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Serbia and Azerbaijan train with B-52 M-15 Nora howitzers ahead of deliveries.
Serbian and Azerbaijani artillery units have launched joint training on the B-52 M-15 Nora self-propelled howitzer at Niš and Pasuljanske Livade. The exercises mark a new phase in defense cooperation as Azerbaijan prepares to field its newly acquired Nora systems.
On 23 October 2025, Serbian and Azerbaijani artillery units began a two-week joint tactical training focused on the combat employment of the 155 mm self-propelled gun-howitzer B-52 M-15 Nora, as reported by the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Serbia. The program, conducted at the Combined Artillery Brigade base in Niš and continuing with live-fire exercises at the Pasuljanske Livade range, fits into a wider pattern of stepped-up bilateral engagement. It follows senior-level exchanges in Baku earlier in October under the two ministries’ cooperation plan and economic talks in Belgrade on 23–24 October. The training is relevant because it prepares Azerbaijani crews for fielding newly procured systems and underlines a tightening of operational interoperability between the two countries’ land forces, with direct implications for force readiness and regional deterrence. This joint activity also reflects ongoing deliveries stemming from Baku’s 2024 contract for Nora systems and associated support.
The B-52 M-15 Nora is a 155 mm self-propelled howitzer developed by Serbia’s Yugoimport SDPR, featuring automated loading, digital fire control, and a maximum range of about 41 kilometers (Picture Source: Serbian MoD)
The B-52 M-15 Nora is Serbia’s latest truck-mounted 155 mm/52-caliber howitzer developed by the Military Technical Institute and produced by Yugoimport SDPR. Building on earlier Nora generations introduced from the mid-2000s, the M-15 integrates a protected crew cabin, automated laying and loading aids, and compatibility with JBMOU 155 mm ammunition, including precision and extended-range projectiles. Depending on ammunition, the system can reach up to 56 km with VLAP-type rounds, while sustaining high burst rates with the first three rounds fired in roughly twenty seconds. The Serbian Army’s adoption of the M-15 and recurring live-fire cycles at Pasuljanske Livade since 2023 have matured the training syllabus now being shared with Azerbaijani crews.
Operationally, the Nora family has progressed through iterative upgrades in mobility, automation and protection. Early Nora B-52 variants were fielded from 2006; the M-15 iteration adds improved ballistic computing, insulated cab protection and mine-blast mitigation consistent with STANAG baselines, as well as an RCWS option for close-in defense. Serbia’s artillery units have institutionalized conversion and refresher training on these systems at deployment sites near Niš, a process now mirrored in the bilateral syllabus with Azerbaijan. Live-fire phases at Pasuljanske Livade validate procedures for rapid occupation of firing positions, multi-round engagements, and quick displacement to avoid counter-battery fires, tactics particularly central to contemporary high-intensity conflicts.
Several features explain why the B-52 M-15 is attractive to Azerbaijan. First is range and responsiveness: with ERFB-BB or VLAP munitions, Nora’s reach is competitive with the best NATO 52-caliber systems, enabling deep interdiction of logistics nodes and air-defense blind spots. Second is mobility and strategic simplicity: the 8×8 wheeled chassis offers long road marches, quick setup, and lower through-life costs than heavy tracked platforms. Third is the balance of automation and crew size, which reduces fatigue and speeds shoot-and-scoot cycles under ISR-dense conditions. Compared with France’s CAESAR 8×8, Nora’s performance envelope is broadly similar in range and rate, and both prioritize road mobility and rapid deployment over heavy armor. Relative to Germany’s PzH 2000, Nora trades the latter’s heavy protection and fully automated magazine for lower mass, lower cost and simpler sustainment, attributes aligned with large-scale artillery replacement or expansion programs. For Azerbaijan, which fields a mix of legacy Soviet-pattern and newer Western-caliber systems, standardizing around a modern 52-caliber wheeled gun-howitzer strengthens logistics and compatibility with precision 155 mm effects.
The strategic implications of this joint training are visible on several levels. Geopolitically, it formalizes Belgrade–Baku defense ties beyond visits and declarations, giving a practical channel for doctrine transfer, crew proficiency, and maintenance know-how. Geostrategically, it enhances Azerbaijan’s long-range fires posture in the South Caucasus by accelerating absorption of new equipment and harmonizing procedures with an experienced user. Militarily, shared drills at battery and battalion level compress the timeline between delivery and full operational capability, especially in tasks like counter-fire, coordinated fires with UAV cueing, and time-sensitive targeting. The training also coincides with intensified economic and governmental contacts between the two countries, adding a layer of political predictability around schedule, financing, and industrial support.
On budget and contracting, publicly reported figures put Azerbaijan’s February 2024 order at roughly $339–340 million for 48 Nora B-52 NG/M-15 family howitzers and support, implying an average program cost in the vicinity of $7 million per system when accounting for spares, training and ancillary vehicles. Open-source references on unit pricing echo this magnitude for recent-year deliveries. Prior export customers for the Nora family include Bangladesh, Cyprus, Kenya and Myanmar, but the most recent and largest disclosed contract is Azerbaijan’s 48-unit package. The ongoing joint training in Serbia is consistent with standard post-contract training work-ups conducted ahead of public presentation and handover milestones reportedly planned in Baku.
The Serbia–Azerbaijan artillery work-up around the B-52 M-15 Nora brings forward operational readiness for a major 155 mm program while knitting the two defense establishments closer at the practical level of crews, procedures and sustainment. With long-range precision fires now a central determinant of land warfare outcomes, the combination of extended-range munitions, high mobility and streamlined training pipelines gives Azerbaijan a faster path to credible massed fires. For Serbia, it validates the export appeal of its flagship howitzer and anchors a broader security and economic dialogue that was visible this week in bilateral meetings in Belgrade. If subsequent fielding in Azerbaijan proceeds on the timelines suggested by this training, the region’s artillery balance will reflect a sharper emphasis on agile, wheeled 52-caliber systems capable of rapid multi-battery fires and resilient logistics.
Written by Teoman S. Nicanci – Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group
Teoman S. Nicanci holds degrees in Political Science, Comparative and International Politics, and International Relations and Diplomacy from leading Belgian universities, with research focused on Russian strategic behavior, defense technology, and modern warfare. He is a defense analyst at Army Recognition, specializing in the global defense industry, military armament, and emerging defense technologies.