In the pre-dawn hours of June 1, 2025, a swarm of cheap but effective Ukrainian drones streaked across Russian skies, heading toward four major Russian airfields. Within hours, plumes of black smoke began rising from Engels, Shaykovka, Mozdok, and Soltsy airbases — sites housing some of the most formidable aircraft in Russia’s long-range strategic bomber fleet.
Ukraine later claimed that the strike disabled or destroyed up to 34% of Russia’s heavy bomber force. While independent verification remains pending, satellite imagery and open-source intelligence suggest significant damage to Tu-95 and Tu-22M3 bombers — aircraft that have played pivotal roles in Russia’s air campaign over Ukraine. If these claims are even partially accurate, the June 1 drone strikes may represent one of the most consequential preemptive air operations of the 21st century — drawing comparisons to historic turning points in aerial warfare.
- Russia’s “Pearl Harbor Moment”
Military historians and analysts alike have dubbed the June 1 strike “Russia’s Pearl Harbor moment” — an apt, albeit loaded, comparison. On December 7, 1941, Japanese carrier-borne aircraft launched a surprise attack on the United States Pacific Fleet anchored at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Within two hours, Japan had destroyed or damaged 21 American warships and over 180 aircraft, most of them still grounded. Only six U.S. aircraft managed to take off and confront the onslaught.
Japan’s aim in 1941 was to neutralize American naval power in the Pacific and establish dominance across East Asia. While ultimately unsuccessful in achieving strategic victory, the attack showcased the devastating potential of a well-coordinated preemptive strike — a lesson that has echoed across decades of military planning.
The Ukrainians, facing an adversary with a larger and better-equipped air force, have now taken that lesson into the realm of unmanned warfare. Using commercially available drones and domestically modified long-range UAVs, Kyiv struck deep into Russian territory with precision and intent — crippling assets that might have otherwise been used for missile and bomb strikes against Ukrainian cities and infrastructure.
But while the June 1 attack stands out for its innovation and psychological impact, it is not the first time in modern military history that an air force has been destroyed before it ever took flight.
The doctrine of preemptive air strikes emerged prominently during World War II, but its most refined and effective application came decades later. Across multiple conflicts — from South Asia to the Middle East — air forces have sought to gain the decisive upper hand by neutralizing enemy air power on the ground.
- 1971: Pakistan’s Failed “Preemptive Strike” on India
On the evening of December 3, 1971, Pakistan launched Operation Chengiz Khan, a preemptive aerial assault on Indian air bases in Amritsar, Pathankot, Srinagar, and other northern cities. Inspired by Israel’s Operation Focus (more on that below), Pakistan hoped to incapacitate the Indian Air Force (IAF) and gain early air superiority in a war that it believed was imminent.
However, the strike fell short of its objectives. Indian air bases had been reinforced, aircraft dispersed, and air defenses improved in anticipation of such an attack. Within hours, the IAF retaliated with strikes on Pakistani airfields in the west, initiating a full-scale war that led to Pakistan’s defeat and the creation of Bangladesh.
- 1973: Yom Kippur War — A Lesson in Restraint
When Egypt and Syria launched a surprise attack on Israel during Yom Kippur in October 1973, the Israeli Air Force initially hesitated to launch large-scale strikes deep into enemy territory, fearing heavy losses to advanced Soviet-made SAMs. As a result, Israel was unable to replicate the shock-and-awe air victories of 1967 — and paid a heavy price in the early days of the war.
Yet the Israeli Air Force eventually adjusted its tactics, and the tide turned. But the contrast with 1967’s Operation Focus underscored a timeless military truth: when war is inevitable, the side that strikes first — effectively and decisively — often gains the upper hand.
- 1980: Iran’s Failed Gamble Against Iraq
On the first day of the Iran-Iraq War in September 1980, Iran launched a series of airstrikes on Iraqi airbases, hoping to catch Saddam Hussein’s air force off guard. But the execution was poor, and the damage inflicted was minimal. Iraq responded with a more successful retaliatory campaign, leading to an extended and attritional conflict that lasted eight years.
These examples show that preemptive strikes are high-risk, high-reward gambits. But when executed flawlessly, as Israel demonstrated in 1967, they can fundamentally reshape the battlefield.
When military historians speak of the most successful preemptive air strike in history, they inevitably return to Operation Focus — Israel’s audacious attack on Egyptian and Arab air forces on June 5, 1967.
In the lead-up to the Six-Day War, Israel faced an existential crisis. Egypt had massed over 130,000 troops in the Sinai Peninsula, ordered UN peacekeepers to withdraw, and blockaded the Straits of Tiran. Syria and Jordan joined in forming a unified Arab front, creating a looming threat from all sides.
Despite being outnumbered and outgunned — the combined Arab air forces had over 600 combat aircraft to Israel’s 250 — the Israeli Air Force (IAF) prepared for what it called the “now-or-never” moment.
At 7:00 a.m. on June 5, nearly 200 Israeli jets took off in silence and flew low over the Mediterranean to avoid radar detection. Only 12 aircraft were left behind to defend Israeli airspace. At precisely 7:45 a.m., they struck 11 Egyptian airfields with surgical precision.
Using delayed-fuse bombs and runway-busting warheads, the IAF not only destroyed aircraft on the ground but made it impossible for any surviving planes to take off. A second wave followed at 9:30 a.m., expanding the operation to include Syrian and Jordanian targets.
By noon, Egypt’s air force — one of the most advanced in the Middle East, equipped with Soviet MiG-21s, MiG-19s, and Tupolev bombers — was annihilated. Of the 400+ aircraft Egypt possessed, over 300 were destroyed, most while still on the ground. Syria and Jordan fared no better. In total, the Arab coalition lost 452 aircraft.
Israel, by contrast, lost only 19 aircraft, most to anti-aircraft fire. Its air superiority was established by midday and held uncontested for the remainder of the war.
This aerial dominance translated into rapid territorial gains: Israel seized the Sinai Peninsula, Gaza Strip, West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights — tripling its land area in just six days.
What makes the Ukrainian drone strikes on June 1 so remarkable is how they reflect an evolution of air power in the 21st century. In 1967, Israel’s success was based on surprise, planning, and daring pilot missions against known targets. In 2025, Ukraine used thousands of dollars’ worth of drones to potentially knock out billions of dollars’ worth of Russian strategic assets.
Instead of Mirage jets streaking across skies, there were AI-guided drones flying low and slow — evading radar, exploiting weak points in Russian air defense, and detonating upon impact with bombers parked in hardened shelters.
The advantage of using drones lies in scalability and deniability. Ukraine didn’t risk its pilots and could saturate Russian airspace at a relatively low cost. Some drones were launched from within Russia itself by partisans, while others may have flown from Ukrainian-held territory, maneuvering past Russia’s vast but overstretched air defense network.
This strategy echoes guerrilla warfare in the sky — death by a thousand cuts, or more accurately, by a thousand drones.
If the June 1 drone strikes prove to have permanently damaged a third of Russia’s heavy bomber fleet, the implications will be far-reaching. Long-range strategic bombers like the Tu-95 and Tu-22M3 are central to Russia’s conventional and nuclear deterrence. They are also crucial in launching standoff weapons such as cruise missiles into Ukrainian cities.
Losing even a portion of these aircraft affects Russia’s warfighting capacity and its strategic posture. More symbolically, it erodes the image of invulnerability long associated with Russia’s deep, layered air defenses.
Moreover, this event might serve as a template for other conflicts. From Taiwan to Iran, and from the Sahel to the South China Sea, militaries around the world are taking notes. Cheap, expendable drones are the new slingshots — and even Goliaths with stealth bombers are not immune.
Preemptive air strikes have always been about shaping the battlefield before the first major engagement. From Pearl Harbor to Operation Focus to the skies over Engels and Shaykovka, air power has proven that wars can be won — or lost — before the first dogfight.
But unlike the massive state-backed air raids of the past, today’s asymmetric actors are using digital tools, crowd-sourced intelligence, and drones that can be assembled in a garage.
In a sense, the June 1 Ukrainian strikes are not just a footnote in the war against Russia. They may mark a turning point in military history — where air dominance no longer depends solely on supersonic speed, stealth coatings, or billion-dollar fighters, but on algorithms, innovation, and the courage to strike first.
As with Pearl Harbor, as with 1967, and now again in 2025 — the lesson remains chillingly clear: when the war is inevitable, the side that controls the sky first often controls everything that comes after.
