Military convoy with 55-ton artillery guns to cross Noord-Brabant and Gelderland
A military convoy carrying four 55-ton armored howitzers will travel through Noord-Brabant and Gelderland on Saturday as the Dutch armed forces move equipment for a large-scale exercise.
According to the Ministry of Defense, the column will leave Oirschot in Noord-Brabant and head to the army base in Stroe, Gelderland.
Although the direct distance between the two towns is about 120 kilometers, the convoy is expected to take a 200-kilometer route.
The 55-ton self-propelled howitzers—armored artillery vehicles that can fire shells over long distances—belonging to the 11th Artillery Battalion, will move at a maximum speed of 60 kilometers per hour, which is the fastest they can travel.
The movement is part of exercise Ferocious Bison, which begins Sunday with live-fire training at the military range in ’t Harde. Depending on the type of ammunition used, the howitzers can strike targets up to 50 kilometers away.
The 11th Artillery Battalion, also known as the 11 Afdeling Rijdende Artillerie, had been disbanded in 2013 due to budget cuts. It was reinstated in July amid heightened security concerns linked to the war in Ukraine. Ferocious Bison marks the unit’s first training exercise since its return.
Defense reminded drivers that military convoys follow special traffic rules. Civilian motorists may not cut through a convoy at intersections, and vehicles in the column are allowed to continue if a traffic light turns red midway. Military convoys also are not required to yield at crosswalks or to buses pulling out of stops.
