Cheap cover-up tactics
“Maskirovka” is probably of little help to the Russian army
March 20, 2024, 1:44 p.m
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There are cheap replicas of jets on airfields, the bows and tails of warships are painted black: According to the British Ministry of Defense, Russia is increasingly trying to deceive Ukraine. Apparently with dubious success.
According to the British, Russia wants to protect its fighter jets and warships from Ukrainian attacks using replicas and other deception. “The Russian Armed Forces are most likely trying to increase and improve the use of so-called Maskirovka techniques to mitigate the heavy losses of the past two years in both the Black Sea Fleet and the Aerospace Forces,” the British Ministry of Defense said, referring to the Russian term with.
Cheap replicas of jets are being set up at Russian airfields or machines are being covered with tires, and there are also reports of aircraft silhouettes painted on the ground, it said in London. The bow and stern of warships would be painted black to make the boats appear smaller. Outlines of the ships would be painted onto the pavement on the quays. The British ministry showed an aerial photo of a submarine anchored in the port of Novorossiysk and a silhouette next to it.
“Despite these attempts at concealment, Russian aircraft in the air are still vulnerable to conventional shoot-downs and Russian ships are still vulnerable during operations in the Black Sea,” the British authority emphasized. “It is unlikely that the use of ‘maskirovka’ techniques will lead to a significant reduction in losses.”
Overall, the Ukrainian army has already at least significantly damaged more than a fifth of the Russian Black Sea Fleet. Although it doesn’t have any large ships, it does have a number of underwater drones.