The 'Old' British Howitzer Ukrainians Call A Mercedes Next To Every Russian Gun At The Front

A Ukrainian artillery commander stood beside a 1990s British howitzer in January 2025 and said comparing it to Soviet guns was like comparing a Zhiguli to a Mercedes E-class. Months later, Britain confirmed it had transferred every single AS-90 in its inventory — ninety-nine vehicles, the entire declared fleet — to Ukraine. The British Army no longer operates this howitzer in any form. This is the story of how a self-propelled gun the British military had quietly written off became one of the most devastating Western artillery systems on the Ukrainian battlefield. From its origins as a Vickers private-venture gamble in the 1980s, to its three-week Larkhill conversion course, to a verified combat record across Zaporizhzhia, Kupiansk, Pokrovsk and Kursk, this video covers everything the spec sheets miss about the AS-90, the 155mm L31 ordnance, and why Ukrainian crews of the 117th Heavy Mechanized Brigade refuse to give it up. We examine the honest comparison against Russia's 2S19 Msta-S, 2S3 Akatsiya, 2S5 Giatsint-S and the D-30, including where the AS-90 actually wins (digital fire control, burst rate, NATO ammunition, Kropyva integration) and where it loses (raw range). Plus the cancelled Braveheart L52 upgrade, Oryx-verified loss figures, and the KNDS RCH 155 that Britain has chosen to replace the system this war just consumed. TOPICS COVERED ═══════════════════════════════ → The Lada to Mercedes quote, exact source, speaker, and Ukrainian original → AS-90 origins, Vickers Shipbuilding, the SP70 collapse, the 1989 Abbot replacement → Full technical breakdown of the 155mm L31 ordnance and turret system → Rate of fire, three rounds in under ten seconds explained → The cancelled Braveheart L52 upgrade and what it cost the British Army → Complete transfer timeline from the Sunak announcement to the FOIA disclosure → Royal School of Artillery training at Larkhill and the conversion course → First combat use and confirmed Ukrainian operator brigades → Honest comparison with Russian 152mm Soviet-legacy artillery → Kropyva fire control and the digital sensor-to-shooter loop → Oryx open-source intelligence loss figures on both sides → The Boxer-mounted RCH 155 and the Trinity House Agreement MAJOR RESEARCH SOURCES ═══════════════════════════════ → NV (Nove Vremya), Serhiy Okuniev, January 2025, original Azhur interview → UK Ministry of Defence FOIA disclosure, reported by Janes, November 2025 → Army Recognition, combat reporting and transfer announcements → Militarnyi, 117th Brigade statements and operator confirmations → Royal United Services Institute, Sam Cranny-Evans on Russian artillery → The Defense Post, Larkhill training and Healey announcements → Oryx Blog, visually confirmed equipment losses → United24 Media, Ukrainian government and operational reporting → RBC-Ukraine, Colonel Serhii Musiienko interview → Army Technology and Forecast International, AS-90 specifications → British Army records and Royal Artillery historical material FURTHER READING ═══════════════════════════════ → The 2S19 Msta-S and its modernized Msta-SM2 variant → The Polish Krab, the Braveheart turret that survived → KNDS RCH 155 and the British Mobile Fires Platform programme → Operation Interflex and UK training of Ukrainian forces → Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering at Barrow-in-Furness → Excalibur M982 precision-guided 155mm artillery → Ukrainian Kropyva fire-direction software ═══════════════════════════════ Welcome to British War Machine. Exhaustively researched videos on British military technology, combat performance, and the engineering decisions that shaped twentieth and twenty-first century warfare. Subscribe for new uploads on the weapons, vehicles, and systems that put British engineering at the front line. #AS90 #BritishArmy #UkraineWar #ArtilleryHowitzer #MilitaryHistory