flames on runways. Ukrainian sources claim they destroyed 41 aircraft worth around £1.5 billion.

Drone videos show several Russian planes exploding as drones fly overhead, causing fireballs and black smoke.

According to the Baza channel, Russian authorities have launched a terrorism investigation and are searching for Artyom, who is believed to have fled.

Operation"Spiderweb" was prepared for 18 months under the control of the head of the SBU Vasil Malyuk.

Zelensky marked the symbolic moment – exactly 29 years after Ukraine handed over its own strategic bombers to Russia under the Budapest Memorandum.

"We can confidently say that this is an absolutely unique operation," he said in a statement on social media, revealing that 117 drones were used to strike aircraft"shooting at our cities."

"The most interesting thing is that the 'office' of our operation on Russian territory was located directly next to the FSB building in one of their regions."

"A total of 117 drones and the corresponding number of operators participated in the operation. 34% of the cruise missile carriers based at these air bases were hit. We will continue this work."

Zelensky concluded that the attack on Putin's indispensable aircraft "will undoubtedly go down in history books."

Military blogger Roman Alekhine called the incident "Russia's Pearl Harbor" — a reference to the Japanese attack on the United States in 1941.