Estonian Defence Forces Demolish Halinga Viaduct In Tactical Training Exercise For 2+2 Highway Expansion

Estonian soldiers successfully demolished the Halinga railway viaduct on the Tallinn-Pärnu highway to allow for 2+2 road expansion and practice defensive tactics.

By: AXL Media

Published: Apr 3, 2026, 5:12 AM EDT

Source: Information for this report was sourced from Pärnu Postimees

A Tactical Detonation Under the Moonlight

Under an almost full moon, the quiet landscape near Pärnu-Jaagupi became the site of a precision military operation as soldiers from the 1st Infantry Brigade’s Engineer Battalion prepared to dismantle a piece of Soviet-era infrastructure. The Halinga railway viaduct, a reinforced-concrete structure built in 1983 to transport peat, had stood dormant since 2009. On Wednesday night, it was finally removed to make way for the modern Halinga–Kangru 2+2 road section. Unlike the 2024 demolition of the Kanama viaduct, which was plagued by delays, this operation was executed with clockwork precision, clearing the path for Estonia’s most ambitious highway project.

Military Engineering and Defensive Strategy

The demolition was led by Captain Urmas Tonto, an experienced engineer who also managed the Kanama bridge explosion two years prior. This exercise was particularly significant for the Defence Forces as it allowed them to test a "sideways collapse" method. By placing a larger concentration of explosives on one side of the four-span, 84-meter structure, engineers forced the bridge to fall toward Pärnu. Captain Tonto noted that this specific technique is a vital defensive skill; toppling a viaduct in such a manner creates a significant obstacle that, while not impenetrable, would severely hinder the movement of enemy troop convoys during a conflict.

Community Spectacle and Infrastructure Goals

The event drew a crowd of approximately one hundred local residents, including children and families, who gathered behind safety barriers to witness the rare spectacle. After the last public bus passed safely under the structure at 10:50 p.m., the countdown began. At the stroke of midnight, the detonator was triggered, resulting in a crackling series of charges that brought the 3.5-meter-wide bridge down onto a protective bed of sand. The removal of the viaduct was a technical necessity for the Transport Administration, as the bridge’s low clearance was incompatible with the planned expansion of the Tallinn–Pärnu–Ikla highway.