After more than three weeks on the fifth continent, the approximately 200 soldiers of the German Armed Forceswho took part in the multinational exercise “Talisman Sabre” 2025 in Australia have returned to Germany. In addition to medical personnel, military police, logistics personnel and members of the air force, the army contributed with around 150 infantrymen from Parachute Regiment 26 made the most significant contribution to the exercise.
As the exercise area in Australia places special demands on everyone involved, the exercise began for the soldiers from Zweibrücken with an intensive training phase on site. Long distances, unfamiliar vegetation and the climate are very different from the conditions in Germany. To get used to these conditions, the paratroopers trained at a jungle combat training center and practiced in the Australian bush.
The German soldiers were able to put this experience into practice during combat exercises: After a 40-kilometer march on foot through some of the most difficult terrain, a joint exercise with the 11th Airborne Division of the US forces was successfully attacked. French, US and German paratroopers then had to conquer an airfield together, enabling military aircraft such as the German A400M to land.
But even during an exercise, not everything works: only some of the paratroopers could be dropped by parachute over the target area. The military leaders on the ground had to plan from scratch with the reduced forces. With flexibility, creativity and decisiveness, the soldiers of the three nations repositioned themselves, took over the airfield and thus made it possible to fly in reinforcements and urgently needed supplies. With additional forces brought in, they were able to clear another key area.
In both combat exercises, the German paratroopers “impressed not only the Australian referees, but also the members of the allied armed forces with their professionalism, performance and assertiveness”, according to a recent Bundeswehr statement.
More paratroopers from Zweibrücken were at “Talisman Sabre” (-> Australia practicing: Photo gallery on “Talisman Sabre”): Two teams coordinated the deployment of US, French and Korean fire support with mortars on the ground, helicopters and airplanes from the air and warships at sea. “The experience gained here, particularly in a multinational environment, promotes interoperability with the armed forces of allied nations,” as stated in the press release.
The participation of members of Jäger Battalion 413, who accompanied the exercise of the Australian 14th Light Horse Regiment, was also of particular significance for the German army. This Australian regiment is equipped with the Boxer combat vehicle used there as a reconnaissance vehicle, which will be introduced in a similar form in the army in the future. The German soldiers took the opportunity to gather the operational principles and experience of the Australians for the upcoming training of the fighter force and implementation in Germany.
Soldiers from the airborne transfer platoon of the 26th Parachute Regiment and the crew of the Air Force’s A400M transport aircraft also gained valuable experience in transporting a US Army HIMARS. The interoperability with allies in the Indo-Pacific region was demonstrated, particularly with regard to the Bundeswehr’s ability to provide strategic air transport for the rapid deployment of personnel and material.
Every two years, “Talisman Sabre” is one of the largest multinational military exercises in the world.
Click here for more reports on the Bundeswehr.
