Successfully Completed Joint Tactical Exercise “Whirlwind 2024”
Friday, 19.4.2024 | Training
President Vučić: I am satisfied with the overall readiness of our armed forces
The Distinguished Visitors Day at the joint tactical live-fire exercise “Whirlwind 2024”, which was attended by Supreme Commander of the Serbian Armed Forces and President of the Republic Aleksandar Vučić, Minister of Defense Miloš Vučević and Chief of the Serbian Armed Forces General Staff General Milan Mojsilović, has been held at the temporary training ground “Pešter” today.
Today's exercise activities were also attended by Serbian member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina Željka Cvijanović, President of Republika Srpska Milorad Dodik, Prime Minister of Republika Srpska Radovan Višković, Parliament Speaker of Republika Srpska Nenad Stevandić, Parliament Speaker of Montenegro Andrija Mandić, ministers in the Government of Serbia, KFOR Commander Major General Özkan Ulutaş and foreign military representatives accredited to Serbia.
The Supreme Commander congratulated the Minister of Defense, Chief of the General Staff and all members of the Serbian Armed Forces on the successful exercise, adding that our armed forces’ future arrangement should be like what has been shown today.
— We have to get rid of the principle of four brigades and this is the way our armed forces should look like in the future. Today, for the first time, you could see how we are going to reorganize our armed forces. A lot of new technology has also been shown today, even the reserve tanks look the way our tanks should look like. Also, you have seen more types of drones, and reconnaissance, in much larger numbers than before, Kamikaze drones, Mosquitoes and Wasps working in pairs, and I would point out that we are launching a stronger production of that type of drone. I am pleased that drones from private companies did a good job carrying 12 60mm mines — all of them hit the targets. I also congratulate them and this tells us that we are on the right track to create an industry of drones, unmanned aerial vehicles that will be able to meet the needs of the Serbian Armed Forces - said President Vučić.
According to him, all types of aircraft have been shown today in their flyovers and live firing, and he said that he was satisfied with the overall readiness of our armed forces.
— We still have a lot to do, a lot more things to repair, buy, make, rely additionally on our defense industry. When compared to what we had ten years ago, almost all of what you have seen today is new, and we had almost none of this before. And that shows how much Serbia has progressed, become more successful and how much it has invested in its armed forces, freedom and independence - said the President of Serbia and congratulated the Serbian Armed Forces once again on the successful exercise.
The “Whirlwind 2024” exercise was carried out with the aim of improving further the skills and capabilities of the commands and units of the Serbian Armed Forces to carry out tactical and fire missions in preparation and execution of combat operations. The land and air components and special forces of our armed forces participated, and in terms of number and variety of engaged combat forces, the “Whirlwind 2024” exercise is one of the largest that the Serbian Armed Forces have ever conducted.
The exercise was an opportunity, among other things, to demonstrate the work of modernized assets and assets under development, among which are the reconnaissance drone “Pegasus”, the short-range drone “Sparrow”, the armed drone “Senka”, the killer drone “Wasp”, the armed drone “Obad”, as well as the armed mini quadricopter “Mosquito”.
Among the assets that participated in the exercise are tanks M-84 and T-72M, armored fighting vehicles BOV OT, “Miloš”, “Lazar 3”, MRAP, BRDM-2MS, self-propelled howitzer 122 mm 2S1 “Gvozdika” - improved, self-propelled howitzer 155 mm “Nora-B52”, modernized and digitized MLRS “Oganj” and “Humvee” vehicles.
“MiG-29”, modernized “Eagle”, helicopters “Mi-35M”, “Mi-17”, “H-145M”, “Gama” and transport aircraft An-26 were engaged in the exercise.
Also, the remotely piloted aircraft CH-95, anti-aircraft systems “FK-3”, “Pasars” and “Pantsir”, as well as “Repellent” systems for detection and jamming of unmanned aircraft, participated.
Combined tactical exercises, in which units of various types participate, and if necessary, other forces of the defense system, are an irreplaceable form of training in the Serbian Armed Forces, and their implementation results in a high level of competence of commands and units in performing tasks in interoperability, which plays a critical part in the overall combat readiness of the Serbian Armed Forces.
