Even before Russia launched its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Ukrainians were hard at work creating decoys to stymie Russia reconnaissance efforts. Now, more than three and a half years later, the art of deception has increased on both sides.

The goal is to misdirect the allocation of valuable assets, making some positions appear more fortified or manned than they actually are, and more broadly to keep the enemy guessing as to their opponent’s actual capabilities. It is similar to the massive deception campaigns carried out during World War II, but today’s decoys and deception efforts are far more sophisticated.

As previously reported this past winter, both Moscow and Kyiv have deployed vast numbers of advanced decoy tanks. In the case of Ukraine, the efforts are to get Russian forces to expend a large number of their kamikaze drones, such as the Zala Lancet loitering munitions. The Kremlin sought built decoys of its own, with similar intentions.

During the run-up to D-Day in 1944, the United States and Great Britain sought to confuse the Nazis into believing that the amphibious landing—which ultimately took place on the beaches of Normandy—was instead destined for Calais, further to the north. To this end, full-size inflatable tanks were employed opposite the French port city to deceive the Germans into believing there was a massive military buildup there. The operation worked; even days into the invasion, Hitler’s generals continued to believe that the Normandy landings were a feint for a larger operation to come, and only realized the truth after the Allied position was well-established.

Today’s decoys........

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