The mine is triggered when the fuze cap tilts, either because of pressure on one of the prongs or a pull on an attached tripwire.

When the mine reaches a height of approximately 50 cm above ground, which takes less than one second, an integral tether wire (connecting it to the plastic body from which it was launched) tugs on a spring-loaded firing pin in the body of the mine, which detonates the main explosive charge.

The mine has a lethal radius of 25 m, but the fragments remain dangerous at a considerable distance beyond that, e.g. can inflict deeply penetrating eye wounds.

However, like the majority of bounding mines, most of the Valmara 69 is hidden underground and may be difficult to see, particularly in heavy undergrowth.

The Valmara 69 is found in Angola, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Turkey, Kuwait, Mozambique, Sudan, and the Western Sahara