As Russia Is Forced To Pull Old Weapons Out Of Storage, Many Malfunction

In the Russian army's desperation to achieve even minor victories in Ukraine, they are being forced to deploy a considerable amount of Soviet-era weaponry out of storage. 

While that itself carries risks, the rush to put the weapons into action often means they are not properly repaired, leading to malfunctions which can cause more harm to Russian troops than to the Ukrainians. JL 

Jack Buckby reports in 19fortyfive:

The D-20 howitzer is a towed weapon manufactured in the 1950s based on a design from the 1940s. From the remains of the howitzer, weapons experts consider the possibility the weapon exploded not from Ukrainian strikes (but) as a result of improper storage. The weapon’s launch tube appears to have been snapped in two by an explosion that occurred inside the weapon. It was not destroyed by external forces, as the metal bends outwards. As Russia continues to pull old weapons, and vehicles out of storage, sufficient time will be required to ensure they are properly repairedPhotographs shared online this week appear to show a Russian D-20 152mm howitzer torn apart and destroyed, but not from Ukrainian strikes. From the remains of the howitzer, weapons experts and analysts considered the possibility that the weapon exploded as a result of improper storage conditions.

Military and weapons reporter Neil Gibson commented on the photographs, suggesting that the explosion may have been caused by the over-pressuring of the gun.

“This would seem to be an in-bore premature of the HE projectile, which can be due to many reasons,” Gibson wrote.

“Over-pressuring of the gun due to problems with the propellant occurs far earlier in the ballistic cycle & primarily causes the breech [sic] and/or cartridge case (if present) to fail.”

In the photographs, the weapon appears to be effectively split in two. The weapon’s launch tube appears to have been snapped in two by an explosion that occurred inside of the weapon. It was not destroyed by any external forces, as the metals appear to bend outwards, creating a “flower” pattern.

This particular howitzer belonged to pro-Russian Luhansk People’s Republican (LNR) forces fighting in the Donbas.

How Long Were These Howitzers Stored?

Russia has been forced to bring many Soviet-era machines out of storage to assist with its ongoing invasion of Ukraine – and the photographs shared online this week suggest that some of the weapons leaving Russian warehouses may not be safe to use on the battlefield.

The D-20 howitzer is a towed weapons unit manufactured in the 1950s based on a design from the 1940s, making the weapon roughly 80 years old. However, the howitzer has remained in use ever since and was deployed in the Yugoslav wars, the Syrian Civil War, the Yemeni Civil War, and the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.

For this reason, it’s hard to tell how old the destroyed howitzer really is and how long it was stored.

Russia has spent months pulling older weapons out of storage, including Soviet-era tanks. In May, a senior U.S. defense official said that Russia had lost as many as 1,000 tanks or more in Ukraine so far, pulling out T-62 tanks from storage to replace the lost vehicles.

The United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defence noted at the time that the older weaponry would be vulnerable to modern anti-tank weapons.

As Russia continues to pull old machinery, weapons, and vehicles out of storage, sufficient time will be required to ensure that the vehicles are properly repaired and prepared for use – or Russian troops could find themselves injured or killed by malfunctioning equipment.