Russia Builds Underground Facilities for Drone Production

Underground facilities for producing Shahed-type attack drones are being built in Russia's Alabuga Special Economic Zone in Tatarstan. Open-source intelligence (OSINT) analyst Dnipro Osint drew attention to the construction based on satellite imagery, according to Ukrayinska Pravda.

The analyst estimates that about 42,000 sq m of underground facilities have already been built on the site. He believes that moving part of the production underground is linked to earlier Ukrainian attacks on the plant.

Russia is also reportedly continuing to disperse its production infrastructure and strengthen its protection. The goal is to make potential attacks on the entire production chain more difficult and to raise the cost of damaging it.

Alabuga is one of the main centers of Russian production of Geran-2 drones, which are based on the Iranian Shahed-136 model. The complex is about 10 km from the city of Yelabuga and includes production facilities for composite fuselages, engines, metal components, electronics and wiring.

The site also includes hangars for storing drones and its own launch facilities. Satellite images from early September had already pointed to the plant's ongoing expansion.

(mja)