Direct proof of use
The 3F5 Smelchak is documented in Russian use in Ukraine through reporting on 2S4 Tyulpan heavy mortars firing laser-guided 240 mm rounds. TWZ reported on May 13, 2022 that imagery showed Russian forces using 2S4 Tyulpan mortars to fire Smelchak rounds at the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol, then one of the last Ukrainian-held positions in the city.
ArmyInform later described online videos showing Russian use of Soviet Smelchak guided munitions against Ukrainian cities and cited footage of a 3F5 Smelchak projectile fired from a 2S4 Tyulpan during the battles for Mariupol. Militarnyi also reported a later 1K113 Smelchak / 3F5 sighting near Avdiivka, tying the munition to Russian Tyulpan use in another heavily contested Donetsk Oblast sector.
Sources: TWZ Smelchak, ArmyInform Smelchak, Militarnyi Smelchak sighting
Timeline
The public record begins in May 2022, during the closing stage of the siege of Mariupol, when imagery and reporting connected Russian 2S4 Tyulpan mortar fire at Azovstal with the Smelchak guided round. By July 2022, Ukrainian defense media and open-source weapons trackers were discussing video from Mariupol as combat footage of a 3F5 Smelchak round.
Militarnyi later reported 3F5 high-precision mortar rounds from the 1K113 system near Avdiivka. That later sighting expanded the conflict record from the Mariupol siege to the Donetsk front around Avdiivka, where Russian forces also used heavy artillery and mortars during the prolonged battle for the city.
Sources: TWZ Smelchak, ArmyInform Smelchak, Militarnyi Smelchak sighting, AP Avdiivka
Narrative
In this conflict, the Smelchak appeared as a precision option for Russia's 240 mm heavy mortar force rather than as a standalone battlefield system. The round belongs to the 1K113 guided artillery-weapon complex, which ArmyInform describes as combining the 3VF4 shot with the 3F5 corrected projectile, a 1D15 or 1D20 laser designator-rangefinder, and 1A35 shot-synchronization equipment. The munition can be fired from the towed M-240 or the self-propelled 2S4 Tyulpan mortar, but the Ukraine reporting centers on the 2S4.
The Azovstal reporting places the Smelchak in an urban siege environment. TWZ described the steel plant as the remaining Ukrainian stronghold in Mariupol and noted that the guided round's limited range was not a practical barrier at that distance. ArmyInform's account also connects Mariupol footage with the same 3F5 munition and describes the projectile's terminal correction and laser-guidance chain.
The Avdiivka report points to a later use case along a fortified eastern front rather than the Mariupol siege. Militarnyi identified 3F5 high-precision mortar rounds as part of the 1K113 Smelchak system and reported their use by Russian forces near Avdiivka, a city whose 2023-2024 battle involved sustained Russian pressure against Ukrainian defensive positions.
Sources: TWZ Smelchak, ArmyInform Smelchak, Militarnyi Smelchak sighting, AP Avdiivka
