2014 Russia-Ukraine War

M101 105 mm Howitzer in the 2014 Russia-Ukraine War

Ukrainian forces received Lithuanian reserve M50/M101-family 105 mm howitzers in September 2022 and were documented using M101/M101A1 guns for artillery fire support later that year.

Weapon profileM101 105 mm Howitzer
SideUkraineRoleFire SupportTraining & Foreign Aid
M101 105 mm Howitzer, 105 mm towed field howitzer, Artillery - 2014 Russia-Ukraine War
Image source: M101A1 Howitzer Display in ORDC Side View 20121013.jpg

Evidence Map

ClaimSources
Lithuania transferred reserve M50/M101-family 105 mm howitzers to Ukraine in September 2022.

Sources: Lithuanian MoD Ramstein Howitzers, LRT Reserve Howitzers

Ukrainian forces were documented using Lithuanian M101/M101A1 105 mm howitzers by late November 2022.

Sources: Defense Express M101 Use Video, Army Recognition M101A1 Use

The guns served as light towed artillery fire-support weapons rather than long-range strike systems.

Sources: Army Recognition M101A1 Use, Armourers Bench M101 Antique

Later sightings support continued Ukrainian service, but some lack firm filming dates or exact locations.

Sources: Armourers Bench M101 Antique

Timeline

M101 105 mm Howitzer In 2014 Russia-Ukraine War

  1. Lithuania sends reserve 105 mm howitzers

    Lithuanian official and public-broadcaster reporting said 105 mm howitzers, identified by LRT as M50/M101-family reserve weapons, were sent or on the way to Ukraine.

    Sources: Lithuanian MoD Ramstein Howitzers, LRT Reserve Howitzers

  2. First reported Ukrainian M101 use footage

    Defense Express reported that open footage indicated Ukrainian fighters had started using Lithuanian M101 105 mm howitzers.

    Sources: Defense Express M101 Use Video

  3. M101A1 firing reported by Army Recognition

    Army Recognition reported a video of Ukrainian armed forces using Lithuanian-donated M101A1 105 mm towed howitzers to shell Russian troops.

    Sources: Army Recognition M101A1 Use

Documented Use

Direct proof of use

The documented 2014 Russia-Ukraine War use of the M101 family begins with Lithuanian transfers in September 2022. Lithuania's Ministry of National Defence said on September 8 that 105 mm howitzers were on the way to Ukraine, and LRT reported the same day that Defence Minister Arvydas Anusauskas described them as M50/M101 105 mm howitzers from Lithuanian Armed Forces reserve stocks.

Open-source battlefield reporting then connected those transferred guns to Ukrainian use. Defense Express reported on November 27, 2022 that open footage indicated Ukrainian fighters had begun using Lithuanian M101 105 mm howitzers, while Army Recognition reported the next day that a video showed Ukrainian armed forces using Lithuanian-donated M101A1 105 mm towed howitzers to shell Russian troops.

Sources: Lithuanian MoD Ramstein Howitzers, LRT Reserve Howitzers, Defense Express M101 Use Video, Army Recognition M101A1 Use

Timeline

On September 8, 2022, Lithuania publicly placed 105 mm howitzers in the Ukraine aid pipeline during the Ramstein-format support effort. LRT's report specified the reserve guns as M50/M101-family 105 mm howitzers.

By late November 2022, the first widely cited open-source footage of Ukrainian M101/M101A1 use had appeared. The available reports did not identify a precise front-line location, but they did identify the user as Ukrainian forces and the source of the guns as Lithuania.

Sources: Lithuanian MoD Ramstein Howitzers, LRT Reserve Howitzers, Defense Express M101 Use Video, Army Recognition M101A1 Use

Narrative

In Ukrainian service, the M101 filled a light towed-artillery role rather than a long-range strike role. Reporting described the guns as older 105 mm weapons useful for infantry-support fire, with lower range and explosive weight than the 155 mm systems also supplied to Ukraine.

The Armourers Bench tracked subsequent M101 sightings after the first late-2022 footage, including additional firing clips and later images attributed to Ukrainian units. Those later sightings support continued presence in Ukrainian service, but several of them came from social-media footage with unclear original filming dates or exact locations, so the strongest catalog claim remains transfer by Lithuania and documented Ukrainian artillery use from late 2022 onward.

Sources: Army Recognition M101A1 Use, Armourers Bench M101 Antique

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Sources