Nyland Brigade trains versatile coastal ranger troops with high performance capability

Training

The Nyland Brigade trains, among others, companies with coastal jaegers, mortar gunners and engineers as well as headquarters and signal companies, military policemen, coastal missile troops and vehicle and boat operators. In addition, the brigade gives training for a range of special tasks, regarding e.g., fire control, signal transmission, measuring as well as medicine and logistics.

The troops at the Nyland Brigade are trained for offshore conditions, but they are also mobile on land. In other words, the brigade has one foot onshore and the other offshore. The troops move in high-speed boats e.g., in the classes Jehu and Jurmo as well as in armoured vehicles and terrain trucks.

The brigade has a readiness unit, where conscripts receive a demanding and high-class training with an international touch. The aim of the unit is to improve the capabilities of the Finnish Navy to react to rapid changes in the security environment. The readiness unit is trained to be mobile at sea, on land and in the air. 

The Nyland Brigade is the only Swedish speaking brigade-level unit in Finland. The language of training is Swedish, while the language of command is Finnish. Every year, the brigade provides training for approximately 1,500 conscripts, of whom about 20 per cent have Finnish as their native language. The demanding coastal jaeger training also attracts Finnish speaking conscripts.

Mission 

The most crucial task of the Nyland Brigade is to produce mobile coastal jaeger troops for the wartime needs of the Finnish Navy and the Finnish Defence Forces and for international operations. The brigade maintains a readiness for crises and has, in addition, the capacity to provide executive assistance for other authorities, e.g., by clearing old wartime ammunition. 

The brigade has about 200 employees, of whom around thirty are civilians. In addition, around sixty employees in the garrison work in different assisting capacities, such as catering, healthcare and maintenance of property and grounds.

History

The brigade is one of the oldest troop units in the country. In 1626, Gustav II Adolf, the King of Sweden, established eight regiments in Finland. One of them was the Nyland Regiment, which was to become the first link in a chain, where Nyland Brigade is the latest. The anniversary of the brigade is celebrated on 18 April in memory of the Battle of Siikajoki in 1808.

International cooperation

The brigade maintains active cooperation with several international partners and regularly participates in international exercises. The Swedish Amphibious Corps is the brigade’s most important and closest partner. In addition to Sweden, the brigade has intensified its cooperation among others with the naval infantries of the United States and Germany, with which Finland has agreed on a strengthened defence cooperation.