Direct proof of use
The 203 mm 2A44 ammunition family is documented in the 2014 Russia-Ukraine War through both Ukrainian and Russian 2S7-family artillery use. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported in October 2022 that Ukrainian 2S7 Pion self-propelled artillery pieces were engaging Russian forces in Donetsk region with 203 mm shells against artillery, command posts, ammunition depots, electronic-warfare stations, and other targets.
El Pais reported from the Pokrovsk front in June 2025 that members of Ukraine's 43rd Artillery Brigade were firing 203 mm howitzer shells daily from Soviet-made 2S7 Pion guns, and described the battery firing U.S.-supplied 203 mm ammunition at Russian logistics facilities near Pischane and Shevchenko.
Russian use is directly documented by Defense Express, which reported in May 2026 that Russian occupation forces were using OF43 high-explosive fragmentation shells and OF44/ZVOF35 rocket-assisted rounds with 203 mm 2S7 Pion self-propelled guns in Ukraine. The same report treated the OF44 as a relatively scarce rocket-assisted round and linked its use to Russian 203 mm ammunition procurement pressure.
Sources: RFE/RL Big Guns, El Pais Pokrovsk 2S7, Russian Army Uses Rare OF44 Shells For 2S7 Pion SPGs
Timeline
Ukraine returned 2S7 Pion guns to service in late 2014. Armament Research Services used the Ukrainian restoration announcement to explain that 2S7 guns fired 3OF43 high-explosive projectiles, 3OF44 rocket-assisted projectiles, and 3-O-14 cargo projectiles, and noted that the 2S7 was the largest-caliber self-propelled artillery system documented in the Ukrainian conflict at that time.
By October 2022, Ukrainian 2S7 guns were publicly documented firing 203 mm shells in Donetsk region. In 2025, El Pais reported continued Ukrainian 43rd Artillery Brigade use of 203 mm shells on the Pokrovsk front, including dependence on U.S.-supplied 203 mm ammunition after Soviet stocks had run out. In May 2026, Defense Express reported Russian OF43 and OF44 use with 2S7 guns in Ukraine.
Sources: Ukrainian government returns 2S7 Pion self-propelled artillery to service, RFE/RL Big Guns, El Pais Pokrovsk 2S7, Russian Army Uses Rare OF44 Shells For 2S7 Pion SPGs
Operational pattern
In Ukrainian service, the documented role was long-range heavy artillery fire from 2S7 Pion guns. The RFE/RL report described Ukrainian 2S7 fire against artillery, command posts, ammunition depots, electronic-warfare stations, and other important targets in Donetsk region. The El Pais front-line report described 43rd Artillery Brigade fire near Pokrovsk as support for infantry efforts to retake a coal-mine area, with targets including Russian logistics facilities.
In Russian service, the sources checked directly identify OF43 and OF44 use rather than a broader verified inventory of all 2A44 projectile types fired in Ukraine. Defense Express reported Russian use of both the standard OF43 high-explosive fragmentation shell and the OF44 rocket-assisted round, while Militarnyi separately summarized Russian procurement records for 3VOF34/OF43, 3VOF35/OF44, and 3VO15/3O14 2S7-family ammunition. The procurement records help explain supply context but are not treated here as firing evidence by themselves.
The specific projectile mix is unevenly documented by side. Sources directly support Ukrainian 203 mm shell firing from 2S7 guns and Russian OF43/OF44 firing with 2S7 guns; they do not directly confirm Ukrainian OF44 firing in the records checked for this page.
Sources: RFE/RL Big Guns, El Pais Pokrovsk 2S7, Russian Army Uses Rare OF44 Shells For 2S7 Pion SPGs, Secrets of the State Defense Order
Ammunition context
The 2A44 ammunition family is a Soviet separate-loading 203 mm ammunition set for the 2S7 Pion and 2S7M Malka. WeaponSystems.net identifies 3OF43 as a high-explosive fragmentation projectile used in the 3VOF34 and 3VOF42 rounds, 3OF44 as a rocket-assisted high-explosive projectile used in the 3VOF35 round, and 3O14 as a cluster shell used in 3VO15 and 3VO16 rounds.
ARES gives the same projectile family in its 2014 Ukraine context and distinguishes projectile designations from complete-round designations: 3OF43 refers to the projectile, while 3VOF34 refers to the complete round with projectile and propellant charge. That distinction matters because Ukraine-war reporting often uses OF43, OF44, 3VOF34, or 3VOF35 shorthand when discussing 2S7 ammunition.
Sources: 203mm shells for 2A44 howitzer, Ukrainian government returns 2S7 Pion self-propelled artillery to service
