It's an amazing attack of creativity - unprecedented, wide and 18 months.

On June 1, Ukrainian drones attacked air bases deep inside Russia, a nuclear-capable long-range bomber.

The operation, known as the "spider web", became obvious almost from the beginning, with explosions reported in several time zones across Russia - north to Murmansk above the Arctic Circle, and the Amur region, more than 8,000 kilometers from Ukraine.

The Russian Ministry of Defense confirmed the attacks occurred in five parts of Russia - Murmansk, Irkutsk, Ivanovo, Reshan and Amur - but the planes were allegedly damaged only in Murmansk and Irkutsk, while others were attacked.

In the photos posted shortly after the attack, Vasyl Maliuk, head of the Ukrainian Security Service (SBU), can be seen viewing a satellite map of the airport, where the bases in the locations listed by Russia are clearly identified.

Marik said the drones were smuggled to Russia in wooden cabins, with wooden cabins mounted at the back of the truck and hidden under a remotely removable roof.

Then, the truck was apparently driven by the driver who seemed unaware of the cargo. Then, the drone is started and set it as a target.

Videos circulating online show drones appearing from the roof of a car involved. A truck driver interviewed by Russian export Ria Novosti said he and other drivers were trying to fly drones out of the rocks.

"They are at the back of the truck and we throw stones to prevent them from flying, to prevent them from being fixed," he said.

According to an unverified report from the Russian Telegraph Channel (Baza), the channel is known for its connection to security services - the truck drivers took off the trucks from which all took similar stories, which were booked by merchants to provide wooden cabins in various places across Russia.

Some of them said they then received further instructions on where to park their trucks over the phone. When they did, they were stunned and saw drones flying around from them.

In a victory post shared on social media on Sunday night, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who directly oversees the operation, said 117 drones were used in the bold attack, which took "a year, six months and nine days" to prepare.

He also said that one of the targeted locations is next to one of the offices of the FSB Russian security department.

Russia said it had detained people related to the attack, although Zelensky said the people who helped promote the operation were "evacuated from Russian territory ... they are safe now".

In the now-deleted telegram post, local authorities from the UST-KUT city of Irkutsk region said they were looking for attacks related to Ukrainian-born 37-year-old attacks related to the Ukrainian-born raid on the Belaya military airport.

Images shared by SBU show dozens of small black drones tucked neatly in wooden huts in warehouses, which Russian military bloggers have included in a location in Chelyabinsk.

Dr. Steve Wright, a UK drone expert, told the BBC that the drone that once hit a Russian plane was a simple four-wheel drive with a relatively heavy payload.

He added that what made the attack "very extraordinary" was the ability to smuggle them to Russia, then launch them remotely and command them - the conclusion he came to was achieved through links delivered through satellites or the internet. Zelensky said each of the 117 drones launched had their own pilot.

Dr. Wright also believes that drones are likely to be able to fly using GPS, but may also overcome local Russian measures by manually flying drones remotely.

Kiev has not shared details about the origins of drones, but since the beginning of the war, Ukraine has become very effective in making them - and the Ukraine used in this operation has the potential to be produced at home.

"Russia suffered very obvious losses, and it was reasonable," Zelensky said in his night video address.

According to Ukraine, 41 strategic bombers were attacked and at least 13 people were destroyed. Moscow has not confirmed any losses from aircraft losses, but says some aircraft are damaged.

BBC-verified video shows that Olenegorsk air base in Murmansk and Belaya air base in Irkutsk have damaged the plane.

The strategic missile bombers targeted in the attack are considered TU-95, TU-22 and TU-160. Repairing them will be difficult, and since no one is still in production, it is impossible to replace them.

Radar satellite images shared by Capella Space revealed at least four severely damaged or destroyed Russian long-range bombers at Belaya Air Force Base. This matches Ukrainian drone videos and also shows an attack on the TU-95 bomber.

"In line with the laws and customs of the war, we have determined absolutely legal goals - bombing military airports and aircraft in our peaceful cities," said SBU head Vasyl Malyuk.

TU-95 bombers are said to have launched a large-scale KH-101 missile attack on Ukraine last week. Each bomber can carry eight missiles, each with a 400 kilogram (882 pounds) warhead.

It is reported that the A-50 military spy plane is also targeted. They are valuable aircraft that can improve Russia's ability to intercept Ukrainian missiles and launch strikes.

It is not known how many A-50s Russia has - but in February 2024, military intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov set this number at eight, so any loss or loss could cause a serious blow to Moscow.

SBU said in a social media article that the cost of spider web operation is $7 billion (£5.2 billion) in Russia.

Russian state media kept deliberately quiet during the attacks, and prime-time Sunday TV shows simply quoted statements from regional authorities. By Monday morning, the story had disappeared from the announcement.

On the Internet and outside the Ukrainians, one praised the action as the "Titanic".

"Of course, not everything can be revealed, but it is undoubtedly Ukrainian action," Zelensky wrote in the telegram.

Other reports by Kumar Malhotra, Tom Spencer, Richard Irvine-Brown, Paul Brown and Benedict Garman