Russia plans $1 billion investment in protective shelters for military aircraft amid growing drone attacks
Russian war correspondents, citing Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov, reported the Russian military leadership's intentions to build protective shelters for combat aircraft at military airfields. Intriguingly, the announcement appeared on social media just before the Ukrainian forces' strike on the Millerovo airbase on July 20.
"With the help of high-precision Western missiles with cluster warheads, the enemy has repeatedly attempted to attack our combat aircraft on the tarmacs. On Friday, Andrei Belousov assured me that a timetable for the airfields has already been drawn up and shelters will definitely be built," wrote Russian military blogger Alexander Kots on his channel.
Ukrainian forces have repeatedly targeted not only the deployment sites of Russian frontline aviation but also airbases housing Russian strategic aircraft. For instance, in April this year, Ukrainian special services carried out an operation to strike the "Engels-2" airfield, where strategic bombers Tu-95MS were stationed.
Additionally, in one of the latest similar episodes, the newest Russian Su-57 fighters were damaged while stationed at an airbase in the Astrakhan region, 600 km from Ukraine.
Commenting on the news, Ukrainian analysts from Defense Express note that the decision to construct protective structures appears in the Russian information space as a "bottom-up" initiative proposed by "war correspondents."
However, the absence of such structures at Russian airbases has been known since the 1980s, with the deployment of new aircraft like the Su-27 and MiG-31, which did not fit into the standard shelters of the 2А13 model. During the Soviet Union period, standard 2А13 arch shelters, 13 meters wide, with 60 cm thick concrete walls, and half-meter thick steel doors, were built in border military districts. These shelters also included service areas equipped with electrical systems, ventilation, and fire suppression equipment.
The cost of a standard 2А13 shelter in 1972 was 160,000 Soviet rubles, equivalent to approximately $1.5 million under current economic conditions. For larger aircraft like the Su-27, bigger shelters such as the 2А19 model with a width of 18.6 meters are required, significantly increasing costs due to their size and additional structural features.
Regarding the possibility of constructing shelters, such work is likely to start at airbases like Kushchevskaya, Millerovo, Belbek, as well as in Taganrog and Voronezh. If the Russians aim to protect about 300 aircraft units, the overall cost approximates to about $1 billion.
"However, it is very likely that instead of full-fledged shelters for aircraft, Russia will go the path of least resistance and resort to either canopies like those at the Khmeimim airbase in Syria or metal hangars designed just to protect from inclement weather," the analysts conclude.