Russian Troops' Cheap Thermal Blankets Worked Too Well. Their Cold Signatures Gave Them Away to Ukraine's Drones.
Good thermal protection is growing more important as night-vision drones proliferate.
The dark still offers some protection from the hundreds of thousands of tiny drones that cloud the sky over the 700-mile front line of Russia’s 39-month wider war on Ukraine.
But probably not for long. Night-fighting troops from both sides must find ways to hide—or risk getting droned.
Right now, most Russian and Ukrainian drones lack night vision, which can multiply the cost of a single unit. It’s not for no reason that Ukrainian crews manning the country’s long-range S-200 missile batteries apparently set up for morning launches the night before.
The only reason a large formation of might-marching footborne Russian infantry escaped total destruction in Kharkiv Oblast over the weekend was that the Ukrainian 3rd Assault Brigade, which spotted the approaching formation, possessed only a few night-capable first-person-view drones—and apparently didn’t have a heavier night-vision “vampire” drone capable of dropping bombs.
And as drones evolve, and industry on both sides scales up and drives down costs, the night is becoming less safe. It’s not for no reason that when one Russian infantry group moved toward positions held by the Ukrainian 63rd Mechanized Brigade in Donetsk Oblast on one recent night, the Russians threw thermal blankets over their shoulders.
A thermal blanket should, in theory, mask a person’s heat signature—and hide them from any observing drones packing infrared sensors. The problem for the Russians is that cheap thermal blankets actually work too well.
The 63rd Mechanized Brigade’s night-vision FPV drones easily spotted the approaching Russians not by their heat, but by their lack of heat—the cold spot among the surrounding foliage. (See video below.)
Cheap protection
Survivalists have long understood the perils of cheap thermal blankets when used as infrared camouflage.
Thin Line Defense Co. tested a $400 thermal blanket against a $4 one. The pricier blanket masked the wearer’s signature, more or less blending them in with the surrounding nighttime heatscape. The cheaper blanket created an obvious cold spot that appeared as a black square among the gray textures of day-warmed trees and grass.
Skimping on thermal camouflage backfired on that Donetsk assault group. The Ukrainian drones wiped out the Russians. As more night-vision drones prowl the front line, infantry must learn, and learn fast: a quality thermal blanket is worth the cost.
Read more:
Under the Cover of Darkness, Dozens of Russians Marched Toward the Front Line. Unfortunately for Them, Ukraine's Drones See at Night.
Ukrainian drones with infrared cameras made a surprising discovery on or just before Saturday: a large number of Russian troops marching, under the cover of darkness, down a road near the front line in northeastern Ukraine.
We saw in Predator 2 cold thermal signatures are as bad at hot thermal signatures.
Maybe Russia should have watched some western media in the 80s-90s.