UK bolsters ukraine with major AS90 howitzer donation
The United Kingdom has confirmed the donation of another batch of AS90 self-propelled howitzers to Ukraine. Here, we explore its capabilities.
The British Defence Minister has stated that Ukraine will receive many AS90 self-propelled howitzers. To date, the British have delivered over 60 AS90 units to Ukraine. If a similar delivery is carried out again, the UK would ultimately relinquish nearly all of its AS90 self-propelled howitzers, excluding the 14 units based in Estonia that are either in service or stored.
This situation implies that the UK will essentially lack tube artillery until the RCH 155 project is completed, aside from the 14 FH77BW Archer howitzers obtained from Sweden. Contrary to appearances, this is not a poor decision because AS90s are no longer in production, similar to some of their critical components like the barrels. In such circumstances, they will be more valuable on the front lines in Ukraine, thereby weakening NATO's main adversary.
AS90 - the British self-propelled howitzer without which there wouldn't be the Polish Krab
The AS90 self-propelled howitzer was introduced into the British Army in 1992, replacing older systems such as the FV433 Abbot and M109. The British displayed conservatism by sticking with the 155 mm calibre gun featuring a 39-calibre barrel, while other European countries chose guns with a 52-calibre barrel.
In hindsight, this decision proved to be a mistake, as the AS90 never attracted as much interest as the French CAESAR or the German PzH 2000. The shorter barrel length of 39 calibres limits the AS90's range to about 16 miles with standard shells and nearly 19 miles when using rockets with additional propulsion. In contrast, the aforementioned competitors with longer barrels can achieve ranges of 19 miles and over 31 miles with identical shells.
There was consideration in Britain to upgrade the AS90 by installing longer barrels, but ultimately this plan was not realised.
It is worth mentioning that despite its range limitations, the AS90 remains a modern tracked self-propelled howitzer, weighing 44 tons. It can quickly assume and vacate its firing position in under a minute, with a firing rate of 6 rounds per minute.
Moreover, as expected from a modern design, the AS90 can deliver a three-round burst in 10 seconds or in MRSI (multiple round simultaneous impact) mode. This involves firing shells at different angles to ensure they hit the target simultaneously.
