How Iran used decoys to trick Israeli Air Force into attacking fake defense systems
This is a story the Western media has largely avoided, but military analysts and observers, like Colonel Douglas MacGregor, a former adviser to President Trump (45th), have pointed out unusual patterns in the footage released by the Israeli Air Force during its strikes on Iranian targets.
In many of these strike videos, we see a precision hit, but something is conspicuously missing: the second explosion.
In military terms, a double explosion 💥💥 is expected when a projectile hits an actual target, such as a missile launcher, radar unit, or fuel-carrying vehicle. The first detonation is from the missile itself; the second, often more violent, results from the destruction of whatever the missile struck. In the case of missile defense systems or mobile launchers, that secondary blast should be significantly larger (💥💥💥), caused by onboard warheads, fuel, or volatile electronics.
Yet, across much of the IDF-released footage, the second explosion is absent.
The Decoy Strategy: A Silent War of Deception
This discrepancy has led to increasing speculation among analysts that Iran employed sophisticated decoys, non-operational mock-ups or hollow structures, specifically designed to lure Israeli munitions away from active military hardware.
As reported by state-affiliated Iranian media, military sources confirmed that “several targets destroyed by Israeli forces were decoys placed intentionally to mislead enemy aircraft.” Although the report didn’t specify how many decoys were used, or whether real systems remained untouched, subsequent footage seems to support the claim.
One video from the aftermath of a strike shows what appears to be the charred remains of a missile system, yet there are no internal components visible. No guidance electronics, no propulsion units, no warhead fragments. Just the outer casing.
This supports the idea that it was a full-scale mock-up, likely made to appear real on thermal and radar imaging but functionally empty.
A Page from Ukraine’s Playbook
This kind of battlefield deception isn’t new. During the war in Ukraine, Ukrainian forces routinely deployed inflatable and wooden replicas of HIMARS systems, radar installations, and even air defense launchers to mislead Russian targeting systems. The strategy worked: Russia expended expensive Kalibr and Iskander missiles on fake targets, sparing the real systems and prolonging Ukrainian defensive capabilities.
Iran appears to be following a similar playbook, using humming devices and radar emitters on decoys to simulate operational systems. These false targets present a convincing signature to drones, satellites, and strike aircraft, leading Israel to waste valuable munitions.
Source:
https://defence-blog.com/iran-uses-missile-decoys-to-mislead-israeli-strikes/
In many of these strike videos, we see a precision hit, but something is conspicuously missing: the second explosion.
In military terms, a double explosion 💥💥 is expected when a projectile hits an actual target, such as a missile launcher, radar unit, or fuel-carrying vehicle. The first detonation is from the missile itself; the second, often more violent, results from the destruction of whatever the missile struck. In the case of missile defense systems or mobile launchers, that secondary blast should be significantly larger (💥💥💥), caused by onboard warheads, fuel, or volatile electronics.
Yet, across much of the IDF-released footage, the second explosion is absent.
The Decoy Strategy: A Silent War of Deception
This discrepancy has led to increasing speculation among analysts that Iran employed sophisticated decoys, non-operational mock-ups or hollow structures, specifically designed to lure Israeli munitions away from active military hardware.
As reported by state-affiliated Iranian media, military sources confirmed that “several targets destroyed by Israeli forces were decoys placed intentionally to mislead enemy aircraft.” Although the report didn’t specify how many decoys were used, or whether real systems remained untouched, subsequent footage seems to support the claim.
One video from the aftermath of a strike shows what appears to be the charred remains of a missile system, yet there are no internal components visible. No guidance electronics, no propulsion units, no warhead fragments. Just the outer casing.
This supports the idea that it was a full-scale mock-up, likely made to appear real on thermal and radar imaging but functionally empty.
A Page from Ukraine’s Playbook
This kind of battlefield deception isn’t new. During the war in Ukraine, Ukrainian forces routinely deployed inflatable and wooden replicas of HIMARS systems, radar installations, and even air defense launchers to mislead Russian targeting systems. The strategy worked: Russia expended expensive Kalibr and Iskander missiles on fake targets, sparing the real systems and prolonging Ukrainian defensive capabilities.
Iran appears to be following a similar playbook, using humming devices and radar emitters on decoys to simulate operational systems. These false targets present a convincing signature to drones, satellites, and strike aircraft, leading Israel to waste valuable munitions.
Source:
https://defence-blog.com/iran-uses-missile-decoys-to-mislead-israeli-strikes/
22-25
