Direct proof of use
The M-46 family appears in the 1990 Gulf War record through Iraqi-operated Soviet M-46 guns and Chinese Type 59-1 derivatives. A U.S. Army article on Rock Island Arsenal's Type 59-1 states that the displayed gun, a copy of the Soviet M-46, saw service with Iraqi troops during Operation Desert Storm and was later obtained in Southwest Asia by a U.S. Army Center of Military History recovery team.
A declassified U.S. Army intelligence battle review from 3rd Brigade, 2nd Armored Division, also records M-46 guns among Iraqi artillery destroyed during the coalition advance. The review says the brigade destroyed 25 M-46 guns and describes most Iraqi artillery in that sector as arranged in static defensive battery positions.
Sources: RIA Type 59-1 Article, Operation Desert Storm Intelligence Battle Review
Timeline
Operation Desert Storm began on January 17, 1991, after Iraq's occupation of Kuwait and the Desert Shield buildup. Iraqi M-46 and Type 59-1 guns belonged to the defensive artillery inventory facing the coalition air and ground campaign.
During the February 1991 ground offensive, U.S. Army reporting from 3rd Brigade, 2nd Armored Division, described destroyed Iraqi artillery that included 25 M-46 guns. The same review says Iraqi fire-support plans were captured, but the brigade encountered no indirect fires and assessed that Iraqi artillery could not mass fires effectively.
After the campaign, at least one Iraqi Type 59-1 was recovered by the U.S. Army Center of Military History and shipped to Rock Island Arsenal in 1992, where it became part of the arsenal's ordnance display.
Sources: U.S. Army War in the Persian Gulf, Operation Desert Storm Intelligence Battle Review, RIA Type 59-1 Article
Narrative
The documented role was Iraqi long-range towed artillery. The Type 59-1 was a Chinese lightweight variant of the Soviet M-46 family, using the same 130 mm gun lineage while reducing weight with a lighter carriage. U.S. Army descriptions identify the Iraqi example as one of about 675 guns in Iraqi inventory during Operation Desert Storm.
The available sources support fielding, capture, and destruction of M-46-family artillery rather than detailed firing incidents by individual batteries. The declassified battle review places M-46 losses inside Iraqi static defenses, while the Rock Island Arsenal article ties a recovered Type 59-1 directly to Iraqi troop service in Operation Desert Storm.
Sources: RIA Type 59-1 Article, Operation Desert Storm Intelligence Battle Review
