at the end of the welcoming ceremony for the Dutch-led Bison 17 m... VIEW ORIGINAL
Story by Capt. Brett Tinder
3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs, 4th Infantry Division
DRAWSKO POMORSKIE, Poland -- The 3rd Battalion, 29th Field Artillery Regiment (Pacesetters) united with six NATO countries during a welcoming ceremony here Jan. 27, 2017, to kick off the Bison Drawsko 2017 multinational exercise that is aimed at increasing the interoperability of alliance members.
The exercise involves around 4,500 Soldiers from the Netherlands, Poland, the United States, Canada, Germany and Estonia.
The ceremony celebrated each military's premier war-fighting vehicles, of which the 3-29 FA Bn. from 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, provided two M109A6 Paladin howitzers paired with M992 ammunition carriers from Battery C.
The Pacesetters also represented the United States along the wall of flags flanking Dutch Brigade-General Jan Swillens as he addressed the more than 1,500 Soldiers and guests in attendance.
For Pfc. Brendan Leahy, the 3-29 FA Bn. flag bearer, this was his first time involved in a multinational event with allied militaries.
"It was important that we united, and met each other and marched together," he said, adding that it helped frame the partnership in more personal terms.
Lt. Col. Douglas P. Chimenti, 3-29 FA Bn. commander, stood alongside Swillens and other guests presiding over the ceremony.
"Our involvement in this ceremony shows our readiness to deter aggression as an alliance," Chimenti said.
The Pacesetters will participate in the exercise by conducting a combined live-fire exercise with a platoon of M109A6 howitzers and a Liaison Fire Direction Center to achieve interoperability in massing fires. The battalion also will support the Dutch artillery unit with maintenance space, providing Soldiers an opportunity to learn about the Dutch Panzerhaubitze 2000 155mm howitzer.
For 3-29 FA, Bison 17 also offers an opportunity to achieve a central goal of 3/4 ABCT's mission under Operation Atlantic Resolve: interoperability within a multinational operating environment.
In assessing his objective for the exercise, Chimenti said: "The most important training the Soldiers are receiving is how to mass fires with multiple types of artillery systems and communication structures. This is crucial to how we fight as an alliance."
The battalion's next Bison 17 training opportunity will be Feb. 15, when the unit conducts a joint artillery shoot with the Dutch 43rd Mechanized Brigade.
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