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Inflatable tanks, missiles: Czech firm makes decoy armaments
March 6, 2023 GMT
1 of 10
An inflatable decoy of High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS)
is presented to media in Decin, Czech Republic, Monday, March 6, 2023.
The war in Ukraine meant a boom for the weapons industry, for real arms
but also their replicas. Czech company, Inflatech, has made a wide
range of replicas of heavy arms, be it tanks, armoured vehicles,
aircraft or artillery, including U.S.-made HIMARS rocket system, the
weapons that were among the billions of dollars in Western military aid
that has helped Ukraine fight off the Russians since the Feb. 24
invasion. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
1 of 10
An inflatable decoy of High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS)
is presented to media in Decin, Czech Republic, Monday, March 6, 2023.
The war in Ukraine meant a boom for the weapons industry, for real arms
but also their replicas. Czech company, Inflatech, has made a wide
range of replicas of heavy arms, be it tanks, armoured vehicles,
aircraft or artillery, including U.S.-made HIMARS rocket system, the
weapons that were among the billions of dollars in Western military aid
that has helped Ukraine fight off the Russians since the Feb. 24
invasion. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
PRAGUE (AP) -- The war in Ukraine has created a surge in demand for
weapons -- and, apparently, also for inflatable fake armaments that can
be deployed as decoys.
A Czech company, Inflatech, is producing more than 30 different
inflatable military decoys ranging from tanks and armored vehicles to
aircraft and howitzers. They also offer decoy versions of U.S.-made
HIMARS rocket systems, that were among the billions of dollars in
Western military aid that has helped Ukraine's war effort since Russia
launched its invasion just over a year ago.
Inflatech Chief Executive Vojtech Fresser won't say if his decoys are
used by Ukrainian forces battling Russian invaders, but he said Monday
that his business was up by more than 30% last year. He expects growth
to keep rising in double figures for at least another three to five
years.
While he won't directly comment on support for Ukraine, he said: "I can
imagine that if we want to support a partner country which is in
trouble, we would send them inflatable decoys. Or it already has them,
and if not, it will have them, for sure."
ADVERTISEMENT
Inflatech, based in the northern town of Decin, currently produces up
to 50 decoys a month. They are sold to a number of unspecified
countries, and all such exports have to be approved by the government
of the NATO member.
[71]
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The company uses light materials, such as artificial silk, so the total
weight of a fake tank is up to 100 kilograms. It takes four soldiers to
operate a decoy, with 10 minutes being enough to unwrap and inflate a
fake piece of military hardware.
The decoys can contribute to victory by fooling enemy forces. The trick
is to deceive cameras, thermo-cameras and radars to make them believe
they have pinpointed a valuable target and use expensive missiles to
destroy it.
"If I force the enemy to destroy a thing of mine by using something
which is four times, but in reality it could be 20 times more
expensive, than I'm the winner economically," Fresser said.
The decoys that originally were developed for training purposes can
cost up to $100,000 each.
Fresser said he would prefer to make toys for kids.
"But first, we have to secure a safe world for them. Then, we'll
hopefully return to civilian projects."
___
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