Multiple launch rocket system "Grad": characteristics and range. Survive under fire from multiple launch rocket systems "Grad"

"Grad" is the most famous military development of the USSR after the AK-47, only the Su and MiG will argue here. Multiple launch rocket systems are a separate chapter in the history of wars. Read about the Grad MLRS - the pinnacle of engineering, a deadly machine and a museum exhibit.

Before "Grad"
"Katyusha", or, as it is correctly called, reactive launcher BM-13 played such a significant role in the finals of World War II that the ruling elite of the USSR immediately after the end of the war gave the order to engineers to develop rocket artillery in every possible way.

What was so good about Katyusha and why were the cars that replaced it so good? The idea is as follows: take a truck capable of overcoming rough terrain, and put an artillery unit on its chassis, consisting of a movable package of tubular guides stuffed with rockets.

The effect of a projectile can be different, but the most common is high-explosive fragmentation. The firing range is kilometers and tens of kilometers. The speed of the machine is the same as regular truck. Getting into combat mode in a matter of minutes. It is not surprising that such installations quickly became valuable components of the divisional and regimental artillery of the USSR army.

The first post-war attempt to develop the ideas of the Katyusha was the BM-14, that is, “combat vehicle, model 14.” Surprisingly, its creation was based on the experience of the defeated enemy, in particular, the first projectile for the BM-14 was created with an eye on the German turbojet mine.

The main type of ammunition in the BM-14 was turbojet high-explosive fragmentation projectile M-14-OF with a head fuse.

The shells were loaded into a package of 16 tubular guides, and in flight they were stabilized due to their own rotation caused by the outflow of powder gases through holes inclined at 22° to the longitudinal axis. The artillery unit consisted of 16 smooth-bore pipes with a diameter of 140.3 mm and a length of 1,370 mm and located in two rows on a turntable.

The BM-14 was put into service in 1952 and was modernized several times after that. For example, the ZIS-151 was first used as a chassis, then the ZIS-157, and in the mid-60s the ZIL-130. Over time, the artillery unit was lightened by as much as 3 tons, using a rigid welded box, which formed a movable cradle, instead of a bulky truss.

Until the second half of the 1960s, this vehicle was used in regiments of rifle and motorized rifle divisions, exported to the Warsaw Pact countries, as well as to Algeria, Angola, Vietnam, Egypt, Cambodia, China, North Korea, Cuba, Syria and Somalia, but already in the 1960s m began to prepare a replacement - BM-21, which received given name"Grad".

Grad shells
You are reading this text on an automotive website, but you need to understand that the essence of the multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) is not at all in the car. And not even in an artillery mount mounted on a car. The point is the rocket. It is he who is capable of flying tens of kilometers and bringing down roaring fire and screeching metal onto the enemy’s head, sowing destruction, horror and death. This is cruel and scary, but such is war, and it was for war - already the third world war - that the "Grad" was designed.

The first and main ammunition for the Grad was the 9M22 (aka M-21-OF) projectile with a caliber of 122 mm, and it set the trend for the creation of all subsequent similar projectiles. At the instigation of the chief designer A.N. Ganichev from the Tula NII-147 (now the Splav State Research and Production Enterprise), who acted as the lead developer of the entire Grad system, the projectile body was not made from a steel blank, as before, but was proposed to be produced by rolling and drawing steel sheet, as in the manufacture of artillery shells.

Another feature of the 9M22 projectile was that the stabilizer blades were foldable and were held in the resting position by a special ring, without exceeding the dimensions of the projectile. In flight, the blades open and provide stabilizing rotation, since they are located at an angle of 1° to the longitudinal axis of the projectile, and the initial rotation is set by the movement of the projectile guide pin along the screw groove of the barrel. The projectile is almost three meters long (2,870 mm) and weighs 66 kg, of which 20.45 kg is rocket powder charge, and 6.4 kg is explosive.

When fired, the powder charge is ignited by a igniter, which is supplied with a spark from the control system. The projectile flies out of the guide at a speed of 50 m/s and then accelerates to 715 m/s. At a distance of only 150-450 m from the artillery installation, the head impact fuse is cocked in the shell. It can be set to fire instantaneously, to respond slowly, or to respond quickly.

"Grad" loaded with such shells is capable of hitting a target at a distance of 20.4 km. The minimum firing distance at which acceptable range dispersion is maintained is 3 km, although in principle it is possible to shoot at one and a half thousand meters or even less - for example, in Afghanistan, artillery units of the Soviet army fired across squares, using small angles for the first time on the Grad elevations and direct fire.

The 9M22 (M-21-OF) projectile was 1.7 times superior to the previous generation of M-14-OF projectiles in terms of high-explosive action and was 2 times more effective in terms of fragmentation. It is used to destroy enemy personnel, as well as unarmored and lightly armored vehicles, artillery and mortar batteries, command posts and “other targets in shallow tactical depth.”

Subsequently, several dozen types of shells were fired for the Grad, including not only high-explosive fragmentation shells, but also incendiary, chemical, radio interference, guided, and also cluster shells, now banned in many countries, which have a simply terrifying destructive effect.

Artillery unit and chassis
The shells are loaded into a package of 40 tubular guides, 10 in each row. Each pipe carries one projectile and is 3 m long, with an internal diameter of 122.4 mm. The pipe package can be aimed at the target electrically or manually. The angle of elevation (maximum - 55°) and horizontal fire (102° to the left and 70° to the left) is set using gears at the base of the artillery unit.

Data for targeting the target is prepared by a separate guidance vehicle IBI10 "Bereza" based on the GAZ-66. Sights on the "Grad" installation - a mechanical sight, panorama and collimator. To stabilize the installation when firing, a torsion balancing mechanism is provided. The Grad MLRS salvo lasts 20 seconds. During this time, the installation fires all 40 missiles.

The Grad chassis is the most understandable part of the Grad for “civilian” motorists, although it had quite a few variations. Initially, the Grad was based on the chassis of a Ural-375D all-terrain truck with a 180-horsepower ZIL-375 gasoline engine, and after modernization, the vehicle received the name Ural-4320 and was equipped with V8 diesel engines of the KAMAZ-740, YaMZ-236NE2 or YaMZ-238 models. from 210 to 230 hp For work in conditions low temperatures a pre-heater is provided.

The wheel formula of the truck is 6x6, all wheels are single-wheel, drum brakes with separate pneumohydraulic drive. The front axle is with CV joints of the CV joint type. Steering - with hydraulic booster.

Until 1965, the transmission, coupled with a dry double-disc clutch and a 5-speed manual transmission with synchronizers in 1st, 3rd, 4th and 5th gears, used a transfer case with a forced front axle and the ability to lock the center differential, but then they began to install a simplified transfer case with a constantly engaged front axle and an asymmetrical locking planetary-type center differential. "Grad" based on "Ural" is considered the main or, if I may, the canonical option.

In addition to the Ural, the artillery unit of the Grad was and is being installed on the ZIL-131 chassis (a lightweight version with fewer charges not for divisional, but for regimental artillery), as well as on the KAMAZ-5350 and MAZ-6317 chassis (Belarusian version) . In Czechoslovakia artillery installation The BM-21 was produced under license and installed on an eight-wheeled Tatra-815 chassis. The armies of other countries purchased the BM-21 from the USSR and installed it on the chassis of various trucks. In addition, numerous “pirate” copies of the BM-21 are known, as well as independently developed systems that can use Grad shells.

Testing and putting into service
The design of the Grad installation began in 1960, and by the end of the next year, factory tests of the first samples began. The deadlines were tight - just a few months later, in the spring of 1962, state tests took place at the Rzhevka training ground near Leningrad. According to their results, the vehicle was supposed to be accepted into service, but the new system did not avoid problems: according to the conditions, the experimental vehicle was supposed to fire 663 rounds and travel 10,000 km, but it only traveled 3,380 - the chassis spar broke.

The tests were suspended, the modified car was brought in as soon as possible, but weak spots It was also revealed to her - now the cardan drive, middle and rear axles could not withstand the tests, bending (!) under extreme loads. As a result, only a year after the start of “state acceptance” the developer managed to eradicate all the “illnesses”.

In the early spring of 1963, the Grad RZSO completed a series of tests and was put into service on March 28. In the same year, the cars were demonstrated to Secretary General N.S. Khrushchev. Serial production of the BM-21 started in 1964 at the Perm Machine-Building Plant named after V.I. Lenin (aka plant No. 172), and in the same year, "Grad" managed to take part in the November military parade on Red Square (the May Victory Parade, as, in fact, Victory Day had not yet been held at that time).

In its final form, the BM-21 "Grad" had a crew of three people, a mass in combat position (with shells and crew) of 13,700 kg, ground clearance of 400 mm, maximum speed of 75 km/h, range of 750 km, artillery unit of 40 barrels with a caliber of 122 mm, firing range from 3 to 20.4 km, salvo time 20 s. and the affected area is 14.5 hectares.

Conflict with China
The baptism of fire for the Grad system and the incident after which “strategic opponents” learned about it and began to fear it was the armed Soviet-Chinese conflict on Damansky Island on the Ussuri River. It all started on March 2, 1969, when the Chinese violated the border and shot a detachment of Soviet border guards. On March 15, 1969, the conflict reached its climax: several Chinese infantry companies, supported by artillery batteries, landed on the island.

On our side, armored personnel carriers and T-62 tanks entered the battle, but the situation could only be reversed by a massive retaliatory artillery strike - the Chinese discovered that the island was defended by insignificant forces, and were preparing to attack with large infantry formations, “treating” the island with mortar fire.

The Soviet side had brought the 135th to the shore the day before motorized rifle division, which included a division of the latest secret BM-21 Grad, and asked the Moscow authorities to allow the use of these weapons. However, there was still no response from Moscow. In a 6-hour battle on the island, several Soviet armored personnel carriers were destroyed, and the commander of the Iman border detachment, D.V., was killed. Leonov. At 17:00, Soviet border guards left the island.

The enemy, meanwhile, intensified mortar fire on the island - it was clear that more and more forces were arriving from Chinese territory.

In the absence of a response from Moscow, the commander of the Far Eastern Military District O.A. Losik made the sole decision to support the border guards. At 17:10 the enemy was hit by an artillery regiment, several mortar batteries and a division of Grad installations. Within 10 minutes, the fire covered the next 20 kilometers deep into Chinese territory. At the same time, 5 Soviet tanks, 12 armored personnel carriers, 2 motorized rifle companies 199th motorized rifle regiment, as well as border guard forces as part of a motorized rifle group.

It is believed that the Grad installations had a decisive role in that battle - both in terms of destructive effect and demoralization of the enemy. The ideal target for these vehicles is very elongated columns on the march, so the Grad strikes practically wiped out the troops advancing to Damansky, and also destroyed enemy reserves, ammunition supply points and warehouses. Within 10 minutes of hurricane fire it was all over - the Chinese were driven out of Damansky Island.

"Grad" of our time
The Russian Army currently has about 2,500 BM-21 Grad units in service. At various times, combat vehicles were exported to about 70 countries and during the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s and 2010s they managed to take part in almost all more or less noticeable armed conflicts throughout the Earth.

Tactics of using the "Grad" system over the years in different armies was different. Thus, in the mid-1970s in Angola, opponents moved installations only in columns, exchanging fire on a collision course, and then using tactics of pushing out and pursuing individual vehicles. In Afghanistan, the Soviet military did not hit elongated columns, but rather, across squares, almost leaving ballistic trajectories and shooting enemy buildings and equipment with direct fire.

And the Palestine Liberation Organization in Lebanon used the tactics of nomadic installations: one BM-21 Grad vehicle strikes Israeli troops and immediately changes position - the speed of the truck and deployment to a combat position in three and a half minutes make such maneuvers very effective .

Sky without rockets
In addition to the indicated “hot spots,” “Grad” was used by Azerbaijan in the Karabakh conflict, by Russia in both Chechen campaigns, and also in South Ossetia in 2008. These installations were used in armed conflicts in Angola and Somalia, in civil wars in Libya and Syria. And in 2014, in the armed conflict in eastern Ukraine, such equipment was used by both warring parties...

It should be noted that back in the 1980s, attempts were made to modernize the Grad system - the 9A51 Prima combat vehicle was supposed to carry not 40, but 50 missiles with a destruction area 8 times larger and the time spent in position 5 times shorter, while the same firing range as the Grad, which made it possible to use approximately 15 times fewer units of equipment. “Prima” was even put into service in 1988, but then the Union collapsed, and production was never launched.

But even in its current form, the Grad, which once set a new standard for this type of weapon, is practically unsurpassed, although there is now plenty of similar equipment in the world. "Grad" is a formidable force that is capable of protecting the interests of Russia. And any other country. Quite often this power turns out to be too formidable. And it always turns out to be directed against living people. "Grad" is a wonderful example of the triumph of engineering. An example that the best place- in the museum of military equipment.

Having become an important stage in the history of the development of rocket artillery, the BM-21 Grad MLRS was developed on its own initiative at the Tula Scientific Research Institute-147, created in July 1945 to solve the problems of technological support for the mass production of cartridges for conventional artillery rounds. The technology for manufacturing sleeves developed by NII-147 using deep drawing also ensured the production of thicker-walled and stronger shells, which are the combustion chambers of engines rockets. Therefore, the designers of NII-147 had the opportunity to move from solving a particular problem - technological support for the production of ammunition - to a more complex and comprehensive one - the development of a multiple launch rocket system.

BM-21 Grad MLRS salvo - video

Conducted under the leadership of A.N. Ganichev’s work was supported by the order of the Chairman of the State Committee for Defense Technology dated February 24, 1959 and the Resolution of the Council of Ministers of May 30, 1960, and the tactical and technical requirements for the system were approved on October 10, 1960. In accordance with the Resolution of the Council of Ministers, the creation of a rocket M-21OF and PCZO as a whole were entrusted to NII-147, the propellant charge of the engine was developed by NII-6, and the warhead of the projectile was developed by GSKB-47. The BM-21 (2B5) combat vehicle was assigned to design the SKB-203. Fire bench tests of rocket engines began already in 1960, with 53 burns carried out as part of factory tests and 81 as part of state tests. Test launches soon began.

State testing grounds began on March 1, 1962 and were carried out using two combat vehicles at the Rzhevsk training ground near Leningrad. During their implementation, there were breakdowns of the combat vehicle. To eliminate their prerequisites, the rear axle of the chassis was strengthened by using alloy steels. In addition, they limited themselves to disabling the suspension of only one of the chassis axles instead of the previously performed similar operation with both rear axles. This turned out to be enough to give the combat vehicle the necessary stability when firing, and the loads did not exceed the permissible level. By the Decree of the Council of Ministers of March 28, 1963, the BM-21 Grad multiple launch rocket system was adopted for service, and in accordance with the Decree of January 29, 1964 No. 98-32 was transferred into mass production. In fact, the system began to be supplied to the troops only the following year, when serial production of the chassis for the BM-21 - Ural-375D - was launched in Miass.

The scale of production of the USSR BM-21 is impressive: about 3 thousand BM-21 and more than 3 million shells for them were manufactured at the Motovilikha plants alone. The release of this system and its modifications was also launched in China, Egypt, Iraq, Iran, Romania and South Africa. Currently, the BM-21 is in service with the armies of more than 30 countries. At the beginning of 1994 in the Armed Forces Russian Federation there were 4,500 BM-21 MLRS and about 3,000 in the armies of other countries. The BM-21 MLRS consists of a launcher, 122-mm unguided rockets, a fire control system and a transport-loading vehicle. To prepare data for firing, the BM-21 MLRS battery includes a 1V110 “Beryza” control vehicle on a GAZ-66 vehicle chassis.

The BM-21 launcher is designed according to the classical design with the artillery unit placed in the rear of the vehicle chassis. The artillery unit is a package of 40 tubular guides mounted on a rotating base with the ability to aim in vertical and horizontal planes. The artillery unit also includes lifting and turning mechanisms. sighting devices and corresponding pneumatic, electrical and radio equipment. The guides are arranged in four rows of ten pipes each, thus forming a package. The package, together with sighting devices, is mounted on a rigid welded cradle. Guidance mechanisms allow you to direct the package of guides in the vertical plane in the angle range from 0° to +55°. The angle of horizontal missile fire is 172° (102° to the left of the longitudinal axis of the vehicle and 70° to the right). The main method of guidance is from an electric drive.

For the BM-21 MLRS, a 122-mm unguided rocket was developed, the design of which had a revolutionary effect on the development of post-war rocket artillery. At the suggestion of the chief designer of NII-147 A.N. Ganichev, the projectile body is made not by traditional cutting from a steel blank, but by a high-performance method of rolling and drawing from a steel sheet.
Another feature of the BM-21 MLRS rocket is the folding planes of the stabilizer, which are held in the closed position by a special ring and do not extend beyond the dimensions of the projectile. The folding stabilizer itself was not an invention of Tula designers. For example, such a stabilizer was used in the German uncontrolled aviation rocket R4M, whose numerous elongated stabilizer feathers, in the folded position, occupied the space around the specially elongated engine nozzle, and after the rocket exited the launcher, they folded back, forming a kind of broom rod. However, this design required an artificial lengthening of the rocket nozzle, thereby increasing its weight and dimensions. A different scheme was adopted in the design of the Grad system rocket. The stabilizer feather was not made flat, but in the shape of a cylinder sector, curved when viewed from the front along an arc with a radius close to half the diameter of the rocket. The developers called this shape a “crow’s wing.” In the folded position, the surfaces of the stabilizers seemed to continue the cylinder of the rocket engine housing. The opening of the block of stabilizers, held by a ring before launch, was carried out by a spring mechanism. In the open position, the stabilizer blades were rotated 1° relative to the plane passing through the longitudinal axis of the rocket, which provided twist relative to this axis to reduce the influence of thrust eccentricities and the center of mass.

Otherwise, the layout of the rocket projectile is quite traditional: in the front part, behind the head contact fuse, there is a warhead, to which an engine body made of steel is adjacent. Due to the high elongation, the body consists of two cylindrical sections connected by threads. The nozzle block includes a central and six peripheral nozzles. In the supersonic part, the nozzles have a cone shape with an angle of 30°. The diameter of the critical section of the nozzle is 19 mm, the cut-off diameter is 37 mm.

A 0.3 mm thick heat-protective coating applied to the inner surface of the engine body not only protects the steel body from heating and a corresponding decrease in strength, but also significantly reduces energy losses from burning fuel and contributes to obtaining a high specific impulse and increased combustion rate. For technological reasons, the solid fuel charge is also made of two half-charges. In this case, the tail semi-charge has a larger gap between the walls of the housing and the fuel, since it is necessary to provide a sufficient flow area for the fuel combustion products of both the front and tail semi-charges.

Due to the fact that during long-term storage of shells in a horizontal position, deformation of the engine body was not excluded, the fuel charge was separated from the walls of the engine chamber by a gap of 4 mm for the head half-charge and 9 mm for the tail half-charge. The half-charges were fixed by means of six “crackers” measuring 50 x 10 mm, made from the same fuel, glued to each of them. The ends of the half-charges were armored with glued nitrolinoleum washers.

The fuel charge used the RSI-12M recipe, previously developed by NII-6 employee B.C. Lernov and consisting of 56% xylidine. 26.7% nitroglycerin. 10.5% dinitrotoluene. 3% centrality. The charge also included catalysts and technological additives. Between the semi-charges there was an igniter with 80 g of coarse black powder KZDP-1 and 2 g of DRP-1 gunpowder, located in separate percale bags. Current was supplied to two MB-2N electric igniters through wires laid through the central nozzle and the tail semi-charge channel. The total mass of two half-charges with “crackers” and washers was 20.6 kg, the missile body was 24.5 kg (with stabilizers - 26.4 kg).

The production of half-charges was carried out on a specially designed automatic production line. It provided automatic formation of half-charges, their overloading, geometry control, weighing, gluing of “crackers” and end washers, and marking. The packaging of half-charges into containers was carried out in a semi-automatic mode. Gradually, the technology for manufacturing and operating charges was simplified. Tolerances for foreign and air inclusions were expanded, and storage of charges in unsealed containers began to be allowed. At the end of the sixties, the production of a charge from denser RST-4K fuel was tested, which made it possible, while maintaining the required mass, to slightly reduce the size and unify the geometry of half-charges. Instead of glued “crackers”, small protrusions were used - ridges on the outer surface, formed during the process of making checkers. Somewhat later, the production of fuel half-charges was mastered using a special recipe, in the manufacture of which products from the processing of fuel charges extracted from obsolete rockets with an expired warranty period were used. The production of such charges with zigs, without glued “crackers”, from reworking recipes was carried out in 1975-1980.

Ignition powder charge the projectile is produced by igniters, triggered by current pulses from the current distributor of the fire control system. The duration of a salvo of one BM-21 is 20 seconds. If necessary, a salvo could be fired not from the cockpit, but from a remote control panel located several tens of meters away. The most widely used type of BM-21 MLRS rocket is the M-210F (9M22U) projectile with a high-explosive fragmentation warhead. The length of this projectile with the MRV-U fuse is 2.87 m. The weight with the fuse is 66.4 kg, the weight of the warhead is 19.18 kg, and the weight of the explosive is 6.4 kg.

The powder charge (RSI gunpowder - 12 m) weighing 20.45 kg provides the highest projectile flight speed of 690 m/s. The fuse is cocked after leaving the guide at distances of 150-450 m from the combat vehicle. The nature of the projectile’s action at the target depends on the installation of the fuse: with instantaneous operation, it is predominantly fragmentation; with delayed operation, it is predominantly high-explosive.
In terms of fragmentation action, the warhead of the M-21 OF projectile is twice as effective as the M-140F, and in terms of high-explosive action, it is only 1.7 times more effective, which is reflected in the greater elongation of the new rocket projectile. Accuracy in the firing direction was 1/180, in the lateral direction - 1/110 of the range.

When launched at a range of 20 km, half of the hits fell within a distance of 200-300 m relative to the center of the grouping of explosions. The maximum speed of the rocket was about 690 m/s. To maintain acceptable accuracy when firing at ranges from 12 to 15.9 km, a small brake ring was attached between the head fuse and the warhead of the missile, and a large one for shorter ranges. As a result, launches were carried out without using extremely steep or flat trajectories, the use of which is associated with large dispersion of projectiles. A salvo of one combat vehicle provided a destruction area of ​​about 1000 m2 for manpower, and 840 m2 for unarmored vehicles.

Missiles

9M22- high-explosive fragmentation projectile

9M22U— improved high-explosive fragmentation projectile;

9M22S- incendiary projectile;

9M23— chemical fragmentation projectile, which in terms of basic flight performance characteristics corresponds to the M22S projectile;

9M28F— high-explosive fragmentation projectile with a detachable warhead;

9M521- high-explosive fragmentation projectile

9M522- high-explosive fragmentation projectile

9M28D- propaganda projectile;

9M43— smoke-smoking projectile (ten projectiles of this type create a continuous curtain of smoke over an area of ​​50 hectares);

9M42— lighting projectile for the “Illumination” system;

9M28K— a projectile with a cassette warhead with PTM-3 anti-tank mines;

ZM16- a projectile with a cassette warhead with POM-2 anti-personnel mines (forty projectiles of this type mine one kilometer of the front);

9M519-1-7 (“Lily-2”)— a set of projectiles for radio interference in the HF and VHF bands. as well as other types of projectiles.

"Threat-1M"- guided projectile

Countries that produce this system under license or illegally are also actively developing new ammunition for the BM-21.

The BM-21 artillery unit includes a package of 40 tubular guides with an internal diameter of 122.4 mm and a length of 3 m. The guides are arranged in 4 tiers of 10 guides in each tier. Guidance of the package of guides in the vertical and horizontal planes is carried out using an electric drive, first tried on a land-based MLRS, and manually. The lifting mechanism is located in the center of the base, its main gear meshes with the gear sector of the cradle. When aimed by an electric drive or manually, the main gear rotates the gear sector and the swinging part of the combat vehicle is given elevation angles. The turning mechanism is located on the left side of the base. Its main gear meshes with the stationary inner ring of the shoulder strap.

When aiming a combat vehicle by electric drive or manually, the main gear rolls along a stationary inner ring and thereby causes the rotating part of the combat vehicle to rotate. In the vertical plane, guidance is possible with an elevation angle of up to +55°. In the horizontal plane, it is possible to rotate the package of guides at angles up to 70° to the right and 110° to the left from the forward direction along the longitudinal axis of the machine. Within the horizontal firing sector up to 34° above the vehicle cabin, the minimum elevation angle is limited to 11 degrees. To partially balance the swinging part, a balancing mechanism located in the cradle is used. Sights consist of a mechanical sight, a PG-1M panorama and a K-1 collimator. It should be noted that thanks to the well-thought-out design of the artillery unit, most of its mechanisms are hidden under the casings of the cradle and the rotating base. This increased the reliability of the mechanisms.

The launcher's chassis is the chassis of a Ural-375D off-road truck (6 x 6 wheel arrangement). This chassis has a V-shaped eight-cylinder ZIL-375 carburetor engine, developing a maximum power of 180 hp at 3200 rpm. The clutch is double-disc, dry. The gearbox is five-speed, with synchronizers in 2,3,4 and 5th gears. Thanks to the presence on the chassis centralized system regulating air pressure in tires, the launcher has high maneuverability on soils with low bearing capacity. When driving on the highway, it reaches a maximum speed of 75 km/h. The depth of the ford that can be overcome without preliminary preparation is 1.5 m.

A number of BM-21 MLRS launchers were produced on the chassis of Ural-4320 and ZIL-181 trucks. The swaying of the launcher during firing is reduced to a minimum thanks to the sequence of projectiles leaving the guides calculated using the EFM. This made it possible to abandon the installation of hydraulic supports on the chassis and limit ourselves only to the use of a mechanism for disconnecting the springs during firing. The launcher is reloaded manually using a transport-loading machine, which is a three-axle ZIL-131 vehicle with two 9F37 racks (each rack holds 20 shells). The BM-21 launcher is equipped with fire extinguishing equipment and an R-108M radio station.

Modifications

BM-21V "Grad V"- airborne MLRS with 12 guides, capable of firing all BM-21 shells;

9K132 "Grad-P"- a lightweight portable single-barrel launcher for firing 122-mm Grad-P shells;

A-215 "Grad-M"- ship-based MLRS for naval landing ships;

"Grad-1"- 36-barreled MLRS for arming artillery units of the regimental level;

BM-21 PD "Damba"- MLRS for protecting naval bases from demolition divers and naval saboteurs.

9K510 “Illumination”- a rocket system for firing illumination projectiles. Each missile of this system illuminates a circle with a diameter of 1000 m on the ground from a height of 450-500 m, while providing illumination of 2 lux for 90 seconds.

9K51M "Tornado-G"- further development of the system: a modernized combat vehicle 2B17-1/2B17M, new NURS with a maximum firing range increased to 40 km.

MLRS "Grad-1A" (BelGrad)- is a Belarusian modification of the Grad system with a BM-21A combat vehicle based on the MAZ-6317-05 truck.

Bastion-01, Bastion-02, BM-21U "Verba"- Ukrainian modernization of BM-21.

Modifications of combat vehicles

2B5- BM-21 MLRS 9K51 combat vehicle on the Ural-375D chassis.

2B17- BM-21-1 MLRS 9K51 combat vehicle on the Ural-4320 chassis.

2B17-1

2B17M- modernized combat vehicle BM-21-1 MLRS 9K51M "Tornado-G" on the Ural-4320 chassis.

2B26- BM-21 MLRS 9K51 combat vehicle on the KamAZ-5350 chassis. Modernization of the 2B5 combat vehicle with the transfer of its firing unit from the Ural-375D chassis to the KamAZ-5350 chassis. Modernization is carried out by Motovilikha Plants OJSC. For the first time, a sample of the 2B26 combat vehicle was publicly shown in Perm on September 23, 2011.

Performance characteristics of BM-21 Grad

— Year(s) of production: 1960 - 1988
— Number of issued, pcs: more than 8500
— Chassis: families of trucks Ural-375D and Ural-4320
— Wheel formula: 6×6

Overall dimensions of BM-21 Grad

— Length in stowed position, mm: 7350
— Width in stowed position, mm: 2400
— Height in stowed position, mm: 3090
— Ground clearance, mm: 400

Weight BM-21 Grad

— Weight without shells and crew, kg: 10,870
— Weight in combat position, kg: 13,700

Caliber BM-21 Grad

Calculation of BM-21 Grad

- 3 persons

— Number of guides: 40
— Maximum elevation angle: 55
— Accuracy (dispersion), m: At maximum range, the range standard deviation was 1/130, and the lateral deviation was 1/200.
— Sight: Panorama gun PG-1M
— Transfer of the system from traveling to combat position no more than, min: 3.5
— Volley time, s: 20

Firing range of BM-21 Grad

— minimum OFS: 4000 m, CAS: 2500 m, UAS: 1600 m
— maximum OFS: 40,000 m, CAS: 33,000 m, UAS: 42,000 m

One of the symbols of local conflicts that flared up after the collapse of the Soviet Union in many territories that were previously part of it was the Grad installation. Photos of this missile and artillery system, published in newspapers and on the pages of online publications, are sometimes presented as proof of the Russian military presence or presented as an illustration of scenes of fierce fighting. In any case, if the BM-21 is used, there is little good. The effectiveness of this weapon is very high.

"Katyusha" and the development of the North-West Zone

In our country, salvo launchers appeared earlier than in the rest of the world. The Jet Research Institute patented a multi-barrel launch system that fired rockets back in 1938. Since then, work to improve the MLRS has been carried out in the USSR almost continuously, receiving special development during the Great Patriotic War. Patriotic War. "Katyusha" - legendary guards mortars- constituted combat formations of the regimental echelon, but in terms of striking power they could be compared with divisions. The salvo principle, as opposed to firing single rockets, took root among the troops for a very simple reason. From the late thirties to the mid-fifties, rockets were mostly unguided, moved normally and were inferior in accuracy to artillery weapons. The fuel did not burn evenly enough, and pulse fluctuations occurred, which led to large dissipation values. This drawback could only be offset by massive use, as a result of which areas with everything that was on them at that moment were affected. Second World War was in the nature of clashes between large quantities of manpower and equipment. Based on the experience gained from 1939 to 1945, the concept of multiple launch rocket systems created in the subsequent period in the USSR was formulated. Its brightest expression was the BM (combat vehicle), which has an inexpressive index “21”, also known as the “Grad” installation. The damage radius has become significantly larger compared to the Katyusha, and the firepower has increased many times over.

Previous systems

At the end of the thirties, the Soviet military leadership treated the idea of ​​salvo strikes with rockets, as well as rocket technology in general, with some distrust. The usual army conservatism combined with confidence in time-tested types of weapons had an effect. Nevertheless, many enthusiasts of the new type of ammunition managed to overcome the resistance, and soon after the German attack, the Katyusha divisions took up firing positions, bringing confusion and panic into the ranks of the aggressors. The successful use of SZO during combat operations in Europe and then in Asia (against the Kwantung group of Japanese troops) finally strengthened the Stalinist leadership in the idea of ​​the advisability of further development of this area of ​​​​military equipment. In the first half of the 50s, new models were developed and adopted. The BM-14 had a RS 140 mm caliber and could hit area targets at ten-kilometer distances. The BM-24 fired even further, at 16,800 m. It seemed that it was difficult to create anything more perfect, especially considering that artillery in general is a rather conservative branch of the military, having a technical base that is not as dependent on scientific progress as aviation or the navy. Guns and howitzers serve for decades without undergoing design changes, and this does not surprise anyone. Nevertheless, according to the great designer A.N. Gonichev, much could still be done. In May 1960, it was he who received an important government assignment. TTX installations The "Grad", the creation of which he was entrusted with, should have significantly exceeded the parameters of the BM-14 and BM-24, already in service.

Tasks and related issues

At first they did not plan to use anything revolutionary in the new design. General principles already generally formed. It was assumed that the projectile would be solid propellant; this was dictated by the widespread use by troops and the peculiarities of storage conditions in warehouses and in the front line in the event of a military conflict. The firing accuracy of the Grad installation could be increased by using tubular guides, which more rigidly set the motion vector during launch and on initial stage flight. The rotational moment imparted to the projectile for the same purpose of reducing dispersion arose not only thanks to stabilizers located at an angle to the flight line, but also due to special guide grooves cut inside the barrel, similar to how it is implemented in With other factors that worsened shooting parameters, it was also necessary to fight, not only by the forces of the lead design organization, but also by subcontractors. The launcher was created by SKB-203, Research Institute No. 6 was responsible for fuel cells, and combat charges were developed by GSKB-47. Name " mailboxes“Even today he speaks to few people about anything, and then, in 1960, even more so. All types of weapons, including the Grad installation, were created in secrecy. Photos of prototypes were stored in special folders with strict labels. All personnel related to the creation of the new SZO gave appropriate For many years, none of the employees of defense enterprises could travel abroad, even in

Tests

At the very end of 1961, the first pre-production Grad multiple rocket launcher was ready for testing, then another one. By spring, the Main Rocket and Artillery Directorate of the Soviet Army had prepared the test site area (Leningrad Region) for the planned launches of 650 missiles and further running tests along a route of 10 thousand kilometers. It is not known whether the rush was to blame, but the chassis could not withstand the full run; it was able to travel only 3,300 km, after which the frame broke. The chassis had to be replaced, but, as it turned out, the problems were not random, but were of a systemic nature. Under the influence of dynamic loads, two axles bent and the driveshaft failed. However, these troubles did not prevent state acceptance. The testing conditions included an excessive operating range. Grad installations began to arrive in military units in 1964.

Guidance Mechanism

Of course, the main thing in this multiple launch rocket system was the performance confirmed by test firing, and not driving performance. Nobody was going to drive these SZOs from Moscow to Vladivostok under their own power; there are other means for delivery, and the trouble-free mileage of more than three thousand kilometers eloquently indicated that the chassis, in general, was not so poorly made, although it needed somewhat enhanced. The main unit of the vehicle is the warhead, consisting of forty (10 in a row) guide pipes, 3 meters long and with an internal diameter of 122.4 mm. The firing range of the Grad installation depends on the inclination of the block of barrels relative to the horizontal plane, the angle of which is set by a lifting device. This unit is located in the center of the base and, in its principle, represents a mechanical gearbox, which includes two kinematic pairs: a gear shaft and a gear for setting the direction and with the help of which the desired elevation is created. The guidance mechanism is driven electrically or manually.

Manufacturing innovations

The performance characteristics of the Grad installation are directly related to the characteristics of the missiles it fires.

The 9M22 high-explosive fragmentation rocket was planned as the main ammunition for the BM-21. Its production was entrusted to plant No. 176, which in 1964 was supposed to produce 10 thousand pieces. However, the enterprise failed to cope with the task; unexpected difficulties and unforeseen difficulties arose. During the first quarter, the plant managed to produce 650 missiles and 350 warheads for them. The justification for violating the schedule could be an innovation that takes time to implement, but improves the technology in the future. At the insistence General designer Alexander Ganichev introduced a method for manufacturing cases using pattern drawing from sheet steel, similar to that used in the production of artillery shells. Previously, rockets were cut on radial machines from solid blanks, which led to high metal consumption and unnecessary labor costs. Another innovative approach was applied in the method of attaching the collapsible stabilizers of the projectile that the Grad launcher fires. The radius of destruction of the 9M22 slightly exceeds 20 km. The maximum distances are not optimal in terms of accuracy. Scattering in extreme points maximum. Actually, the minimum firing range of the Grad installation, set at 5 km, is conditional; you can fire within a radius of one and a half kilometers, but with a high risk of landing in the wrong place, which, given the enormous destructive power of the ammunition, can cause very unpleasant consequences.

The “exhaust” technology has proven itself. The rocket body has indeed become lighter. Production became cheaper, but this was not the main achievement. The firing range of the Grad installation has increased significantly. With the same projectile mass, it could hit over-the-horizon targets.

Rocket launch

In the history of local conflicts, there have been episodes when shells intended for the BM-21 were launched from sheets of slate placed on bricks to give the desired angle. In these cases, of course, the accuracy of the hit was low. The Grad installation cannot be replaced by auxiliary means. Photos of Middle Eastern terrorists attempting to inflict damage on the opposing side using homemade devices are intended primarily to exert psychological pressure.

The 9M22 missile weighs 66 kg and is 2870 mm long. The fighting compartment has a mass of 18.4 kg and contains 6.4 kg of TNT. Starting occurs when the fuse is electrically ignited. Solid fuel consists of two blocks with a total mass of 20.4 kg. The warhead is detonated by the MRV (MRV-U) fuse, which is armed automatically after the missile flies 200-400 meters. The projectile leaves the barrel with a speed of 50 m/s, then accelerates to 700 m/s. The firing range of the Grad installation can be artificially limited using brake rings (large or small). In 1963, NII-147 specialists created a chemical fragmentation version of the projectile, designated “Leika” (9M23), which has the same flight characteristics as the 9M22.

Regular 9M22 and Leika

Tests have shown how powerful a weapon the Grad installation is. The affected area with a full salvo is 1050 square meters. m when impacted by manpower, and 840 sq. m for armored vehicles.

Further development of the projectile hardware affected the fuses. Leika can be equipped with them in two versions (mechanical and radar). Any high explosive ammunition becomes much more effective if it is detonated at an optimal height, including the projectile fired by the Grad installation. The area affected by fragments and toxic substances when initiated 30 meters from the surface increases sharply, however, the use of a radar fuse reduces the range by 1600 meters.

Different types of ammunition for Grad

During the production period of the BM-21, work was constantly carried out to improve existing ammunition and create new (special) ones. They can be loaded with any Grad installation. 3M16 shells have a cassette warhead, 9M42 shells illuminate the area within a radius of 500 m for one and a half minutes with daylight brightness, 9M28K scatters anti-personnel mines (3 each), self-destructing within 16-24 hours. RS 9M519 creates stable local radio interference.

The BM-21 mainly uses simple unguided ammunition, but there are also special types of projectiles, such as the 9M217, equipped with a self-aiming device and a shaped charge for combating tanks.

Smoke barriers, increased-power ammunition, and many other unpleasant surprises for the enemy that the Grad installation can be loaded with have been created. The damage radius is getting larger destructive force increases, accuracy increases.

Upgraded BM-21

Such a perfect and reliable system, used by the armies of dozens of countries and which has received universal recognition due to its ease of maintenance and reliability, despite its impressive age, can be used for a long time. From time to time, its characteristics are improved due to the latest technological advances, mainly of an informational nature.

In 1998, the Grad installation, which had undergone a deep modernization, was demonstrated near Orenburg. Photos and videos of this car were not hidden from the public this time and were published by all leading news and information channels. The differences from the base model were the presence of a fire control post called “Kapustnik-B2”, created on the basis of the high-speed Baguette-41 computer. The fire control complex also includes a meteorological system, a navigation locator, and the latest coded communication equipment operating in automatic data exchange mode. The target firing range of the Grad installation has doubled (up to 40 km). The ballistic performance of the projectiles, which received new stabilizers and more advanced alignment, also improved. New fuel mixtures are in the process of development.

During operation, new modernization methods were revealed that could significantly reduce the loading time and other performance characteristics of the Grad installation. In recent decades, composite materials have appeared, the use of which can increase the degree of secrecy of radar equipment and make the design lighter. Most likely, in the near future, the Grad multiple rocket launcher will receive a polymer disposable monoblock instead of tubular barrels, which will lead to a reduction in reload time to 5 minutes.

Modernized SZU along with the latest systems“Prima” will soon be received by the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. Installation options are provided not only on automobile platforms, but also on some ships. The Grad salvo launcher can also be used as a defense element for coastal bases.

From the time of the first grand salvo of the famous Katyushas to this day, Russian rocket launchers are considered the best in the world. The development of multiple launch rocket systems has always been a priority sector in the Russian military industry. This priority is not unspoken, it is documented: in 1938, employees of the Jet Research Institute received a patent for a multi-barrel system that fires rocket shells.

Work on the creation of unguided rocket weapon systems was crowned with success: the designers achieved excellent combat power, and all thanks to the salvo firing principle. In the early 40s, cannon artillery shells were significantly superior to single rockets. The latter's shooting did not have sufficient accuracy and precision. However, engineers were able to skillfully compensate for this shortcoming by using multiple barrels to launch missiles. Various modifications of the Katyusha had from 12 to 48 guides, the salvo time was less than 10 seconds.

During the Great Patriotic War, the Soviet Union launched the production of a whole series rocket launchers, having different calibers and different numbers of guides. These legendary vehicles equipped the Guards mortar regiments, whose firepower could not be matched by any other unit.

After the war, salvo rocket systems also received great attention. In the 50s two installations were designed: the BM-14 of 140 mm caliber had a range of 9.8 kilometers, the range of the BM-24 of the same caliber was 16.8 kilometers. The accuracy of turbojet shells was increased by rotating them during flight. Most Western experts by the end of the 50s. was of the opinion that further development would be very difficult. They believed that it was impossible to surpass the existing level of effectiveness of this type of weapon and their leading positions in the troops rocket artillery these systems must be inferior to other weapons.

However, domestic experts did not share this opinion, and work on the design of multiple launch rocket systems was in full swing. In 1963, the Grad (BM-21) MLRS entered service with the missile and artillery forces, which became the basic installation for interspecific types of rocket weapons of the USSR. For a very long time, this installation was technologically unmatched among its foreign counterparts.

The development of "Grad" was approved by a special government directive dated May 30, 1960. The project was entrusted to NII-147, headed by A.N. Gonichev, whose talent as a brilliant designer and many years of experience made it possible, in the shortest possible time, to develop an original design based on a completely new, never before used approach. Various organizations were involved in the development of individual components of the system, for example, the launcher was developed at SKB-203, solid fuel elements at NII-6, and GSKB-47 was responsible for filling the combat compartments.

The Grad MLRS was supposed to replace the outdated BM-14. The system used M-21-OF high-explosive fragmentation projectiles of 122 mm caliber. The main targets for them were areas where enemy armored vehicles and manpower were concentrated, mortar and artillery batteries, supply nodes, bunker fortifications and key strongholds.

Preliminary tests of the Grad prototypes were successfully completed in December 1961. On December 31, the designers provided the Main Rocket and Artillery Directorate with two ready-to-use systems. In the early spring of 1962, full-scale tests of the Grad MLRS took place at a test site in the Leningrad region; it was planned to carry out more than 650 missile launches and test the complex on a route of 10 thousand km. But after driving a little over 3.3 thousand km, the chassis broke down: the left frame spar failed, and the tests had to be suspended. After replacing the chassis, testing continued, however, this time there were some problems: the middle and rear axles bent and the driveshaft, which came into contact with the balancer axis during operation, was deformed.

But, despite some design flaws, March 28, 1963 combat vehicle adopted. The first production samples entered service with the troops in 1964.

The systems were produced by Perm plant No. 172. In 1970, 646 units rolled off the assembly line, the following year - almost 500, with 124 intended for export deliveries. For six months of 1972, production amounted to 255 units, 60 of which were export. By the mid-90s, more than 2,000 Soviet multiple launch rocket systems were purchased by 50 countries around the world.

9M22 (M-21-OF) rockets were produced by plant No. 176. In 1964, it was planned to fire 10 thousand shells, 5 thousand in each half of the year. However, the company failed to meet the schedule. By April 1964, about 650 rocket launchers and 350 combat compartments had been produced.

The Grad MLRS includes a launcher mounted on the chassis of a Ural-375D truck, a fire control mechanism and a vehicle for transporting and loading ammunition. Subsequently, a system was developed under the designation BM-21-1, which includes the Ural-4320 off-road truck. Modification "Grad-1"
installed on ZIL-131. The speed of movement of combat vehicles is 75-90 km/h. Modern systems
"Grad" include the Vivarium automated fire control complex. Firing is carried out with unguided rockets of 122 mm caliber. Information about strike targets is processed in the 1B110 Bereza control vehicle, which is part of the battery.

The curb weight of the BM-21 is 13.7 tons. The number of crew members is 6 people. A salvo is fired in 20 seconds, reloaded in 7 minutes, and ammunition is supplied from a special charging platform. The standard ammunition consists of 3 salvos.

The warhead of the system, which serves to guide and launch projectiles, has 40 tubular guides, ten in four rows. Their length is 3 meters, the diameter of the barrel channel is 122.4 mm. When moving along the barrel channel, the projectile acquires a rotational motion imparted by a special screw groove with which the guides are equipped.
Vertical and horizontal guidance of the installation can be done either manually or using an electric drive.

The lifting device, located in the middle of the base, interacts with the gear shaft of the cradle using the main gear. When guiding manually or electrically, the main gear rotates the gear shaft, causing the guides to move to the required elevation angle. The rotating device is located on the left side of the base. With its main gear it engages the fixed internal ring of the shoulder strap.

When the system is guided electrically or manually, the main gear rolls around the stationary inner ring, driving the rotating part of the installation. Guiding devices provide vertical guidance of the warhead at an angle from 0° to 55°. The horizontal rotation range is 172 o (70 o in left side from the car and 102 o to the right). Guidance is carried out mainly by electric drive.

The cradle is equipped with a special balancing system that brings the swinging part of the installation into partial equilibrium. Its design includes two identical plate torsion bars. One end of the torsion bar is fixed in the cradle, the other end is brought to the base through a system of levers.

The sighting devices of the combat vehicle include a mechanical sight, a K-1 collimator and a PG-1M gun panorama.
The original Grad ammunition was the 9M22 high-explosive fragmentation rocket, which opened a new page in the history of rocket artillery. The chief designer of NII-147, Alexander Ganichev, proposed a revolutionary new way making a projectile: if earlier the body was simply cut out of a steel cylinder, now a high-tech method of drawing from steel plates was used, which was used for the production of artillery shells. Another innovation was the folding tail of the Grad shells, which is held in place by a special clamp that prevents the stabilizers from extending beyond the dimensions of the rocket. During flight, the projectile is stabilized both by the tail and by longitudinal rotation. The initial rotation imparted to the rocket upon exiting the nozzle is supported by the stabilizer blades, which are inclined by 1° to the main axis.

The rocket has a length of 2.87 meters and a mass of 66 kg. The warhead weighs 18.4 kg, of which 6.4 kg is explosive. Efficiency fragmentation action The 9M22 was twice as powerful as the M-14-OF projectile, and the high-explosive projectile was 1.7 times superior.

The powder charge was ignited using fuses, which were activated by electrical impulses. The mass of the rocket charge located in the tail and head bombs is 20.4 kg.

The design of the projectile included long-range head impact fuses MRV or MRV-U. The fuses could be set for a large or small delay and for instant action. The fuse is cocked after leaving the nozzle when the projectile travels 200-450 meters.

The range of the 9M22 is 20.4 km, the actual minimum strike distance is not much more than 5 km. Combat characteristics allow firing at a distance of 1.5 km, but in this case the missiles will be scattered over a large area. Longitudinal dispersion at maximum impact distance is 1/130, transverse 1/200.

The maximum projectile speed is 715 m/s. When leaving the guides, the rocket has a speed of 50 m/s.

When firing at short distances, special devices were used - brake rings, designed to increase the accuracy of the salvo. At a range of less than 12 km, the projectiles were equipped with a large brake ring, from 12 to 16 km - with a small brake ring.

A salvo of a fully loaded installation causes damage to manpower located in open areas over an area of ​​up to 1050 m2, and to unarmored vehicles over an area of ​​up to 840 m2.

Based on the 9M22, in 1963, NII-147 developed the 9M23 Leika chemical fragmentation projectile, which retained its weight, dimensions, propulsion system and ballistic characteristics prototype. The Leica warhead is equipped with R-33 or R-35 chemicals. The mass of the first is 2.83 kg complete with 1.39 kg of explosives, the weight of the second is 3.11 kg with 1.8 kg of explosives. In terms of damage area, the 9M23 projectile is one and a half times larger than the M-14 chemical turbojet projectile of 140 mm caliber.

The Leika design includes a mechanical MRV fuse and a 9E310 radar fuse, which is used to detonate the projectile at a set height, set in the range from 1.5 to 30 meters. Due to the explosion in the air, the area affected by explosive agents and fragments significantly increases. The average number of damaging fragments is about 760, average weight– 15 g. The use of a radar fuse reduced the range by 1.6 km.

SNPP "Splav" is developing new projectiles for the "Grad" system. The first of them is a projectile with a firing range of up to 35 km and a warhead of increased power. In addition to using a mixed fuel engine, it is used head part with a block of ready-made submunitions. The effectiveness of hitting a target is doubled compared to the standard one. The second sample is equipped with a detachable warhead with a pair of homing combat elements designed to destroy armored vehicles. The third sample has a firing range of 33 km and a detachable HE warhead. It includes remote fuse, after activation of which the head part is separated from the engine. Then, slowed down by the parachute system, it moves almost along a vertical trajectory towards the target. The fuse can be programmed to detonate at heights of 0-30 meters from the ground surface.
In 1970-90 Modern 122-mm shells have been developed for the Grad. These samples include:

Unguided high-explosive fragmentation projectile 9M28F (left), projectile

9M28K with cassette head (in the center) and 3M16 (right)

1. System "Illumination". Lighting RS 9M42, 1.5 minutes
illuminating an area with a diameter of 1000 m from a height of 450-500 m;

2. Uncontrolled PC 9M28K with cassette head. Designed for remote deployment of anti-tank mines PTM-3 with cumulative action. Length - 3019 mm; weight - 57.7 kg; weight of the head part - 22.8 kg; explosive mass - 1.85 kg; mine weight - 5 kg; number of minutes - 3; firing range - 13.4 km; self-destruction time - 16-24 hours;

3. RS 9M519. It is a set of 8 rockets for creating radio interference in the range from 1.5 to 120 MHz (HF and VHF bands) with a firing range of up to 18.5 km. Due to the R-032 transmitter, an interference-defined letter creates noise and barrage interference within a radius of 700 meters for an hour, interrupting radio communications, which leads to disorganization of the enemy. Length - 3025 mm; weight - 66 kg; weight of the head part - 18.4 kg;

4. Unguided rocket-propelled high-explosive fragmentation projectile 9M28F.
At a range of up to 15 km, it destroys open unarmored or lightly armored vehicles, as well as manpower. Length - 2270 mm; weight - 56.5 kg; weight of the head part - 21.0 kg; number of damaging elements - 2440 hull fragments per
3 g each and 1000 ready-made 5.5 g;

4 . Rocket smoke projectile 9M43 weighing 66 kg with a firing range of 20.2 km. The projectile includes 5 smoke elements filled with 800 g of red phosphorus. Launching 10 shells for 5.3 minutes creates a continuous curtain 0.8 km deep and 1 km along the front. Length - 2950 mm;

5 . Missile 3M16 for laying anti-personnel minefields weighing 56.4 kg. Its warhead weighing 21.6 kg contains 5 POM-2 anti-personnel fragmentation mines weighing 1.7 kg, each of which contains 130 g of explosives. The maximum firing range of anti-personnel mine shells is 13.4 km; launching 20 missiles mines 1000 meters of the front. So that the mines are not dangerous for their own troops, they have a programmable self-destruction device in the interval from 4 to 100 hours from the moment of installation;

6. 9M521 with HE warhead of increased power. At a range of up to 40 km, it destroys open unarmored or lightly armored vehicles, as well as manpower. Length - 2840 mm; weight - 66 kg; weight of the head part - 21.0 kg; number of damaging elements - 2440 body fragments of 3 g each and 1000 ready-made fragments of 5.5 g each;

7. 9M522 with a detachable HE warhead. At a range of up to 37.5 km, it destroys open unarmored or lightly armored vehicles, as well as manpower. Length - 3037 mm; weight - 70 kg; weight of the head part - 25.0 kg; number of damaging elements - 1210 body fragments of 7.5 g each, 690 ready-made 5.5 g, 1800 ready-made 0.78 g;

8. 9M217 with self-aiming combat elements. Designed to destroy military equipment, including major battle tanks, self-propelled guns and others at a range of up to 30 km. Length - 3037 mm; weight - 70 kg; weight of the head part - 25.0 kg; armor penetration - 60-70 mm from a distance of 0.1 km at an angle of 30 0 along the normal;

9. 9M218 with cumulative fragmentation combat elements. At a range of up to 30 km, it destroys light armored vehicles (infantry fighting vehicles, self-propelled guns, infantry fighting vehicles, armored personnel carriers) and manpower in the parking lot. Length - 3037 mm; weight - 70 kg; weight of the head part - 25.0 kg; number of cumulative fragmentation combat elements - 45.

9M218 with cumulative fragmentation combat elements (left) and 9M519 (right)

In addition to work on rockets, the BM-21 vehicle itself is being improved, which may soon receive two transport and launch containers (TPC). These disposable half-size monoblocks will reduce charging time to 5 minutes.

It is worth noting that on the basis of the BM-21, other types of multiple launch rocket systems were created, which are successfully used in various branches of the military:
BM-21V "Grad-V" - airborne system;
9K132 "Grad-P" - a lightweight portable single-barrel launcher;
BM-21 PD "Damba" - a system developed in the 80s, designed to protect naval bases from sea saboteurs and midget submarines. The complex includes a 95TM transport vehicle, a BM-21PD combat vehicle and a PRS-60 unguided projectile.

A-215 "Grad-M" - a shipborne system for arming naval landing ships;
9K55 "Grad-1" - 36-barrel system for regimental level artillery units;
9K59 "Prima" is a multi-purpose system of increased power.

The Grad system was actively used in Afghan war(1979-1989), Karabakh local conflict, two Chechen wars, in the war in South Ossetia. The modernized Grad launcher with 30 guides, which was mounted on an ISUZU or ZIL-131 chassis, became widespread in the Arab states.

A salvo from a BM-21 Grad battery in South Ossetia. It is impossible to say with 100% that this video is from South Ossetia. The dense formation of the MLRS suggests past exercises of the North Caucasus Military District.

BM-21 "Grad" during military exercises in Bulgaria. The Bulgarian army has 100 Grad MLRS in service and 200 in reserve.
——
more interesting photos: walkarounds.airforce.ru/artillery/rus/bm-21/index.htm
www.defencetalk.com
pwm.org.pl
spruebender.net/forum2

What is a multiple launch rocket system (MLRS)? What is the radius of destruction of the Grad installation? We will consider these important issues further in as much detail as possible. And now it is necessary to remember that an MLRS is a weapon complex that includes a multi-charge launcher and rockets (rocket depth charges, unguided rockets), as well as auxiliary equipment: transport-loading and transport vehicles, and other equipment.

MLRS is rocket weapons. The ground armies, naval flotillas and air forces of a large number of states are armed with this system.

A jet engine is used in a rocket projectile, which eliminates the influence of recoil force when fired. This nuance allows you to design lightweight, uncomplicated and small-sized multi-barrel launch structures.

MLRS launchers are installed on self-propelled (tracked, wheeled) and towed chassis, helicopters, airplanes and ships.

By the way, the latest MLRS fire projectiles with a caliber of up to 425 millimeters. Their maximum firing range can reach forty-five kilometers or more (up to 400 kilometers on some samples). They can carry from four to fifty rockets, each of which is equipped with a separate guide (tubular or rail) for launching.

"Katyusha"

During the Great Patriotic War, field artillerymen acquired barrelless systems, unofficially called “Katyushas”. Initially they were manufactured as BM-13, and then as BM-8, BM-31 and so on.

The armed forces of the USSR very actively used these installations during the Second World War. The nickname “Katyusha” was quite popular, so the BM-21 “Grad”, post-war MLRS on a vehicle chassis, and the BM-14 began to be called this colloquially.

Later, Soviet artillerymen dubbed other installations with similar nicknames (“Vanyusha”, “Andryusha”): BM-31 and others. Of course, these names are not so famous.

History of the creation of weapons

Workers of the gas-dynamic laboratory V. A. Artemyev and N. I. Tikhomirov began designing rockets for aircraft back in 1921. In 1929-1933, B. S. Petropavlovsky, together with other GDL employees, conducted public tests of jet missiles for various purposes and calibers. In the experiments, specialists used multi-shot and single-shot aircraft and ground launchers.

In 1937-1938, rockets were adopted by the RKKVF. It should be noted that they were developed by the RNII under the direction of G. E. Langemak. The I-153, I-15 and I-16 fighters were equipped with 82-mm RS-82 missiles: in the summer of 1939, they were successfully used on the Khalkhin Gol River in battles with the Japanese army.

In 1939-1941, RNII employees A.S. Popov, V.N. Galkovsky, A.P. Pavlenko and others designed a multi-charge launcher mounted on a truck.

In 1941, the installations were tested at the test site, and very successfully. They were designated BM-13 - a military vehicle with 132 mm rockets. The BM-13 shells and the launcher, created on the basis of the ZIS-6 BM-1 truck, were put into service in 1941, on June 21. It is this type of machine that received famous name"Katyusha".

BM-13

What is BM-13? This is a Soviet combat rocket artillery device developed during the Great Patriotic War. This is the most famous USSR combat vehicle of this class. It was her who the people nicknamed “Katyusha”.

At the Comintern plant, located in Voronezh, for the first time on June 27, 1941, two BM-13 launch units were created on the chassis of a ZIS car.

Device

BM-13 - the same as the Grad installation. Its characteristics are completely unsophisticated. This is a relatively simple weapon, which consists of rail guides and an aiming device. For aiming, an artillery sight, lifting and rotating mechanisms are used. At the rear of the car there are two jacks, which are used to stabilize it during shooting. One machine can accommodate from 14 to 48 guides.

The shell of the missiles is made in the form of a welded cylinder, divided into three sections - the warhead, the jet nozzle and the engine compartment (combustion chamber with fuel). The RS-132 rocket for the BM-13 design was manufactured weighing 42.5 kg, with a diameter of 132 mm and a length of 0.8 meters. Solid nitrocellulose was placed inside the cylinder with feathers. The warhead weighed 22 kg. The explosive had a mass of 4.9 kg: six anti-tank grenades weighed the same. The firing range reached 8.5 km.

The M-31 rocket for the BM-31 design had a mass of 92.4 kg, was manufactured with a diameter of 310 mm and contained 28.9 kg of explosive substance. Its range reached 13 km. Interestingly, the BM-13 (16 missiles) salvo lasted from seven to ten seconds, and the BM-8 (24-48 missiles) lasted from eight to ten seconds. The BM-31-21 has a loading time of five to ten minutes.

The launch was carried out by a hand-held electric coil connected to contacts located on the guides and a battery. When the handle was turned, the contacts closed one by one and the starting squib was fired in the next projectile. If there were a large number of guides, sometimes a couple of coils were used simultaneously.

Unlike the German Nebelwerfer, the BM-13 has low accuracy and is an area weapon, scattering a colossal number of shells over the territory. It follows that precise strikes, like the Nebelwerfer, could not be made. The explosive charge was half that of the Nebelwerfer rocket, but it could destroy much more equipment without armor and manpower.

How were you able to get such an effect? It’s just that the counter-movement of the detonation increased the gas pressure of the explosion. The explosive was detonated from both sides (the length of the cavity for the explosive was slightly longer than the length of the detonator). At the moment when two waves of detonation collided, the gas pressure of the explosion instantly increased at the site of their collision. Thus, the fragments of the hull received impressive acceleration and heated up to eight hundred degrees: they had a magnificent igniting effect.

Legend

In addition to the shell, part of the projectile chamber also burst: it was heated by the gunpowder burning inside. Compared to artillery shells of a similar caliber, this increased the fragmentation impact by 1.5-2 times. Thanks to this nuance, the myth about the “thermite warhead” in Katyusha missiles appeared.

It is noteworthy that “thermite” explosives were tested in the spring of 1942 in Leningrad, but, unfortunately, did not find their application, since the targets were already on fire after the BM-13 salvo. The simultaneous use of dozens of projectiles also generated interference from explosive bursts, which further increased the damaging effect.

Effect

BM-8 (ZIS-6) consisted of five to seven employees:

• The gun commander is one person.
• One driver.
• One gunner.
• Loaders - from two to four people.

9K51 "Grad"

What is 9K51 Grad? This is a 122mm multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) from the Soviet Union. The Grad installation was created to destroy command posts, open and hidden manpower, armored personnel carriers and unarmored vehicles in the concentration area, artillery and mortar batteries, and other targets, solving many problems in difficult combat conditions.

Description of the complex

For firing, Grad installations are placed in a field, away from residential buildings. That's what they call them - "M-21 field rocket launcher." Of course, it is better known as the Grad MLRS (GRAU index - 9K51). Its kit includes an equipped Ural-375D chassis, a BM-21 military vehicle (GRAU index - 2B5), and a 122-mm M-21OF unguided rocket. A little later, a colossal number of 122-mm shells was developed, and the BM-21-1 military vehicle was designed, equipped with a modified Ural-43202 off-road truck chassis.

Shells in boxes are transported in trucks of national economic importance. Shells without boxes are transported by a vehicle with a set of 9F37 racks.

Design

In general, the Grad installation was created at NII-147 to equip divisional artillery. The project was led by A. N. Ganichev, who at that time held the position of chief designer. Related enterprises also took part in the work, including Moscow NII-6 and Sverdlovsk SKB-203.

Employees of the Central Archive (Podolsk), owned by the Ministry of Defense, store data that confirms that the Grad missile was manufactured in various modifications:

• With a powder starting combined engine and a solid-fuel sustaining ramjet: four nacelles with air intakes were independently mounted on its tail section.
• A rocket of the same system was created, but with some excellent nuances: the fuel of its propulsion engine was concentrated in one central section, made in the form of two cylinders. Partially burnt products flowed through four holes into the gondolas, where they were completely burned in the air flow.
• The Grad installation also used projectiles with rigid stabilizers.
• The stabilizer block of some rocket models was equipped with folding blades.

What was the result of the work carried out? Specialists managed to create an excellent unguided rocket M-210F (with a leading high-explosive fragmentation part, equipped with a pair of welded corrugated bushings necessary to increase the fragmentation effect) and a two-chamber rocket engine with a single charge.

Mass production

The Grad installation was manufactured at the Lenin plant in Perm until 1998. Over the entire period of serial production, 6,536 combat vehicles were manufactured for the USSR army. About 646 "iron dragons" were produced for export.

It should be noted that the Grad missile launcher was in service with fifty countries of the world! By 1995, more than two thousand BM-21 military vehicles were in service with many countries. The production of shells was carried out by NPO Splav: more than three million different missiles for the Grad MLRS were created by specialists from this enterprise.

Models

The Grad rocket launcher has become the base model for many domestic systems designed to fire 122 mm unguided rocket projectiles. This list includes BM-21PD “Damba”, “Grad-VD”, light portable rocket system “Grad-P”, “9K54 Grad-V”, shipborne twenty-two-barreled “A-215 Grad-M”, “9K59 Prima”, "9K55 Grad-1".

Some foreign systems were also created on the basis of the BM-21, namely: RM-70/85, HADID, RM-70, Modular, Type 90, VM-11, Type 84, PRL113, Type 90A, Type 89, Type 81, Grad-1A BelGrad, Type 90B, Lynx (Naiza, “Naiza”), RM-70/85М, PRL111, Type 83, APRA, WR-40 Langusta.

So, salvo installation"Grad" is manufactured in the following variations:

• The basic version is 9K51 Grad.
• An example of further development of the system is 9K51M "Tornado-G". This is an updated military vehicle 2B17-1/2B17M, equipped with the latest NURS with a maximum firing range increased to forty kilometers.
• The airborne (lightweight) modification is the 9K54 Grad-V. It has a 9P125 combat vehicle with twelve guides and a 9F37V transport vehicle with a set of racks, created on the basis of the GAZ-66B truck for the Airborne Forces.
• If you need to inflict a fatal defeat on the enemy, Grad-VD installations are at your service! These vehicles are a tracked version of the Grad-V system, equipped with a BM-21VD military vehicle and a transport-loading vehicle based on the BTR-D armored car.
• 9K55 "Grad-1" is a modification of the "Grad" system, equipped with a 9P138 military vehicle (36 guides) and a 9T450 transport-loading device, created on the basis of the ZIL-131 truck. They used a truck made not for divisional artillery, but for regimental artillery, for example, for marines.
• 9K55-1 "Grad-1" is a tracked version of the "Grad-1" system. It has the 9P139 combat vehicle, made on the basis of the chassis of the 2S1 “Gvozdika” self-propelled howitzer (36 guides), and the 9T451 vehicle, created on the basis of the MT-Lbu universal tractor.
• A version of the Grad system with increased firepower is the 9K59 Prima. This system consists of a 9A51 military vehicle (50 guides) and a 9T232M transport-loading vehicle, created on the basis of the Ural 4320 truck.
• Belarusian version of the “Grad” system with the BM-21A military vehicle, built on the basis of the MAZ-6317-05 truck - MLRS “Grad-1A” (Belgrade).
• The Ukrainian improvement of the BM-21 is “Bastion-02” and “Bastion-01”.

general characteristics

What is the Grad installation? Its characteristics are quite interesting. Let's look at them in more detail. The army was armed with this vehicle in 1963. For a salvo, it needs forty 122-mm shells.

The maximum range of the Grad installation reaches forty kilometers. The minimum target engagement distance is approximately 1.6 km. Artillery elements are assembled on modernized types of truck chassis, both Ural-4320 and Ural-375: this nuance depends on the model.

As a rule, the Grad-1 model is created on the basis of the ZIL-131. These paramilitary vehicles usually travel at a speed of 75-90 km/h. The system is equipped with the Vivarium automatic fire control complex.

Belarusian version

What does the Belarusian modification of this “iron beast” look like? War machine MLRS "Grad-1A" (BelGrad) was mounted on the chassis of a MAZ-6317 truck. Its highest speed is 85 km/h, and its range is 1200 km. The radius of destruction of the Grad installation is quite large - up to 1000 m, it weighs 16.45 tons, and the crew consists of six people. It can carry sixty missiles at a time! Recharge time is only seven minutes.

It should be noted that shelling from the BM-21 has dire consequences. Grad launchers have colossal destructive power and, as a rule, force the enemy to capitulate.