The center, built in Nurmsi, Järva County, cost €5 million and was funded by Luxembourg.

It will support the training of the Defense League (Kaitseliit), the Estonian Defense Forces (EDF), and NATO allied units.

Minister Pevkur said, "Yesterday's (Thursday's – ed.) decision to allocate additional funding to national defense gives us the opportunity to strengthen and improve both electronic warfare and drone combat, on both defensive and offensive sides. This center allows us to train many people. While the drone capability already exists, it will get much better."

Defense League Commander Maj. Gen. Ilmar Tamm joined the minister in opening the center, located on the fringes of the Nurmsi military airfield. The center consists of a three-story building with 1,300 square meters of space, housing classrooms, storage, maintenance rooms, as well as accommodation, sanitary, and leisure facilities.

The building's most striking feature is a glass tower offering a 360-degree view over the airfield, the largest grass-covered airfield in Europe.

Senior Warrant Officer Raimo Merilo, head of the new center, said: "As far as I know, this is Europe's largest grass airfield, and since the environment is favorable for flying drones, there was no other option. The development of the center will continue with plans for additional infrastructure, enabling higher-quality military training."

While military drone technology is not new, Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine has underscored the strong utility of drones in defense.

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