M1954 - Operational History

Operational History

The M-46 was first seen openly at the 1954 May Day Parade in Moscow. It initially replaced the 100 mm BS-3 field and anti-tank gun. However, its long range made it well suited for counter-battery actions, some western troops on its receiving end have reported poor fragmentation, and large fragments would be consistent with the counter-battery purpose. Its Soviet use with an integrated fire control system including SNAR-2 radars has also been reported. In Soviet service M-46 battalions were in Army and Front artillery brigades.

It is or has been in service with at least 25 countries and has been license manufactured in China as the Type 59. It was replaced in Soviet/Russian inventory by the 2A36 Giatsint-B and the self-propelled 2S5 Giatsint-S. Several companies, like Soltam and RDM Technology BV have presented upgrade packages for the gun. These include for instance a barrel upgrade to 155 mm with a length caliber of 45.

The M-46 saw extensive use by the NVA in Vietnam War, especially at the siege of Khe Sanh. It was regarded by both sides as the best all-round field artillery of the Vietnam War.

A version of this artillery, possibly the Chinese-manufactured Type 59-1, is suspected to have been used by North Korea for shelling of South Korean island of Yeonpyeong in the Yellow Sea on November 23, 2010.