Over 3,000 British troops and 800 vehicles deployed to Sennelager, Germany, to take part in Exercise CERBERUS 2024.
The British Army stated that the bi-annual exercise aims to train and validate six Brigade Headquarters of the combat-ready 3rd (United Kingdom) Division in a simulated environment. The exercise was designed by specialists from the UK’s Land Warfare Centre and took almost one year to plan.
Participating in the exercise were the 16 Air Assault Brigade Combat Team, 12 Armoured Brigade Combat Team, 7th Mechanised Brigade Combat Team, 20 Armoured Brigade Combat Team, 101 Operational Sustainment Brigade, and 1st Aviation Brigade Combat Team.
They made full use of the facilities at the UK’s NATO Forward Holding Base in Sennelager and a 120 square kilometre training area next to the barracks. The British troops were joined by colleagues from the German Army, with Panzerlehrbrigade 9 participating for the first time. Both British and German forces were subjected to rigorous testing in this large-scale Command Post exercise.
Exercises like CERBERUS enhance interoperability and regional understanding while demonstrating the ability to respond rapidly to defend and support European allies. This exercise underscores the UK’s and the British Army’s commitment to NATO and the collective security of Europe by offering 3 (UK) Div’s contribution to a Strategic Reserve Corps to NATO’s New Force Model.
Major General Olly Brown, General Officer Commanding the warfighting 3rd (UK) Division explained:
“It’s a fantastic training opportunity. We have had 3,200 soldiers and officers out here in Germany to optimize war fighting skills which is what the British Army is all about. We are learning every day, becoming better and more lethal.”
“We put people under pressure to make them even better in terms of their ability to execute complex missions against a hard charging enemy. The output has been good, and the people have really enjoyed their training.”
“I’ve been out to see the Headquarters of our NATO ally Germany and they are relishing it. They are in the battle working alongside one of our Brigades.
“We are learning from each other, and we are getting better together on the battlefield.”
Brigadier-General Lutz Kuhn, Commander of Panzerlehrbrigade 9, said:
“Working with our British colleagues has been just fine. We have really enjoyed their comradeship and their friendship. But more importantly it is good to see their professionalism and it is a pleasure to cooperate with them.”
“Although we are not being validated, we are excited to take part in the exercise and to fine-tune our own procedures and become better. Sennelager is perfect for this and allows us to train as we should fight. This is a serious topic for us as we look to draw conclusions and lessons learnt from the various conflicts in the world today.”
Note: 16 Air Assault Brigade Combat Team and 7th Light Mechanised Brigade Combat Team are currently part of the British Army’s 1st Division while the 1st Aviation Brigade Combat Team is part of Joint Aviation Command.
