Tense security situation in Europe: With inflatable tanks from the Czech Republic against Russia

Děčín - If a US missile launcher is spotted on the battlefield, it may have come from a factory in the Czech Republic - and is just a copy.

In a hall in the border town of Děčín, seamstresses sit at machines stitching together lengths of green fabric. They work for the company Inflatech, which produces inflatable dummies of heavy military vehicles. For a year now, since the start of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine , there has been more work here than ever before.

Much of it is top secret. His company can produce around 35 decoys a month, says managing director Vojtech Fresser.

The advantages of deception technology are obvious to him. His products - such as inflatable combat and infantry fighting vehicles - cost the equivalent of around 10,000 to 100,000 euros. The dummies could provoke enemy fire and tempt the enemy to fire many times more expensive missiles in vain.

"That's how we win economically on the battlefield," says Fresser. Two of his employees carry a large black bag into the courtyard in front of the company building. In a few simple steps, they unfold a US-style dummy battle tank like an inflatable boat.

A compressor blows air into it and the vehicle made of artificial silk stretches upwards. A metal rod gives the cannon the necessary stability, while some of the residents look a little puzzled.

But what looks simple is actually high-tech. "If you don't have binoculars at hand, you can't tell from 150 to 200 meters away whether it's real technology or a dummy," says Fresser.

However, it is much more important to mimic the heat and radar signature faithfully. He does not want to reveal exactly how this is done. Just this much: a specially designed device ensures that the areas that should be warm are warm.

The company started out in 2014 as a garage company, which at times also produced bouncy castles for children. Fresser does not see the fact that two of his co-founders originally come from Russia as a problem. They have long been integrated in the Czech Republic.

Deliveries are made to NATO, EU and partner countries. The company now has 20 employees - soon there should be twice as many.

For this year, the company is expecting a turnover of at least 150 million euros. In the structurally weak region on the border with Saxony , that's a lot of money.

In the Ukraine war, inflatable military vehicles are also a well-known means of deceiving the enemy on the Russian side.

As early as 2009, the state news agency Ria Novosti reported on mock-ups of Russian T-72 and T-80 battle tanks, the S-300 air defense system and Su and MiG fighter jets.

Moscow is also trying to protect strategic missile systems such as Iskander or Topol-M with the replicas.

Russian military bloggers reported that there are special units in the Russian army that specialize in such deceptive manoeuvres. The devices are also used in war.

At the end of January, the Ukrainian General Staff announced that Russian troops in the Zaporizhia region were attempting to simulate a larger presence using inflatable tanks.

In the fight against the Russian invasion, the Czech Republic is one of the most important supporters of the government in Kiev. The list of real military equipment supplied by the government in Prague and arms companies is long: 89 main battle tanks, 226 infantry fighting vehicles, 33 multiple rocket launchers - and much more.

"From the very first moment, we knew - also because of our own historical experience - that we had to stand up for Ukraine," said Prime Minister Petr Fiala (61) recently.

In August 1968, the Warsaw Pact states invaded the then socialist Czechoslovakia to put down the Prague Spring democracy movement. The last Russian soldiers did not leave until June 1991.