Archer self-propelled guns already deployed on Ukraine battlefield

Defense Express writes about this.

The Ukrainian Armed Forces are already using the most modern 155-mm artillery system in the world - the Swedish Archer wheeled self-propelled artillery system.

The video of the system was released by the Ukrainian Land Forces Command on the occasion of the Day of Missile Forces and Artillery of Ukraine. This is the first public demonstration of the Archer in Ukraine.

The video also shows which brigade received this equipment - the 45th separate artillery brigade, as the flag with the symbols of this unit directly indicates.

At one time, the Archer self-propelled artillery systems were the subject of quite a long discussion about their transfer from Sweden, as they were first discussed publicly in August 2022. Only in March of this year was the transfer of eight units officially announced by the Swedish government.

“At the end of May, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry officially announced that the Archer system and its trained crews were to arrive in Ukraine during the summer. But since then, nothing has been heard about this system. But apparently, this did not stop Ukrainian soldiers from actively using the system to strike the Russian enemy without additional announcements,” the report states.

The Archer self-propelled artillery system is rightly considered one of the most revolutionary artillery systems. Fully automated fire at a range of up to 50-60 km, ultra-high rate of fire of 21 rounds in 3.5 minutes thanks to the automatic loading system, rapid deployment and withdrawal from the position before the first rounds explode at the enemy position.

Defense Express emphasized that there are two sides to every medal. Behind the high rate of fire lies the vulnerability to malfunctioning automatic loading devices and a 21-round ammunition capacity that makes it impossible to fire from the ground. But if you understand that Archer is a specialized self-propelled gun for counter-battery combat, not for methodically bombarding the enemy with shells from a stationary position, everything falls into place.

At the same time, the Ukrainian Armed Forces now have a great opportunity to evaluate the Archer concept in real combat conditions, and this is a unique experience, because this system has never been used in war before.