Cages, Bunkers, and Drone Strikes: Lessons from the War in Ukraine

By
Steve Schneider
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By torjrtrx @Adobe Stock

High-Value Targets Seek New Layers of Defense

Satellite imagery suggests Russia is adapting its defenses in response to Ukraine’s long-range drone and missile strikes, reflecting the intensifying dynamics of asymmetric warfare between the two sides. According to The War Zone, construction is underway at Engels Air Base for at least 17 hardened shelters to protect strategic bombers such as the Tu-95 and Tu-160, marking a shift away from previously exposed parking toward physical protection of high-value aircraft.


Similar improvised defenses are appearing at industrial sites. In Cheboksary, the electronics plant operated by VNIIR Progress has reportedly been wrapped in anti-drone netting, an unusual “cage”-style adaptation normally seen on armored vehicles. The facility, according to Business Insider, produces navigation components used in Russian missiles and drones and has become a repeated target in Ukraine’s deep-strike campaign. While such defenses may be effective against smaller drones, they were reportedly unable to stop Ukraine’s ground-launched Flamingo cruise missile, as seen in the picture below.

Layered Protection Replaces Traditional Armor

More broadly, Russia is increasingly relying on improvised protection measures across both frontline and rear areas—ranging from netted infrastructure to experimental vehicle armor such as “turtle tanks” and dense “dandelion,” also known as “porcupine,” anti-drone systems. Together, these changes reflect how rapidly asymmetric drone warfare is forcing continuous adaptation, with survivability depending less on traditional armor and more on layered, improvised defenses against persistent aerial threats.

A Moscow-area refinery strike suggests Ukraine’s drone campaign is also evolving. The attack is described as a milestone in coordinated, multi-drone operations capable of overwhelming air defenses and striking deep inside Russia, underscoring a shift toward more complex, layered “system-of-systems” tactics rather than isolated drone raids.

The Rise of Layered Defenses Against Low-Cost Aerial Threats

Russian companies are increasingly building metal and mesh “cope cages” around oil refineries to defend against Ukrainian drone attacks. Countries beyond Russia are also adapting to the growing drone threat, according to TWZ. In the UAE, authorities are reportedly constructing large-scale “cope cage” structures over critical energy facilities to help protect them from potential Iranian drone and missile attacks, reflecting a broader shift toward hardened infrastructure and passive defenses against low-cost aerial threats.

The Growing Importance of Airbase Survivability

Lessons should be drawn from Ukraine’s evolving drone warfare against Russia. Air & Space Forces Magazine reports that analysis points to a broader global trend in airbase survivability: China has reportedly built far more hardened aircraft shelters than the United States, particularly in the Indo-Pacific, raising concerns about the vulnerability of parked aircraft in a high-end conflict.

The comparison highlights criticism that the U.S. has underinvested in hardened airbase infrastructure, while China has prioritized dispersal and protection—suggesting that expanding shelters and protective infrastructure could significantly improve U.S. force survivability in future conflicts.

Lessons for the Next Generation of Warfare

The lessons extend well beyond Russia and Ukraine. Analysts increasingly warn that cheap drones and long-range precision weapons are reshaping modern warfare by placing high-value military assets at greater risk. Recent assessments of Iranian strategy, from War on the Rocks, suggest that future adversaries may increasingly target the support systems behind airpower—such as tankers, radar networks, communications infrastructure, and airborne command aircraft—rather than seeking traditional air superiority.

Combined with Ukraine’s success in striking deep inside Russia, the trend highlights a broader challenge for militaries worldwide: improving survivability through hardened infrastructure, dispersal, deception, and autonomous systems as the battlefield becomes increasingly transparent and vulnerable to precision attack.

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