Operation Spider Web (different from the Spider Web treatment) or Operation Spider’s Web, often written as ‘Op Spider Web’, refers to the coordinated and covert destruction of Russia’s military infrastructure by Ukraine during the Russo-Ukrainian war. Op Spider Web is the same as ‘Operation Pavutyna’ or the romanised ‘Operatsija Pavutyna’.
Operation Spider Web has been described as one of Ukraine’s most massive counterstrikes in the war between Russia and Ukraine, which began in February 2022.
When did Operation Spider Web take place?
On 1 June 2025, five Russian airbases: Ukrainka, Olenya, Belaya, Ivanovo Severny and Dyagilevo, were reportedly attacked by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), using about 117 first-person view (FPV) launched from the military bases mentioned above. The FPV drones reportedly destroyed about $7 billion worth of Russian Air Force aircraft, totalling about forty-one (41).
How did Ukraine carry out Operation Spider Web?
Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelensky, via a tweet on the same day, praised the Secret Service of Ukraine headed by Vasyl Malyuk for the operation, stating that Op Spider Web took about “one year, six months and nine days”, from planning to execution. Zelensky also described Operation Spider’s Web as Ukraine’s “most long-range operation”.
According to news reports, FPV drones were released from 18-wheeler trucks parked near targeted Russian airbases, after roof panels of wooden sheds hiding the FPVs were remotely lifted off just before the attacks.
Sources:
Meyn, C (2025). What to know about Ukraine’s stunning ‘Operation Spider Web’. The Hill. https://the hill.com/policy/defense/5328715-ukraine-strikes-russian-airbases/
Wikipedia.