Direct proof of use
Public evidence places the D-44 in Ukrainian service during the full-scale phase of the war. Popular Mechanics reported that video of Ukrainian towed D-44 combat use dated back to May 2022, and later described a Ukrainian military video showing an MT-LB armored tractor with an 85 mm D-44 mounted on top in service with the 67th Mechanized Brigade.
Defense Express separately reported on August 6, 2023 that a Ukrainian unit had created an improvised self-propelled artillery vehicle from a D-44 85 mm gun and an MT-LB carrier and was actively using it against Russian invasion forces. Oryx's Ukrainian equipment list also records an 85 mm D-44 on MT-LB among Ukrainian battlefield equipment known to be in use.
Russian use is documented more narrowly. Army Recognition reported on September 28, 2023 that footage from September 27 showed a UAV destroying a Russian D-44 howitzer in Ukraine, and described the gun as still operating among Russian forces.
Sources: Popular Mechanics D-44 MT-LB, Defense Express D-44 MT-LB, Oryx Ukrainian Equipment In Use, Army Recognition Russian D-44 Destroyed
Battlefield role
In Ukrainian service, the D-44 appears primarily as expedient artillery fire support rather than as a modern anti-tank system. Popular Mechanics assessed the MT-LB/D-44 videos as showing indirect-fire use and also noted separate direct-fire footage. Defense Express described the same concept as a shoot-and-scoot adaptation: a D-44 fixed on an MT-LB platform so the crew could fire and relocate more quickly than a towed gun.
The MT-LB conversion did not turn the D-44 into a purpose-built self-propelled howitzer. Defense Express noted that the gun was attached with limited traverse and that pointing it required yawing the whole carrier, while the tracked platform gave the firing team mobility after shooting. That evidence supports a role as improvised mobile fire support, not a standardized production system.
The Russian-side evidence is thinner and should be read as fielding and loss evidence, not a full order of battle. Army Recognition tied the September 2023 drone-strike footage to a Russian D-44 and used it as an example of Russian reliance on older artillery pieces during the full-scale invasion.
Sources: Popular Mechanics D-44 MT-LB, Defense Express D-44 MT-LB, Army Recognition Russian D-44 Destroyed
