The 1st [Estonian] Infantry Brigade’s integration exercise BOLD DRAGOON recently took place at the Defence Forces’ Central Training Ground.
~
Press Release, Tallinn, October 2024: [auto-translated] From October 14 to October 20, the 1st Infantry Brigade’s exercise BOLD DRAGOON took place at the Defence Forces’ Central Training Ground, the main purpose of which was to train the new Allied Battle Group that started its service with the brigade after unit rotation at the beginning of October, practising together with the 1st Infantry Brigade.
“In order to stand shoulder to shoulder on the battlefield, we need to understand each other well and, of course, be able to cooperate. The exercise gives us an excellent opportunity to practice all of this in order to harmonise the procedures if necessary,” said Major Kristjan Karist, the responsible operator of the exercise from the headquarters of the 1st Infantry Brigade.
The main objectives of Exercise BOLD DRAGOON were to integrate the Allied Battle Group into the 1st Infantry Brigade and to practice mutual cooperation. The exercise started with conducting offensive and defensive battles at company level, where cooperation and manoeuvres of different types of weapon systems were practised, and continued with a tactical exercise, where battalion operations were practised within the framework of a brigade. To create a more realistic situation, laser simulators which were added to the weapons were used to imitate the combat situation as faithfully as possible by recording the hits made; this provides accurate and honest feedback to the participants and ensures better training as a whole. In total, nearly 1,000 defence personnel took part in the exercise.
The exercise, which ended on Sunday, was led by the 1st [Estonian] Infantry Brigade. In addition to the Allies, soldiers from the Scouts Battalion, the Anti-Tank Company of the 1st Infantry Brigade and the Defence Academy Hiking Centre will participate in the exercise . Air support was provided by the Italian and German Air Forces with Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jets and the Estonian Air Force with Robinson R44 helicopters.
~
