Finland trains NATO troops in Arctic warfare with skis, snowmobiles and lasers

Finland's Jaeger Brigade is running a monthlong Arctic-warfare and cold-weather survival course for roughly 20 NATO soldiers in Lapland, Business Insider observed, including an assault that used snowmobiles, skis, blanks, and laser-based simulators. Business Insider watched the combat exercise about 75 miles north of the Arctic Circle, where a NATO "Blue" platoon crossed kilometers of forest on snowmobiles, skied to a hilltop, and attempted to capture territory defended by a larger "Red" force made up of Finnish conscripts.

The course is divided into three phases over four weeks: cold-weather survival and winter movement, maneuvers such as attacking on skis and building snow foxholes, and low-mountain activity above the tree line. Participants observed in this session came from Finland, the US, the UK, France, Italy, and Canada.

In the drill, soldiers fired blanks from rifles fitted with transmitters that emit laser tracks; vests and helmet straps registered hits and announced whether a soldier had been "killed" or "wounded." Maj. Mikael Aikio, who oversees the course, said using lasers "makes the training feel more realistic" and acknowledged the system has limits when snow or branches block the beam.

The training shows how skis and modern snowmobiles are used to traverse deep snow that would otherwise stop traditional vehicles.

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