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Argentina Reinforces TAM Tanks with Turret Cages Amid Escalating Drone Threats.
Argentina’s Army fielded turret-top “cope cages” on several Tanque Argentino Mediano tanks during the Aonikenk training activities in La Pampa on 8 Oct. Images shared by Argentine defense channels align with the military’s broader shift to rehearse multi-domain operations and harden units against small UAVs and FPV top-attack threats.
On 8 October 2025, during the Aonikenk training activities in La Pampa, Argentina’s armored force appeared with a new field adaptation: turret-top “cope cages” on some Tanque Argentino Mediano (TAM) tanks, as reported by the Argentinian MoD. The deployment forms part of a wider effort to rehearse multi-domain operations and harden ground units against the expanding use of small UAVs in conflict zones. The sighting underscores how lessons from recent wars are filtering into South America, with crews experimenting to reduce top-attack vulnerabilities. Beyond an exercise milestone, it signals a shift in Argentine survivability priorities under a constrained modernization budget.
Argentina is not waiting for an all-new tank to adapt to the drone age. By pairing TAM 2C-A2 modernization with field-expedient cages and disciplined training, the Army is squeezing more relevance from its armor, accepting trade-offs, and signaling that survivability against top-attack vectors is now a baseline requirement, at home, across the region, and wherever Argentine soldiers may be asked to operate (Picture source: X-Account/@Ejercito_Arg )
The TAM with cope cage and added camouflage represents a pragmatic, unit-level survivability package rather than a formal factory upgrade. The cage, an overhead lattice, creates standoff spacing intended to disrupt or pre-detonate munitions dropped from small quadcopters, while the draped camouflage nets and fabric sheathing reduce visual and thermal signature around the turret roof. Imagery shared by defense observers shows TAM turrets carrying these frames, reflecting a global pattern where crews adapt legacy platforms for drone-dense environments. While effective against simple bomb drops through hatches, it has to be cautioned that such cages offer only limited protection against FPV drones carrying HEAT charges, keeping crew discipline and rear-arc awareness crucial.
Operationally, the TAM is the backbone of Argentina’s armored cavalry, developed with Thyssen-Henschel on a Marder-derived chassis and repeatedly updated to extend service life. The latest TAM 2C-A2 pathway, rolled out by the MoD with initial vehicles delivered to the force and since seen at live-fire events, adds sensors, fire-control and reliability enhancements while preserving the platform’s mobility and 105 mm firepower. This year’s training cycle has kept modernized vehicles active at day and night, indicating the army’s intent to pair procedural adaptations like cages with incremental hardware upgrades rather than await a clean-sheet replacement.
From a comparative standpoint, Argentina’s cage adoption mirrors a wider trend: armies fielding fast, unit-built overhead armor to counter top-attack vectors. Army Recognition recently documented Iraq’s T-90S/IQ tanks receiving battalion-scale turret-top cages and reinforced side packs to mitigate FPV and bomblet threats, illustrating how crews worldwide are prioritizing vertical and oblique protection over purely frontal armor. Conceptually, “cope cages” can reduce the success rate of simple drops and force attackers to adjust profiles, but they are not a substitute for layered counter-UAS (detection, jamming, hard-kill) nor a guarantee against shaped-charge FPVs. For Argentina, the value lies in buying time and survivability at low cost while broader C-UAS acquisitions mature.
Strategically, the appearance of cage-equipped TAMs during Aonikenk points to institutional learning rather than a crisis signal toward neighbors. Aonikenk’s design emphasizes joint, multi-domain integration, land, air, maritime, cyber and information, probing how units fight under persistent aerial surveillance and low-altitude drone harassment. Hardening legacy armor is a rational hedge against domestic and expeditionary scenarios: protection of critical infrastructure, border support, disaster response under contested airspace, and contributions to UN operations where small-UAS threats are now routine. In geostrategic terms, the move aligns Argentina with a global survivability playbook shaped in Ukraine and the Middle East, while politically demonstrating that the MoD and Army can translate battlefield lessons into tangible, affordable changes on platforms that remain central to national defense.
Argentina is not waiting for an all-new tank to adapt to the drone age. By pairing TAM 2C-A2 modernization with field-expedient cages and disciplined training, the Army is squeezing more relevance from its armor, accepting trade-offs, and signaling that survivability against top-attack vectors is now a baseline requirement, at home, across the region, and wherever Argentine soldiers may be asked to operate.
Written by Teoman S. Nicanci – Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group
Teoman S. Nicanci holds degrees in Political Science, Comparative and International Politics, and International Relations and Diplomacy from leading Belgian universities, with research focused on Russian strategic behavior, defense technology, and modern warfare. He is a defense analyst at Army Recognition, specializing in the global defense industry, military armament, and emerging defense technologies.