Metal Gear Solid 5 - Traitor's Caravan: Escort vehicle, Nova Braga Airport, escaping the Skulls
How to track down the escort vehicles, find the transport truck and escape the hot zone in Phantom Pain's Traitor's Caravan mission.
Welcome to Metal Gear Solid 5 - Traitor's Caravan, the 16th main story mission of the game, following on from Footprints of the Phantoms.
Traitor's Caravan Mission checklist:
- Identified escort unit (armoured vehicle)
- Identified transport truck
- Extracted the transport truck
- Eliminated the Skulls
- Extracted the transport truck driver
- Pinpointed escort unit's estimated route from an intel file
- Listened to all conversations between transport truck driver and outpost/guard post soldiers
With the enemy's Walker supply now depleted, it's time to focus on your next mission. Your task this time around is to locate and extract a transport truck carrying a mysterious cargo. You'll find this objective much easier if you've upgraded your Fulton Device to Cargo Level 2 - check out the opening paragraphs of our Episode 15 guide for more information on this.
Once you're ready to begin the operation, select 16-Traitor's Caravan from your mission list and pick the only available Landing Zone. Next, adjust your load-out as required, choose D-Horse as your buddy and set the drop time to 0600. Finally, commence the mission!
As your chopper touches down, you'll be informed that your main target - the transport truck - is yet to be found in the area. On the plus side, your intel team has located the enemy units tasked with escorting the truck to its rendezvous point.
Traitor's Caravan: Locate the escort vehicles
As luck would have it, the escort vehicles are currently stationed at a nearby observation post. Your first task, then, is to reach the observation post and locate the vehicles before they begin the journey toward your main target.
Move south-east, using the yellow objective marker as a guide. When you reach the huge rock plateau, drop down to a crouch and proceed cautiously. Continue on to the guard post (and objective marker) a little way ahead.
Once you reach the guard post, you'll be informed that the escort vehicles are no longer in the area. You'll need to find some intel if you hope to complete your mission.
Scan the intel and track the escort vehicles
As it happens, the intel can be found nearby to the east, stashed in the small green tent directly below the camp's watchtower. Cautiously approach the tent and deal with any hostiles that stray too close to your position. When the area is clear, enter the tent and scan the intel on the table.
Once you have the intel, the escort vehicles' predicted route will be added to your map. Open your iDroid and place a marker at the route's start, just outside the guard post to the south. Next, mount your horse and begin galloping toward your freshly-laid marker.
As you near the southern guard post, two tanks (the escort vehicles that you seek) will depart in a cloud of dust, heading south along the main road. Quickly activate your binoculars, zoom in on their position and scan them before they disappear from view. This will mark them on your HUD.
Locate the transport truck
According to your iDroid, the escort tanks will likely collect the transport truck (that is, your main target) at the airport in the centre of the mission zone. As such, we'll head straight to the rendezvous point, locate the cargo truck and deal with it swiftly.
Call up your map again and look for the junction in the road immediately to the north of Nova Braga Airport. Once you find the junction, place a marker down and begin riding toward it.
As you near your destination, slow to a trot and locate the group of four well-armed hostiles stationed at the junction. You need to reach the road running south-west away from the junction - so give the guards (and their rocket launcher) a wide birth in order to reach the road unharmed.
Follow the road south-west and, soon, you'll spot the sprawling airport to the south. Continue south-west and then, as the road bends round to the south, dismount D-Horse and approach the airport's west-facing perimeter wall. Be careful here: there's a sniper situated nearby - stay low and move quickly to avoid detection.
Once you reach the wall, begin moving along it to the south. Soon, you'll spot a small gate in the wall to the left - unlock it then head on through. On the other side, immediately take a left and begin moving north again, keeping the wall close to your left-hand side. Follow the wall around to the right and, almost immediately, you'll spy another gate to the left.
Encounter the Skulls and extract the transport truck
Your main target (the transport truck) lies just beyond this gate. Don't rush through, however: if you get too close, a short cut-scene will play and four Skulls soldiers will emerge from inside, initiating the mission's final confrontation.
There are a few things you should do before that happens: first, step away from the gate and scan the transport truck with your binoculars - this completes a hidden mission objective. Next, simply sit tight and wait for the escort vehicles to arrive (if they haven't already). The final Skulls showdown is much easier when you have the tanks' heavy armour and awesome firepower to hand.
Once the escort vehicles have entered the airport and parked up nearby, slip through the gate and approach the cargo truck. The four Skull soldiers will immediately attack; don't panic though: simply dash straight over to the cargo truck and Fulton it out of the area.
Need help with The Phantom Pain? Our Metal Gear Solid 5 guide and walkthrough explains how to complete every main story mission, and explains their many optional objectives. We also have lists of Blueprint locations, Tape locations, Key Item locations, how to unlock S Ranks and a Metal Gear Solid 5 Achievement and Trophy list.
Escape the Hot Zone
Keep watch to ensure that the extraction is successful then immediately take a right and dash toward either one of the escort tanks parked nearby. Hop inside the vehicle of your choice and quickly drive south along the road.
Happily, the tank offers ample protection against the Skulls as you flee the Hot Zone. Better still, the vehicle's heavy weaponry makes light work of the Skulls' armour - so you might consider eliminating your opponents in order to complete another hidden objective.
A short way ahead, you'll reach the road leading south-west out of the airport. Follow it along and, once you're beyond the perimeter wall, leave the main road. Continue south-west and hurtle straight across the wilderness until you exit the Hot Zone.
When you do, the the Skulls will give up their pursuit and the mission will come to a close. For your troubles, you'll be awarded the Cipher's Cargo [1] and Africa Today [3] cassette tapes, plus the [Front: Radiological Hazard] emblem part.
If you're a fan of 80s pop, there's one last thing to do before you leave the area of operations.
Return to airport and locate the open entrance along the protruding east-facing perimeter wall. Slip past the watchtower and head west across the airfield. Once you reach the second block of two-story buildings to your left, climb the steps and follow the walkway along to the south. You'll find a cassette player containing Laura Branigan's seminal Gloria in the third room to your left. When you're ready to wrap things up, summon a chopper, climb aboard then return to the air.
- Our walkthrough continues with a step-by-step guide to completing Rescue the Intel Agents in MGS 5.
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