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Bundeswehr Trials Balloon Leaflet Drops in Saxony Exercise

The drill rehearses low-tech crisis messaging to reach people when other channels fail.

Overview

  • The Colder Iron 2026 training is underway in the Oberlausitz and is scheduled to run through February 4.
  • The Centre for Operative Communication is conducting the effort with roughly 100 soldiers relocated from Mayen, Rhineland-Palatinate.
  • Only practice leaflets are released, each marked with a symbol and finder instructions to report the location before discarding.
  • Because balloons can drift beyond the training area and into nearby towns, Poland and the Czech Republic were briefed in advance.
  • Media on site report each suspended package carries about 2,000 sheets and weighs around four kilograms, using paper designed to break down in the environment.