Ukraine army uses former French Army TRF1 155mm howitzers

Defense News September 2022 Global Security army industry
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As reported by Laurent Lagneau on opex360.com, the main activity of the French company S2M-Equipment, established in Montlouis-sur-Loire, is to restore, even modernize, equipment that has previously been used by the French forces in order to put them on the second-hand market. Its catalog offers VAB armored vehicles and ERC-90 Sagaie combat vehicles having found a second youth, as well as Peugeot P4s, ACMAT VLRAs and 155 mm TRF1 towed guns,
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Lance Cpl. Ryan LaVallee, radio operator, Charlie Company, Battalion Landing Team 1st Battalion, 9th Marine Regiment, 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, fires an TRF-1 Towed Gun howitzer from 93rd Mountain Artillery Regiment, French Army, during a bilateral training exercise in Djibouti March 23, 2010 (Picture source: U.S. Army/Sgt. Alex C. Sauceda)

S2M Equipment should provide the Ukrainian army with former French Army TRF1 howitzers. This is indeed what Jean-Dominique Merchet, of the daily L'Opinion, revealed and tweeted. “These guns are no longer in service with the Army, except for a handful of them in a regiment stationed in Djibouti. Destocked, they were acquired by a broker – the company S2M-Equipment […]. It was from her that the Ukrainians bought the TRF1s, the Ministry of the Armed Forces having “accompanied their certification”, ”said Mr. Merchet.

Such a sale must first be authorized by the Interministerial Commission for the Study of War Material Exports [CIEEMG], Laurent Lagneau writes. And so it had no objection. As on July 1, 2021, the French army still had at least 12 TRF1s, the latter being used by the 5th Overseas Interarms Regiment [RIAOM] based in Djibouti.

The TRF1 was showcased in 1979 at the Eurosatory defense exhibition, as a replacement for the aging BF-50. Giat produced it from 1984 to 1993. The TRF1, it is a gun with a maximum range of 30 km. Able to be quickly put into action [less than five minutes] and requiring 8 gunners, it has a rate of fire of 3 shots in 15 seconds in rapid mode, or 6 shots in one minute in “classic” mode. Its tube must be changed every 3,000 shots.