Direct proof of use
The OTO Melara Mod 56 is documented in Ukrainian service during the full-scale phase of the 2014 Russia-Ukraine War through transfer reporting and battlefield imagery. Oryx listed six Spanish 105 mm OTO Melara Mod 56 howitzers as delivered to Ukraine in January 2023, while Defense Express reported in March 2023 that Ukrainian gunners were using the Italian 105 mm howitzer and cited imagery from Donbas and Avdiivka.
The Armourers Bench traced a sequence of Mod 56 sightings in Ukraine from January 2023 onward. Its account identified Spanish ministerial confirmation of a six-gun battery and training for Ukrainian crews, then described later imagery showing the guns firing with Ukrainian units, including photographs in Avdiivka, Donetsk region.
Sources: Defense Express Mod 56 Ukraine, Oryx Spanish Aid To Ukraine, Armourers Bench Mod 56 Ukraine
Timeline
Spain's transfer commitment preceded the first documented battlefield appearances. The Armourers Bench reported that Spain's defence minister confirmed in November 2022 that Spain would send a battery of six light howitzers and train Ukrainian crews. Oryx later listed six Mod 56s under Spanish towed-artillery deliveries with a January 2023 delivery date.
By February and March 2023 the gun was visible in Ukrainian combat use. Defense Express reported a February 2023 Associated Press sighting at Avdiivka and a March 2023 image from President Volodymyr Zelensky's account, while Militarnyi reported Ukrainian Mod 56 use in Donbas and tied the guns to Spain's six-howitzer delivery announcement.
Sources: Armourers Bench Mod 56 Ukraine, Oryx Spanish Aid To Ukraine, Defense Express Mod 56 Ukraine, Militarnyi Mod 56 Donbas
Narrative
In Ukrainian service, the Mod 56 appears as a small light-artillery supplement rather than a large artillery fleet. The sourced quantity is six guns from Spain, and the strongest open-source evidence places them in Ukrainian hands in Donetsk-region fighting in 2023. The available public material supports Ukrainian use for light towed fire support; it does not establish a larger delivery pool or a complete unit inventory.
The gun's role followed from its portability and limits. The Armourers Bench described the Mod 56 as a 105 mm pack howitzer with roughly 10 km range that could be deployed forward under cover, making it more plausible as infantry support than as a counterbattery system against longer-ranged tube artillery. Army Recognition later reported a June 2024 Ukrainian image showing continued use of a Spanish-provided Mod 56.
Sources: Oryx Spanish Aid To Ukraine, Armourers Bench Mod 56 Ukraine, Army Recognition Mod 56 2024
