How Ukraine did $1bn damage to Russian aircraft with drones
January 29, 2026
Yesterday, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) published a new compilation of drone attacks on 15 Russian military aircraft on the ground from various operations carried out in 2025, causing around $1 billion in damage. Meanwhile, Russia also lost the first fighter jet of 2026.
Ukraine’s dramatic video compilation
In 2025, the world’s attention was grabbed by the dramatic Operation Spiderweb that saw Ukrainian drones destroy around 20% of Russia’s operational strategic bomber fleet on the ground. But less attention has been given to a slower operation, continuously targeting Russian fighter jets on the ground throughout the year.
💥 Russia: Ukrainian SBU Alfa drone operation destroyed an estimated $1 billion in Russian aircraft, munitions arsenals, and fuel depots across 5 air bases.
— Igor Sushko (@igorsushko) January 28, 2026
▪️ 11 jets: Su-30, Su-34, Su-27, Su-24, MiG-31
▪️ 3 helicopters: Mi-28, Mi-26, Mi-8
▪️ 1 transport aircraft: An-26 pic.twitter.com/gmEp2XNpNC
Stills of many of these attacks have been previously released, but not the whole videos.
In a post on Telegram, the SBU said, “The enemy has grown accustomed to feeling safe deep in the rear. But for the special forces of the Alpha unit of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), distance has long ceased to matter.”
It added, “Over the past year alone, five military airfields were hit by our long-range drones. As a result, the enemy will no longer be able to put 15 aircraft back into the air” before claiming the value of the losses exceeded $1 billion.
A Russian Naval Aviation Su-30SM was attaked at Saky AB (45.098743, 33.582028). Outcome unclear. pic.twitter.com/gb36Nivujm
— The Military Watch (@MarcinRogowsk14) January 28, 2026
It is unclear how they calculated that figure; many of the aircraft were old and near the end of their service lives. Other equipment was also hit by the drones at these airfields.
11 Russian fighter jets attacked on the ground
The video claims to show attacks on five military airfields. OSINT account. The Military Watch identified four of these as Saky, Belbek, Simferopol, and Kirovskoye, all in Crimea.
A Russian Naval Aviation Su-24M was attaked at Saky AB (45.093443, 33.590894). Possibly destroyed, high-res sat imagery is needed for confirmation. pic.twitter.com/eEMbZNkb4e
— The Military Watch (@MarcinRogowsk14) January 28, 2026
During Operation Spiderweb, there were drones filming the impact of other drones, and then there was satellite imagery to back it up. But this is less the case in these small-scale attacks.
Often, the only view is that of the attacking drone flying up to the aircraft before cutting out. It is implied that the drone blew up and destroyed or damaged the aircraft, but in doing so, it destroyed the camera, so it is often impossible to verify.
In all, it seems the compilation shows 2х Su-30SM, 2х Su-27, 2х Мi-31, about 5х Su-24s, 1х Мi-26s, 1х Мi-28, 1х Мi-8, and 1x Аn-26 being attacked. That is a total of 11 Russian fighter jets and three military helicopters.
From what can be seen, an old An-26 transport aircraft was damaged beyond repair, a Su-24M tail section was damaged, and a mark on a grainy satellite photo may be that of a destroyed Su-24M.
After that, the Military Watch assessed, “In the case of two Su-30SM, An-26, Mi-26, and Mi-28NM, UAVs came so close that it would be hard for them to miss. So if the drones detonated, all of the above aircraft should have been at least damaged, but we have no proof of that. All other attacks are big ‘ifs’.”
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Russian fighter jet production and more losses
For 2025, it is estimated Russian industry delivered 14-16 Su-34s, 11-15 Su-35s, 4-6 Su-30s, and 0-2 Su-57s for a total of 33-39. A few of these were exported to Belarus and Algeria.
If all those aircraft attacked in the footage were destroyed, it would be equal to a third of Russia’s fighter jet production for the year. That said, only the two Su-30SMs are modern jets. The Su-24s and Su-27s are coming to the end of their useful lives, and MiG-31s have been out of production since 1994.
An Ukrainian air defense position, possibly a Patriot SAM, shot down a Russian Su-34 over the Black Sea not far from the Ukrainian coast. The crew was killed.
— (((Tendar))) (@Tendar) January 28, 2026
I guess that Russians probed the Ukrainian air defense capabilities in that sector. They evidently found out. pic.twitter.com/5BB6dS27SI
Of the 1,559 combat aircraft (including bombers, etc.) FlightGlobal lists in the Russian inventory, the think-tank Rusi, only considers around 525-550 (Su-30s, -34s, -35s, MiG-31s, Su-57s, and strategic bombers) as particularly mentionable.
The rest are considered largely obsolete, at least in the context of a high-end fight against NATO.
Since Ukraine released the video yesterday, it appears Russia has lost its first fighter jet of 2026. A Su-34 was reported crashed (possibly shot down) over the Black Sea with the loss of the crew. The loss of a Russian fighter jet was confirmed by Russian channels.
Reports now that multiple Russian aircraft went down today, including a Su-34 over Kursk and a Su-30 over the Black Sea.
— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) January 28, 2026
Exact circumstances are still unclear. https://t.co/PX7C7x8wQJ pic.twitter.com/3I5blLxhJT
That said, there are some conflicting reports that the jet lost over the Black Sea was actually a Su-30 and that a second aircraft, a Su-34, was also lost over Kursk. As of the time of writing, the loss of the second jet over Kursk appears questionable.
Featured Image: SBU
