According to Ukrainian media, the operation was codenamed "Spider web".

"The SBU first transported FPV drones to Russia, and later, on the territory of the Russian Federation, the drones were hidden under the roofs of mobile wooden cabins, already placed on trucks," a source told The Kyiv International.

The source said one of the airfields hit was the Belaya air base in Russia's Irkutsk Oblast, more than 4,000 kilometers from Ukraine.

According to reports, Olenya air base in Russia's Murmansk Oblast, the Diaghilev airbase in Ryazan Oblast, Ivanovo airbase in Ivanovo Oblast were also targeted.

"Currently, more than 40 aircraft are known to have been hit, including the A-50, Tu-95 and Tu-22 M3," the source added.

The extent of the damage caused due to the drone attacks is still not known.

Several videos of the attack have now gone viral on the social media platforms.

A source told BBC Ukraine that aircraft including strategic nuclear capable bombers called Tu-95 and Tu-22M3, as well as A-50 early warning aircraft were hit.

UN officials told the Security Council on Thursday that a glimmer of hope for peace in Ukraine has been overshadowed by a devastating new wave of Russian attacks.

“The longer the war continues, the longer its regional and global impacts will be felt, and the more difficult it will be to find a peaceful resolution,” said Rosemary DiCarlo, UN Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs.

She recalled the adoption of Security Council resolution 2774 in February – the first since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 – which sparked a sense of optimism for a diplomatic solution.  

That has since been replaced by a sense of international frustration – and more suffering in Ukraine following the surge in attacks.

“The hope that the parties will be able to sit down and negotiate is still alive, but just barely,” DiCarlo warned.