🇷🇺 RUSSIA | Alabuga is becoming a heavily protected drone-production complex I analysed the latest satellite imagery of the Alabuga complex in Tatarstan, one of Russia’s key production centres for long-range Shahed/Geran-family drones. The imagery shows that the site is still expanding, while defensive infrastructure around the main production area is becoming increasingly extensive. PRODUCTION SCALE Russia initially relied on Iranian-designed Shahed drones before establishing large-scale domestic production at Alabuga. According to CSIS, production capacity at the complex had exceeded 5,500 drones per month by early 2026. Ukrainian intelligence later estimated that Russia was also producing around 3,000 jet-powered Geran-4 and Geran-5 drones per month. CONTINUING EXPANSION By comparing satellite imagery from different periods, I can clearly see how the industrial footprint of the complex has expanded. Some infrastructure existed before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, but additional production halls, warehouses, logistics facilities, residential buildings and supporting infrastructure have appeared during the following years. The scale of construction increased particularly strongly during 2025 and continued into 2026. NEW PROTECTIVE STRUCTURES The latest imagery shows dozens of tall lattice structures positioned around key production facilities. I can identify two separate defensive perimeters surrounding the main industrial area. These structures appear designed to support large protective nets or mesh barriers intended to complicate attacks by long-range drones or cruise missiles. The defensive system is unusual in scale and demonstrates how important the Alabuga complex has become to Russia’s long-range strike capability. AIR DEFENCE Open-source analysis published in 2026 identified at least 23 air-defence positions around the Alabuga area, including sites associated with systems such as Pantsir-S1 and Tor. Additional defensive positions and protective infrastructure continue to appear around the complex. Alabuga was first confirmed struck by Ukrainian long-range drones on 2 April 2024. Since then, both the production facilities and the defensive network surrounding the site have expanded significantly. The satellite record shows how Alabuga has evolved from an industrial production site into one of the most heavily protected elements of Russia’s drone-production infrastructure. #MizarVision #SatelliteImagery #Alabuga #OSINT