How Air Forces Use Inflatable Decoys and Dispersal to Protect Parked Aircraft

Deception has long been used in warfare, and it remains central to how air forces protect parked aircraft today. Ancient examples include Spartacus staging his camp to appear occupied while his forces moved. During World War II, the Allies created a fictitious army under General Patton to mislead German forces about the location of the D-Day landings.

Modern air forces apply similar principles on the ground. Because other defensive measures are not expected to be sufficient, they use decoys and deception to make parked aircraft harder to target. Inflatable decoys that resemble real aircraft can be deployed, and aircraft can be dispersed across multiple locations to reduce the risk of loss from a single strike.