In the recent multinational exercise Talisman Sabre 2025 in Australia (soldier & technology reported), several hundred relatives led the American 11th Airborne Division A strategic air landing by parachute. A dozen German paratroopers were also involved. Four American and two Australian transport aircraft of type C-17 Globemaster III laid the forces in a flight from the Elmendorf-Richardson base in Alaska over 14 hours.
After almost 11,000 kilometers of flight across the Pacific, 323 men of the 3rd Battalion, 509th parachute regiment with their German comrades jumped off Australia on July 14th. Equipment such as HMMWV vehicles was also discontinued. With such mass jumps in the dark, failures of up to ten percent can be expected without enemy. Fortunately, there were only three slight injuries here, one of them through the collision of two jumpers in the air.
Another night jump at Talisman Sabre
After landing, the paratroopers connected to French forces and marched around 50 kilometers to take a settlement near Townsville, Queensland. In the further course of the exercise, over 400 American, 100 German and 36 French soldiers carried out another night jump at Shoalwater Bay. The risks of such operations also mean a tactical advantage if the opponent surprisingly faces her air landing in the dark.
Modern technology contributes to the precision of nightly jumps and reduces the risks. The commander of the 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne) of the 11th Airborne Division, which conducted the operation, was able to communicate with supervisors during the approach via speech, video and data connections and emphasized the advantages that a battalion under a fully oriented command in the world was able to precisely decise.
The 11th Airborne Division with the modern nickname “Arctic Angels”, which was first disabled in 1965 and newly established in 2022 in Alaska and newly established in 2022, also includes the air -moving 1st Infantry Brigade Combat team with light vehicles and the Arctic Aviation Command with two Army aviator battalion. Although their relatives are specially designed for the struggle under Arctic conditions, they also serve as an intervention force for the entire Pacific room and can be used in the tropical climate as in Australia.
Stefan Axel Boes
date: 2025-08-16 16:33:00
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