The lesson from Ukraine and Israel: France unveiled a tank with an “anti-drone cage”

The French army unveiled at the prestigious Eurosatory 2026 arms exhibition in France an upgraded version of the Leclerc XLR tank, which includes a metal “cage” installed above the turret to protect against attacking drones. This is a protective measure that was previously ridiculed on social media, when it first appeared on Russian tanks at the beginning of the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, but has since proven its effectiveness against the growing threat of drones on the battlefield.

The head of the technical development department of the French army, General Olivier Coke, explained in a media briefing in Paris that the prototype of the protection system was developed by the army’s research unit and that serial production has already begun at the KNDS France company. According to him, the systems are in the process of being delivered to the armored brigades.

The war in Ukraine accelerated the adoption of these protection solutions, and today both Russia and Ukraine operate different versions of surface protection against drones and weapons from above. The IDF also used a similar improvised solution after the October 7 attack, when it installed nets and dedicated protective cages on top of the chariot tanks to prevent drones from hitting the sensitive parts of the turret. The purpose of the cage is to create a distance between the drone’s warhead and the tank’s armor, disrupt the angle of impact and in some cases cause an early explosion even before the charge directly hits the roof of the turret.

Despite the advantages, this is a passive solution, and skilled FPV operators have ways around it. Unlike a typical bomb that falls from above vertically, an FPV drone is controlled by an operator wearing virtual reality glasses. If the cage only protects the roof of the tank, a skilled operator can fly the drone in a horizontal trajectory and hit the sides of the tank, behind the turret, in the engine area, or directly under the cage.

Recently, in an attempt to deal with the threat of Hezbollah’s explosive drones, the IDF placed improvised nets on positions and vehicles in southern Lebanon, including parked tanks, with the aim of causing the drones to explode at a safe distance from the fighters. The IDF says that these passive defense measures have proven themselves in the field as long as operational discipline is maintained, but the scope of the vulnerabilities and the attempts to circumvent them illustrate that this is only a partial solution.

The upgraded Clerk is part of the French Army’s “Scorpion” program for the modernization of the armored forces. As part of the program, the tanks receive new computers, additional protection and a remotely controlled weapon position intended for combat in built-up areas. The tank is equipped with a 120 mm cannon and an automatic loading system, and is operated by a crew of three fighters.

In addition to the anti-drone cage, the XLR version also includes improved modular armor, a Galix close defense system to create smoke screens and deception, anti-charge and mine protection measures, and electronic warfare systems to disrupt remotely controlled threats.

At the same time, the French army is already preparing for the post-Leclerc era. According to the plans, the tank is expected to reach the end of its operational life around 2035, while the next generation system – the MGCS (Main Ground Combat System) project developed in cooperation with Germany – is expected to enter service only around 2045.

“We already have some ideas, and we know very well that it will not be an exact copy of the Clerk tank. Drones will operate alongside it, and we know that it will also have a robotic component,” said General Philippe de Montanon, commander of the French Army’s ground forces and operations, during the briefing.

According to General Koka, the future MGCS system “will definitely not be just a tank”, but a wide network system that will integrate several systems working together, alongside artificial intelligence capabilities. He added that the intermediate capability that France plans to develop until the arrival of the MGCS will actually be “the first building block of the MGCS.” “That’s exactly what we’re looking for,” he said.