70 years of the Luftwaffe, fighter jets and recruitment: Bundeswehr at the ILA

As the largest single exhibitor, the Bundeswehr is shaping ILA 2026. Project director Colonel Kristof Conrath discusses new capabilities, lessons from the war in Ukraine and the fair’s role in attracting young talent. After three days reserved for trade visitors, the International Aerospace Exhibition (ILA) in Berlin opened its doors to the public at the weekend. Fighter jets, transport aircraft and helicopters attracted large numbers of visitors. The Bundeswehr was particularly visible, using large parts of the site as the fair’s biggest single exhibitor. Besides flight displays and static exhibitions, recruiting young talent was also visibly an important priority. At numerous stands, careers advisers provided information on entry routes, while soldiers offered an insight into their everyday working lives. Visitors could look into cockpits, talk to pilots and learn about the armed forces’ wide range of missions. Colonel Kristof Conrath of the Air Force was responsible for the Bundeswehr’s presence at the trade fair. In an interview with Euronews, he explained why the Bundeswehr is deliberately showcasing modern systems such as drones, the P-8 Poseidon and air defence systems at the ILA, what role fighter jets are expected to play in future despite the rapid boom in drones, and what the “70 years of the Air Force” anniversary means for this year’s show. Euronews: As the Bundeswehr’s lead officer, you play a key role in organising its appearance at the ILA. How did you come to take on this task? And what criteria do you use to decide which aircraft, systems and capabilities the Bundeswehr presents here? Colonel Conrath: In fact, the role of project manager is tied to my post. I work at the Air Force Troops Command, and heading the project organisation for the ILA is part of my remit there. That is how I came into this job. I looked after the ILA for the first time in 2022, then again in 2024 and now for the third time. And I have to say: it is no longer just a duty, it is a real pleasure, because we have a fantastic team. We asked the different branches – the Army, the Navy, the Cyber and Information Domain (CIR), the Air Force – what they would like to showcase and what represents their most cutting-edge equipment. We do not want to put on display aircraft that have already flown or been seen a thousand times over, but to show our latest capabilities. That is why, for example, we opted to bring the Navy’s new P-8A Poseidon. We also have the Sea Lion here; the Sea Tiger could not come for operational reasons. We have, of course, also picked up on the “70 years of the Air Force” theme and brought four aircraft in special anniversary liveries: the A400, the CH-53, the Tornado and the Eurofighter. We also decided, against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine and the way drone warfare has moved into sharper focus as a result, to demonstrate the drone capabilities the Bundeswehr already has. That is why we are exhibiting various drone systems in the Defence Park. We are also showing air defence missile systems, because they have also become very topical. It simply could not be missing from the ILA. Euronews: You organised the ILA for the first time in 2022, the year Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Looking back over the past four years: how has the ILA changed since then? Colonel Conrath: The ILA has changed in that we can now showcase our capabilities. We no longer have to hide. The public now understands that a country has to be capable of waging war. That cannot be done with simple vehicles, but only with weapons systems. We can now exhibit these weapons systems, and we can do so with pride because we have something to offer NATO. I think that used to be different. For a long time we lived in the situation of being “surrounded by friends”. We could run down our forces, scale back our capabilities and did not have to build up any excess capacity – in materiel or, for that matter, in terms of emotions. That has now been reversed, and you can see that in public opinion too. There is a reason people talk about a “Zeitenwende”, a watershed moment, and about the special fund. That is reflected here as well: people can see what their money is being spent on. Euronews: As head of the Bundeswehr’s ILA project team, is there anything you are particularly proud of? Colonel Conrath: We can certainly be proud of the response. Of course we are not doing this on our own. We may be the biggest single exhibitor here, but the ILA is primarily run by the trade fair company and the Federation of German Industries (BDI). If we manage to generate this kind of response among interested visitors, that is definitely something to be proud of. On the public days, Saturday and Sunday, we really go on the offensive in terms of public outreach and recruiting young talent. That is one of the key objectives we pursue here. We want to bring the Bundeswehr closer to the public and present it as an attractive employer. And in this way we want to get people asking themselves: what kind of jobs does the Bundeswehr actually offer? Here we can really showcase the wide variety of careers, so that people become interested. And once their interest is sparked, we have the right staff on hand to give detailed advice. How could I build a career in the Bundeswehr? What career paths are there? That is why the youth officers and careers advisers are here. So for the Bundeswehr itself this is a very rounded package, because it allows us to achieve exactly these goals. Euronews: This year the Air Force is celebrating its 70th anniversary. Does that milestone play a special role for the ILA and the Bundeswehr’s presence here? Colonel Conrath: Yes, absolutely. It is a birthday we are marking throughout the year, not just today. Looking back over the past 70 years, it is a story we can be proud of. What makes the Air Force special is its team. And you can see here how that team steps into the foreground and really comes into its own. Only with that team spirit can you make this happen; everything here truly goes hand in hand. People are not looking at their watches and saying: it is the end of my shift, I am off home now. Everyone stays as long as they are needed. That is what makes it special. That has been lived throughout 70 years of Air Force history and is still very much alive today. You can see it here in all its facets. Euronews: You briefly touched on drones earlier. Yesterday I listened to a podcast with security expert Christian Welling in which the question was posed: given the advances in drones, do we even still need fighter jets? What is your view? Colonel Conrath: I am firmly convinced that we still need fighter jets today. Even if we have cloud-based, GPS-based drone capabilities: GPS can, for example, be disrupted, the internet can be disrupted and, in certain circumstances, the cloud could also be disrupted. We need a human being in the system, making the decisions. We definitely do not want any AI-based systems making autonomous choices about what is attacked. So I am convinced that we absolutely still need a fighter jet that can, where necessary, lead a swarm of other systems, but still has a “person in the loop” [a human in the decision-making chain] on board who can make decisions on the spot. Because who knows what happens if the flow of information or communications with decision-makers is disrupted – then what? In my view, having a person in the loop is essential. Euronews: On Wednesday I attended the presentation of Quantum Systems’ Pulse-P19 platform. The system can be operated both with a pilot and remotely. What role will concepts like this play in future alongside classic fighter jets such as the F-35 or the Eurofighter? Colonel Conrath: I think there are several possibilities, and this is an interesting system. Depending on the situation you can fly it with a pilot or unmanned. There are many variants. The market is evolving at a tremendous pace. In Ukraine many new threats are emerging every day, and constant improvements are being made. You respond each time to the threat landscape as it stands. So yes, this is one of several options. Euronews: You also helped organise the flight displays here. How did you decide what would fly and what would stay on the ground? Colonel Conrath: We basically went “all in”. We have brought along every type of fighter jet we operate and every helicopter model that was available – apart from those that could not take part for operational reasons. We have the A400M, we have the helicopters I have already mentioned. Today we also have an aerial parade, including a tanker aircraft with jets on its wings taking fuel in flight. Everything we were able to get, we have brought here. Of course you also have to bear in mind that we are not alone here. We have several industrial helicopters in the air, we have drones flying, we have the Italian contribution, we have the Airbus Racer. We also had an A350 that did a fly-past. You also have to remember that we are at the capital’s airport here, which is, of course, operating as normal in the summer. So everything has to fit around scheduled traffic; we cannot simply decide to stage a huge airshow. I think we have struck a good balance. People look at the exhibits on the ground and they watch our flying displays. The aim was to give a good overview, and I think we have achieved that.