Germany's Panzerbrigade 45 will test the Virtus loitering munition from German company Stark for the first time during the Freedom Shield 2026 exercise in Lithuania, Militär Aktuell reports.
The ten-day exercise, the Bundeswehr's largest in Lithuania so far, starts on 17 November with about 3,800 soldiers from eight NATO countries. It includes a crossing of the Nemunas river south of Kaunas on 20 November and ends with six days of combat training at the Rudninkai training area, where Virtus and other drone systems will be tried.
Brigadier General Christoph Huber, the brigade's commander, called the exercise another step towards a fully equipped brigade ready for war. Stark recently announced it is opening a new site in Lithuania.
