Russia Starts Construction of Revetments at Krymsk Air Base to Protect Aircraft

Russia has begun constructing shelters and revetments at Krymsk military air base to protect aircraft and ammunition.

The construction was spotted on fresh satellite images shared on X by an analyst, StefanB2023.

At the beginning of the full-scale invasion, a large proportion of the air bases from which Russian aircraft operate were not equipped with even simple means of protection against air attack.

At the same time, during the Cold War, reinforced concrete shelters were necessarily built at military airfields near the borders of NATO countries to protect against bombs and nuclear strikes.

A significant portion of serious air raid shelters remained in the Warsaw Pact countries, Ukraine, Belarus, and Russia’s northwestern border.

Russia is now trying to solve this problem. Each Russian combat aviation regiment needs about 10–15 revetments.

It is hard to imagine how much protective structures for transport and strategic aviation will cost.

Lightweight protective hangars began to appear at some Russian airfields in the summer, but they can only protect aircraft from home-made UAVs.

In May, such hangars aimed to protect aircraft from attack drones and missiles with cluster warheads were also spotted at the Marynovka air base.

The use of hangars also helps conceal the presence of aircraft from satellites and other optical reconnaissance systems, making it impossible to determine whether the hangar is occupied or empty.

However, the use of profiled sheets to create hangars does not provide the necessary protection against debris, as they are not very thick.

As a reminder, on November 17, U.S. President Joe Biden authorized Ukraine to strike Russia with U.S. long-range missiles.