Satellite images show Russia’s shield bridge from Ukraine’s naval drones

• New satellite images show how Russia has continued to add defenses to protect the Kerch Bridge.
• Russia has placed additional barriers nearby to protect it from Ukraine’s naval drones.
• He also built two towers for air defense systems to defend the precious bridge from other threats.

New satellite images show how Russia has stepped up efforts to protect a key bridge from Ukrainian attacks, including its exploding naval drones.

The images, captured last weekend by Maxar Technologies and obtained by Business Insider, reveal a growing buildup of defenses around the Kerch Bridge, which links Russia to the occupied Crimean peninsula.

The 12-mile-long bridge was once an important supply route for the Russian military, but it is primarily a symbol of Russia’s control of Crimea. It has been the victim of several high-profile Ukrainian attacks, including a naval drone strike.

Russia began placing barges on the southern side of the bridge in early May to defend the structure and shipping channel from future Ukrainian naval drone attacks. The previously installed barriers were damaged by the storms, according to Western reports.

By June, protective measures had increased to include additional barges and floating defenses running parallel to the bridge. But new images captured on Saturday reveal a significant increase in the number of barges protecting the bridge.

Ukraine has used its fleet of domestically produced naval drones to wreak havoc on Russian warships and other Black Sea Fleet assets. The threat has prompted Moscow to add defenses such as those at the Kerch Bridge in the key ports of Sevastopol and Novorossiysk.

Brady Africk, an open source intelligence analyst and associate at the American Enterprise Institute think tank, first pointed out the added defense barriers in a Sunday post on X and noted the drastic change between early May and late September .

The new barriers are not the only protective measures Russia has taken to protect the bridge. Satellite images captured on Saturday show two Pantsir air defense systems near the structure.

Maxar said the towers for these systems were built between August 18 and 23. Their construction suggests that Russia is not only concerned with maritime threats to the lower bridge. It also wants to protect the structure above.

The bridge was previously hit by a truck bomb. Russia claimed Ukraine had targeted the bridge with US-supplied ballistic missiles, but said the attack was unsuccessful. Kiev has also armed its naval drones with missiles and rockets, extending the threat beyond the surface of the water, creating new challenges.

Moscow began construction of the Kerch Bridge after illegally annexing Crimea in 2014. The bridge is a prized achievement of Russian President Vladimir Putin and is a symbol of the Kremlin’s desire to maintain its occupation of Crimea forever.

Ukraine has previously vowed to destroy the bridge because of its role as a key supply and logistics route to support Russian military activities in Crimea after the 2022 invasion, and Kiev has shown its willingness through its multiple attacks on the site.

However, taking the bridge out now would be less militarily effective and more symbolic, as Russia relies on it less frequently to support its troops in Crimea than it did earlier in the war.

A spokesman for the Ukrainian Navy said in June that most of the cargo is transported by ferry. Kiev also targeted these operations.