Spring Storm (Kevadtorm) is into its second week and has involved around 5,000 reservists. Up to 500 drones have been used in southeastern Estonia, along with other tech. Exercises have also been held in neighboring Latvia.
“We have more than 500 drones deployed, in addition to the Defense League’s drones. Today, entrepreneurs are also out in the field — we have sent companies into the forest to test their products from start to finish in near-combat conditions. As part of this exercise, the Baltic Defense Zone will certainly also be further developed,” said Col. Aron Kalmus, deputy commander of the Estonian Defense Forces (EDF) Division and commander of Spring Storm 2026.
Sgt. Mihkel Plakk, who in civilian life teaches high school chemistry and physics, has been spending the past week working on building drone protection systems for vehicles — a new capability being tested based on lessons learned from the war in Ukraine.
For him, the Spring Storm call-up does not feel like a chore. “I came gladly. I really enjoy meeting old friends, chatting, and working together. In that sense, this is like a light vacation from my everyday job,” he said.
Some EDF reservists who live overseas answered the call too. Hendrik Regor Vaino works in the IT sector in the Netherlands and came straight from there to take part.
“It was an especially long trip for me to get here, but I reminded them that by doing all this, we are still defending Europe, so they were completely happy to let me join the exercise,” Vaino told “Aktuaalne kaamera.”
The exercises also had aspects which involved getting hands dirty. For instance, shelter is being built for a South Korean K9 “Thunder” self-propelled howitzer, a task that naturally required the expertise of a construction engineer, again from the civilian sector.
“Even in the Engineer Battalion we don’t constantly build positions this large — five meters high, five meters wide. The howitzer is a big piece of equipment, so we got started building it,” said staff officer 2nd Lt. Martin Talvik.
Talvik is trained as a construction engineer and works as a lecturer at Tallinn University of Technology (TalTech). He still has to work after the daytime military exercises are through, though.
“The workload at my regular job doesn’t go down, of course — afterward I have to catch up at night. It’s the same with family life. My wife has been home alone with our two-year-old. These exercises are complicated matters,” Talvik explained.
All of the men belong to the EDF’s Engineer Battalion (Pioneeripataljon), whose personnel have spent nearly a week working across the landscapes of southeastern Estonia. This lays the groundwork for the combat rehearsal aspects of Spring Storm, which are to take place next week.
The combat operations mean local residents will be hearing and seeing more military equipment than usual on and near the roads, as well as drones in the skies.
“Above all, unmanned aerial vehicles provide us with greater battlefield transparency,” Col Kalmus also said, via an EDF press release.
“For example, units of the Kuperjanov Infantry Battalion already have soldiers who, using drone technology, can see and engage the enemy from a greater distance than before. From a soldier’s perspective, this means that trenches and bunkers are not going anywhere when it comes to ensuring safety, but they are now supplemented by elements of electronic defence. From the perspective of society as a whole, however, this signifies a shift in mindset, resulting in both the defence forces and civilian society being open to new technologies and learning to navigate cyberspace right from the start,” he added.
As part of training exercises, reservists from the 21st and 22nd Infantry Battalions of the EDF’s 2nd Infantry Brigade (South) are getting training in the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the field. Proficiency with unmanned systems directly supports the successful fulfilment of the units’ primary mission, even as the use of UAVs is not the main function of these EDF units.
In any case drone training is becoming ever more a must-have skill set for most soldiers, and is being integrated into conscript training fast.
“The need for drone-related skills has increased so much recently that, after completing soldier’s basic course, some conscripts are directed to further training in the field of drones,” said 2nd Lt Darian Tiks, a platoon leader with the 22nd Infantry Battalion.
“Even those who are not sent to the drone course gain experience within their units, as the use of unmanned aerial vehicles is closely integrated into daily operations in the field. Reserve soldiers participating in drone training during Spring Storm have already acquired basic knowledge and, after further training, will support their units’ operations with what they have learned,” Tiks added.
More photos from the Spring Storm drone training are in the gallery below.
Drones are key only on the land but also at sea, and private sector firms are to conduct tests in cooperation with the Estonian Navy (Merevägi) inside Estonia’s territorial waters and the airspace above. UAVs with reconnaissance and detection capabilities will be tested in this case.
Spring Storm exercise was first held in 2003 and has been held every year since, save for 2015, 2018, 2022 and 2025, when Exercise Siil (“Hedgehog”) took its place.
EDF reservists are generally those who have completed conscript service and remain liable for annual service. These personnel are joined by regular soldiers, conscripts, and members of the volunteer Defense League (Kaitseliit) at Spring Storm and other major exercises.
Editor’s note: This article was updated to include extra quotes from the Spring Storm commanders, and the gallery of training.
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Source:
‘Aktuaalne kaamera,’ reporter Mirjam Mõttus.
