The English city of Sheffield maintains an international reputation for its metallurgy and steel industries – so much so that like Pittsburgh, PA, it is known as "Steel City." And like Pittsburgh, Sheffield has reinvented itself.

While it continues to produce cutlery, Sheffield is also where the UK's M777 Howitzer will soon be manufactured, as BAE Systems announced this month it will build a new 94,000-square-foot state-of-the-art facility. It will allow the British military to sustain and revitalize its artillery capabilities, and to provide new guns for the U.S. military.

"Our aim is to deliver long-term artillery capabilities for the UK, which will safeguard, sustain and grow a critical, specialised British industrial capability as well as provide important opportunities for exports," said John Borton, managing director of BAE Systems' Weapons Systems UK business.

"As we continue to grow our business to meet our customers' evolving requirements, this significant investment will help us develop a highly-skilled and adaptable workforce as an important part of the national defence infrastructure," added Borton.

The M777 towed howitzer had previously been produced for the British Army and foreign military sales at Barrow-in-Furness in Cumbria, England, but the facility was shuttered due to lack of demand. The final order for 18 guns was delivered in 2023.

Use in Ukraine

The M777 is among the platforms that were provided to aid Ukraine following Russia's unprovoked invasion in February 2022. The United States has provided around 142 howitzers, and in total Kyiv received 152 of the towed artillery pieces.

As the conflict turned into a slug match – and earned comparisons to the artillery duels of the First World War – it allowed the Ukrainians the ability to hold their own. While Kyiv's forces couldn't maintain the same rate of fire, the M777 had greater range becoming the de facto "King" of the battlefield!

However, Ukraine has repeatedly run low on the 155mm shells, and it also saw the barrels of its guns literally worn out from the endless barrages. Moreover, according to data from the open-source intelligence analysts at Oryx, around a third of Ukraine's M777s have been destroyed or seriously damaged.

Production Resumed

In January, the U.S. Army contracted BAE Systems to produce a new batch of lightweight howitzer major structures, under an Undefinitized Contract Action (UCA), which is currently limited to $50 million. The Sheffield facility will also allow BAE Systems to complete the work on new structures for the M777. Unlike past structures, the new version will be made of titanium, which has a high strength-to-weight ratio and a high resistance to corrosion.

The new M777 will be about half the weight of other 155mm towed howitzers. As a result, it can be transported by helicopter sling-load, transport aircraft such as the Lockheed C-130 Hercules, or towed by air-braked vehicles weighing over 2.5 tonnes (5,500 lb), including the FMTV and MTVR medium tactical vehicles.

While the production of the structures will occur in the UK's Steel City, final integration and testing of the M777 will still take place at BAE's facility in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. It is unclear if the U.S. or other operators of the howitzer will provide additional guns to Ukraine.

Author Experience and Expertise: Peter Suciu

Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: [email protected].

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