History of Katyusha

The history of the creation of Katyusha dates back to pre-Petrine times. In Rus', the first rockets appeared in the 15th century. By the end of the 16th century, Russia was well aware of the design, methods of manufacturing and combat use of missiles. This is convincingly evidenced by the “Charter of Military, Cannon and Other Affairs Relating to Military Science,” written in 1607-1621 by Onisim Mikhailov. Since 1680, a special rocket establishment already existed in Russia. In the 19th century, missiles designed to destroy enemy personnel and materiel were created by Major General Alexander Dmitrievich Zasyadko . Zasyadko began work on creating rockets in 1815 on his own initiative using his own funds. By 1817, he managed to create a high-explosive and incendiary combat rocket based on a lighting rocket.
At the end of August 1828, a guards corps arrived from St. Petersburg under the besieged Turkish fortress of Varna. Together with the corps, the first Russian missile company arrived under the command of Lieutenant Colonel V.M. Vnukov. The company was formed on the initiative of Major General Zasyadko. The missile company received the first baptism of fire near Varna on August 31, 1828 during an attack on a Turkish redoubt located by the sea south of Varna. Cannonballs and bombs from field and naval guns, as well as rocket explosions, forced the defenders of the redoubt to take cover in holes made in the ditch. Therefore, when the hunters (volunteers) of the Simbirsk regiment rushed to the redoubt, the Turks did not have time to take their places and provide effective resistance to the attackers.

On March 5, 1850, Colonel was appointed commander of the Rocket Establishment Konstantin Ivanovich Konstantinov - illegitimate son of Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich from a relationship with actress Clara Anna Lawrence. During his tenure in this position, 2-, 2.5- and 4-inch missiles of the Konstantinov system were adopted by the Russian army. The weight of combat missiles depended on the type of warhead and was characterized by the following data: a 2-inch missile weighed from 2.9 to 5 kg; 2.5-inch - from 6 to 14 kg and 4-inch - from 18.4 to 32 kg.

The firing ranges of the Konstantinov system missiles, created by him in 1850-1853, were very significant for that time. Thus, a 4-inch rocket equipped with 10-pound (4.095 kg) grenades had a maximum firing range of 4150 m, and a 4-inch incendiary rocket - 4260 m, while a quarter-pound mountain unicorn mod. 1838 had a maximum firing range of only 1810 meters. Konstantinov's dream was to create an aerial rocket launcher that would fire missiles from hot air balloon. The experiments carried out proved the long range of missiles fired from a tethered balloon. However, it was not possible to achieve acceptable accuracy.
After the death of K.I. Konstantinov in 1871, rocketry in the Russian army fell into decline. Combat missiles were used sporadically and in small quantities in Russian-Turkish war 1877-1878. Missiles were used more successfully during the conquest of Central Asia in the 70-80s of the 19th century. They played a decisive role in. The last time Konstantinov missiles were used in Turkestan was in the 90s of the 19th century. And in 1898 combat missiles were officially withdrawn from service with the Russian army.
A new impetus for the development of rocket weapons was given during the First World War: in 1916, Professor Ivan Platonovich Grave created gelatin gunpowder, improving the smokeless gunpowder of the French inventor Paul Viel. In 1921, developers N.I. Tikhomirov and V.A. Artemyev from the gas dynamic laboratory began developing rockets based on this gunpowder.

At first, the gas-dynamic laboratory, where rocket weapons were created, had more difficulties and failures than successes. However, enthusiasts - engineers N.I. Tikhomirov, V.A. Artemyev, and then G.E. Langemak and B.S. Petropavlovsky persistently improved their “brainchild”, firmly believing in the success of the business. Extensive theoretical development and countless experiments were required, which ultimately led to the creation at the end of 1927 of an 82-mm fragmentation rocket with a powder engine, and after it a more powerful one, with a caliber of 132 mm. Test firing conducted near Leningrad in March 1928 was encouraging - the range was already 5-6 km, although dispersion was still large. For many years it was not possible to significantly reduce it: the original concept assumed a projectile with tails that did not exceed its caliber. After all, a pipe served as a guide for it - simple, light, convenient for installation.
In 1933, engineer I.T. Kleimenov proposed making a more developed tail, more than twice the caliber of the projectile in scope. The accuracy of fire increased, and the flight range also increased, but it was necessary to design new open - in particular, rail - guides for projectiles. And again, years of experiments, searches...
By 1938, the main difficulties in creating mobile rocket artillery had been overcome. Employees of the Moscow RNII Yu. A. Pobedonostsev, F. N. Poyda, L. E. Schwartz and others developed 82-mm fragmentation, high-explosive fragmentation and thermite shells (PC) with a solid propellant (powder) engine, which was started by a remote electric igniter.

At the same time, for firing at ground targets, the designers proposed several options for mobile multi-charge multiple rocket launchers (by area). Engineers V.N. Galkovsky, I.I. Gvai, A.P. Pavlenko, A.S. Popov took part in their creation under the leadership of A.G. Kostikov.
The installation consisted of eight open guide rails interconnected into a single unit by tubular welded spars. 16 132-mm rocket projectiles weighing 42.5 kg each were fixed using T-shaped pins on top and bottom of the guides in pairs. The design provided the ability to change the angle of elevation and azimuth rotation. Aiming at the target was carried out through the sight by rotating the handles of the lifting and rotating mechanisms. The installation was mounted on a truck chassis, and in the first version, relatively short guides were located across the vehicle, which received the general name MU-1 (mechanized installation). This decision was unsuccessful - when firing, the vehicle swayed, which significantly reduced the accuracy of the battle.

Installation of MU-1, late version. The location of the guides is still transverse, but the ZiS-6 is already used as the chassis. This installation could simultaneously accommodate 22 projectiles and could fire directly. If they had guessed in time to add retractable paws, then this version of the installation would have surpassed the MU-2 in combat qualities, which was later adopted for service under the designation BM-12-16.

M-13 shells, containing 4.9 kg of explosive, provided a radius of continuous damage by fragments of 8-10 meters (when the fuse was set to “O” - fragmentation) and an actual damage radius of 25-30 meters. In soil of medium hardness, when the fuse was set to “3” (slowdown), a funnel with a diameter of 2-2.5 meters and a depth of 0.8-1 meter was created.
In September 1939, the MU-2 rocket system was created on the ZIS-6 three-axle truck, which was more suitable for this purpose. The car was an all-terrain truck with double tires on the rear axles. Its length with a 4980 mm wheelbase was 6600 mm, and its width was 2235 mm. The car was equipped with the same in-line six-cylinder water-cooled carburetor engine that was installed on the ZiS-5. Its cylinder diameter was 101.6 mm and its piston stroke was 114.3 mm. Thus, its working volume was equal to 5560 cubic centimeters, so the volume indicated in most sources is 5555 cubic meters. cm is the result of someone’s mistake, which was subsequently replicated by many serious publications. At 2300 rpm, the engine, which had a 4.6-fold compression ratio, developed 73 horsepower, which was good for those times, but due to the heavy load, the maximum speed was limited to 55 kilometers per hour.

In this version, elongated guides were installed along the car, the rear of which was additionally hung on jacks before firing. Weight of the vehicle with crew (5-7 people) and full ammunition was 8.33 tons, the firing range reached 8470 m. In just one salvo lasting 8-10 seconds, the combat vehicle fired 16 shells containing 78.4 kg of highly effective explosives at enemy positions. The three-axle ZIS-6 provided the MU-2 with quite satisfactory mobility on the ground, allowing it to quickly perform a march maneuver and change position. And to transfer the vehicle from the traveling position to the combat position, 2-3 minutes were enough. However, the installation acquired another drawback - the impossibility of direct fire and, as a result, a large dead space. However, our artillerymen subsequently learned to overcome it and even began to use it.
On December 25, 1939, the Artillery Directorate of the Red Army approved the 132-mm M-13 rocket and launcher, called BM-13. NII-Z received an order for the production of five such installations and a batch of missiles for carrying out military tests. In addition, the artillery department Navy also ordered one BM-13 launcher to test it in the coastal defense system. During the summer and autumn of 1940, NII-3 manufactured six BM-13 launchers. In the fall of the same year, BM-13 launchers and a batch of M-13 shells were ready for testing.

1 – switch, 2 – cabin armor shields, 3 – guide package, 4 – gas tank, 5 – rotating frame base, 6 – lifting screw casing, 7 – lifting frame, 8 – traveling support, 9 – stopper, 10 – rotating frame, 11 – M-13 projectile, 12 – brake light, 13 – jacks, 14 – launcher battery, 15 – towing device spring, 16 – sight bracket, 17 – lifting mechanism handle, 18 – turning mechanism handle, 19 – spare wheel, 20 – distribution box.

On June 17, 1941, at a training ground near Moscow, during an inspection of samples of new weapons of the Red Army, salvo launches were made from BM-13 combat vehicles. People's Commissar of Defense Marshal of the Soviet Union Timoshenko, People's Commissar of Armaments Ustinov and Chief of the General Staff Army General Zhukov, who were present at the tests, gave highly appreciated new weapons. Two were prepared for the show prototypes combat vehicle BM-13. One of them was loaded with high-explosive fragmentation rockets, and the second with illumination rockets. Salvo launches of fragmentation rockets were made. All targets in the area where the shells fell were hit, everything that could burn on this section of the artillery route burned. The shooting participants praised the new missile weapons. Immediately at the firing position, an opinion was expressed about the need to quickly adopt the first domestic MLRS installation.
On June 21, 1941, literally a few hours before the start of the war, after examining samples of missile weapons, Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin decided to launch mass production of M-13 missiles and the BM-13 launcher and to begin the formation of missile military units. Due to the threat of an impending war, this decision was made despite the fact that the BM-13 launcher had not yet passed military tests and had not been developed to the stage allowing mass industrial production.

The commander of the first experimental Katyusha battery is Captain Flerov. On October 2, Flerov’s battery hit. The batteries covered more than 150 kilometers behind enemy lines. Flerov did everything possible to save the battery and break through to his own. On the night of October 7, 1941, a convoy of vehicles from Flerov’s battery was ambushed near the village of Bogatyri, Znamensky district, Smolensk region. Finding themselves in a hopeless situation, the battery personnel took up the fight. Under heavy fire they blew up the cars. Many of them died. Being seriously wounded, the commander blew himself up along with the main launcher.

On July 2, 1941, the first experimental battery of rocket artillery in the Red Army under the command of Captain Flerov set out from Moscow to the Western Front. On July 4, the battery became part of the 20th Army, whose troops occupied the defense along the Dnieper near the city of Orsha.

In most books about the war - both scientific and fiction - Wednesday, July 16, 1941, is named as the day of the first use of the Katyusha. On that day, a battery under the command of Captain Flerov attacked the Orsha railway station that had just been occupied by the enemy and destroyed the trains that had accumulated there.
However, in reality Flerov battery was first deployed at the front two days earlier: on July 14, 1941, three salvos were fired at the city of Rudnya, Smolensk region. This town with a population of only 9 thousand people is located on the Vitebsk Upland on the Malaya Berezina River, 68 km from Smolensk at the very border of Russia and Belarus. On that day, the Germans captured Rudnya, and the town’s market square was crowded with a large number of military equipment. At that moment, on the high, steep western bank of Malaya Berezina, a battery of captain Ivan Andreevich Flerov appeared. From a direction unexpected for the enemy in the west, it struck the market square. As soon as the sound of the last salvo died down, one of the artillery soldiers named Kashirin sang at the top of his voice the popular song “Katyusha”, written in 1938 by Matvey Blanter to the words of Mikhail Isakovsky. Two days later, on July 16, at 15:15, Flerov’s battery struck the Orsha station, and an hour and a half later, the German crossing through Orshitsa. On that day, communications sergeant Andrei Sapronov was assigned to Flerov’s battery, ensuring communication between the battery and the command. As soon as the sergeant heard about how Katyusha came out onto a high, steep bank, he immediately remembered how rocket launchers had just entered the same high and steep bank, and, reporting to the headquarters of the 217th separate communications battalion 144th rifle division 20th Army about Flerov’s fulfillment of a combat mission, signalman Sapronov said: “Katyusha sang perfectly.”

On August 2, 1941, the chief of artillery of the Western Front, Major General I.P. Kramar, reported: “According to the statements of the command staff of the rifle units and the observations of the artillerymen, the surprise of such massive fire inflicts heavy losses on the enemy and has such a strong moral effect that enemy units flee in panic. It was also noted that the enemy is fleeing not only from the areas fired by new weapons, but also from neighboring ones, located at a distance of 1-1.5 km from the shelling zone.
And here’s how the enemies talked about the Katyusha: “After the volley of Stalin’s organ, from our company of 120 people,” German Hart said during interrogation, “12 remained alive. Out of 12 heavy machine guns Only one remained intact, and even that one was without a carriage, and out of the five heavy mortars, not a single one.”
The stunning debut of jet weapons for the enemy prompted our industry to speed up the serial production of a new mortar. However, for the Katyushas, ​​at first there were not enough self-propelled chassis - carriers of rocket launchers. They tried to restore production of the ZIS-6 at the Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant, where the Moscow ZIS was evacuated in October 1941, but the lack of specialized equipment for the production of worm axles did not allow this to be done. In October 1941, a tank with an installation mounted in place of the turret was put into service. BM-8-24 . She was armed with rockets RS-82 .
In September 1941 - February 1942, NII-3 developed a new modification of the 82-mm M-8 projectile, which had the same range (about 5000 m), but almost twice as much explosive (581 g) compared to the aircraft projectile (375 g).
By the end of the war, the 82-mm M-8 projectile with a ballistic index TS-34 and a firing range of 5.5 km was adopted.
In the first modifications of the M-8 missile, a rocket charge made of nitroglycerin ballistic gunpowder, grade N, was used. The charge consisted of seven cylindrical blocks with an outer diameter of 24 mm and a channel diameter of 6 mm. The length of the charge was 230 mm, and the weight was 1040 g.
To increase the projectile's flight range, the rocket engine chamber was increased to 290 mm, and after testing a number of charge design options, OTB specialists from Plant No. 98 tested a charge made from NM-2 gunpowder, which consisted of five blocks with an outer diameter of 26.6 mm and a channel diameter of 6 mm and length 287 mm. The weight of the charge was 1180 g. With the use of this charge, the projectile range increased to 5.5 km. The radius of continuous destruction by fragments of the M-8 (TS-34) projectile was 3-4 m, and the radius of actual destruction by fragments was 12-15 meters.

Katyusha's younger sister - installation of BM-8-24 on a tank chassis

Installation of the BM-13-16 on the chassis of the STZ-5 tracked tractor. Prototypes of launchers for M-13 projectiles on the STZ-5 chassis passed field tests in October 1941 and were put into service. Their serial production began at the plant named after. Comintern in Voronezh. However, on July 7, 1942, the Germans captured the right bank part of Voronezh, and the assembly of the installations stopped.

STZ-5 tracked tractors and Ford-Marmont, International Jiemsi and Austin all-terrain vehicles received under Lend-Lease were also equipped with jet launchers. But greatest number"Katyusha" was mounted on all-wheel drive three-axle vehicles. In 1943, M-13 projectiles with a welded body, with a ballistic index TS-39, were put into production. The shells had a GVMZ fuse. NM-4 gunpowder was used as fuel.
The main reason for the low accuracy of missiles of the M-13 (TS-13) type was the eccentricity of the thrust jet engine, that is, the displacement of the thrust vector from the rocket axis due to uneven burning of gunpowder in the checkers. This phenomenon is easily eliminated when the rocket rotates. In this case, the thrust impulse will always coincide with the axis of the rocket. The rotation imparted to the finned rocket in order to improve accuracy is called rotation. Twist rockets should not be confused with turbojet rockets. The turning speed of the feathered missiles was several tens, in as a last resort hundreds of revolutions per minute, which is not enough to stabilize the projectile by rotation (moreover, rotation occurs during the active part of the flight, while the engine is running, and then stops). The angular velocity of turbojet projectiles that do not have fins is several thousand revolutions per minute, which creates a gyroscopic effect and, accordingly, higher hit accuracy than that of finned projectiles, both non-rotating and with rotation. In both types of projectiles, rotation occurs due to the outflow of powder gases from the main engine through small (several millimeters in diameter) nozzles directed at an angle to the axis of the projectile.

We called rockets with rotation due to the energy of powder gases UK - improved accuracy, for example M-13UK and M-31UK.
The M-13UK projectile differed in design from the M-13 projectile in that there were 12 tangential holes on the front centering thickening, through which part of the powder gases flowed out. The holes were drilled so that the powder gases flowing out of them created a torque. The M-13UK-1 projectiles differed from the M-13UK projectiles in the design of their stabilizers. In particular, the M-13UK-1 stabilizers were made of steel sheet.
Since 1944, on the basis of Studebakers, new, more powerful installations BM-31-12 with 12 M-30 and M-31 mines of 301 mm caliber, weighing 91.5 kg each (firing range - up to 4325 m). To improve the accuracy of fire, M-13UK and M-31UK projectiles with improved accuracy that rotated in flight were created and developed.
The projectiles were launched from honeycomb-type tubular guides. The time to transfer to a combat position was 10 minutes. When a 301-mm projectile containing 28.5 kg of explosives exploded, a crater 2.5 m deep and 7-8 m in diameter was formed. A total of 1,184 BM-31-12 vehicles were produced during the war years.

BM-31-12 on a Studebaker US-6 chassis

The share of rocket artillery on the fronts of the Great Patriotic War was constantly increasing. If in November 1941 45 Katyusha divisions were formed, then on January 1, 1942 there were already 87 of them, in October 1942 - 350, and at the beginning of 1945 - 519. By the end of the war, there were 7 divisions in the Red Army, 40 separate brigades, 105 regiments and 40 separate divisions of guards mortars. Not a single major artillery barrage took place without Katyushas.

In the post-war period, Katyushas were going to be replaced with a BM-14-16, mounted on the chassis GAZ-63, but the installation adopted for service in 1952 was able to replace the Katyusha only partially, and therefore, until the very introduction into the troops, Katyusha installations continued to be produced on the chassis of the ZiS-151 car, and even ZIL-131.

BM-13-16 on ZIL-131 chassis

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“ Katyusha“

"Katyusha" Guards rocket mortar

After the adoption of 82-mm air-to-air missiles RS-82 (1937) and 132-mm air-to-ground missiles RS-132 (1938) into aviation service, the Main Artillery Directorate set the projectile developer - The Jet Research Institute is tasked with creating a multiple launch rocket system based on RS-132 projectiles. The updated tactical and technical specifications were issued to the institute in June 1938.

In Moscow at Central Council Osoaviakhim in August 1931, a Study Group was created jet propulsion(GIRD), in October of the same year, the same group was formed in Leningrad. They made significant contributions to the development rocket technology.

At the end of 1933, the Jet Research Institute (RNII) was created on the basis of GDL and GIRD. The initiator of the merger of the two teams was the chief of armaments of the Red Army, M.N. Tukhachevsky. In his opinion, the RNII was supposed to solve problems of rocket technology in relation to military affairs, primarily in aviation and artillery. I.T. was appointed director of the institute. Kleimenov, and his deputy - G.E. Langemak. S.P. Korolev How aircraft designer was appointed head of the 5th Aviation Department of the institute, which was entrusted with the development of rocket planes and cruise missiles.

1 - fuse retaining ring, 2 - GVMZ fuse, 3 - detonator block, 4 - explosive charge, 5 - head part, 6 - igniter, 7 - chamber bottom, 8 - guide pin, 9 - powder rocket charge, 10 - missile unit, 11 — grate, 12 — critical section of the nozzle, 13 — nozzle, 14 — stabilizer, 15 — remote fuse pin, 16 — AGDT remote fuse, 17 — igniter.

In accordance with this task, by the summer of 1939 the institute developed a new 132-mm high-explosive fragmentation projectile, which later received the official name M-13. Compared to the aircraft RS-132, this projectile had a longer flight range and was significantly more powerful. combat unit. The increase in flight range was achieved by increasing the amount of rocket fuel; this required lengthening the rocket and warhead parts of the rocket by 48 cm. The M-13 projectile had slightly better aerodynamic characteristics than the RS-132, which made it possible to obtain higher accuracy.

A self-propelled multi-charge launcher was also developed for the projectile. Its first version was created on the basis of the ZIS-5 truck and was designated MU-1 (mechanized unit, first sample). Field tests of the installation carried out between December 1938 and February 1939 showed that it did not fully meet the requirements. Taking into account the test results, the Jet Research Institute developed a new MU-2 launcher, which was accepted by the Main Artillery Directorate for field testing in September 1939. Based on the results of field tests completed in November 1939, the institute was ordered five launchers for military testing. Another installation was ordered by the Ordnance Department of the Navy for use in the coastal defense system.

Mu-2 installation

On June 21, 1941, the installation was demonstrated to the leaders of the All-Union Communist Party (6) and the Soviet government, and on the same day, literally a few hours before the start of the Great Patriotic War, a decision was made to urgently launch mass production of M-13 missiles and a launcher, which received the official name BM-13 (combat vehicle 13).

BM-13 on ZIS-6 chassis

Now no one can say for sure under what circumstances the multiple rocket launcher received a female name, and even in a diminutive form - “Katyusha”. One thing is known: not all types of weapons received nicknames at the front. And these names were often not at all flattering. For example, the Il-2 attack aircraft of early modifications, which saved the lives of more than one infantryman and was the most welcome “guest” in any battle, received the nickname “humpback” among the soldiers for its cockpit protruding above the fuselage. And the small I-16 fighter, which bore on its wings the entire weight of the first air battles, was called "donkey". There were, however, formidable nicknames - the heavy Su-152 self-propelled artillery mount, which was capable of knocking down the turret of a Tiger with one shot, was respectfully called the “St. cottage, - "sledgehammer". In any case, the names most often given were stern and strict. And here is such unexpected tenderness, if not love...

However, if you read the memories of veterans, especially those who, in their own way, military profession depended on the actions of mortars - infantrymen, tankers, signalmen, it becomes clear why the soldiers fell in love with these combat vehicles. In terms of its combat power, "Katyusha" had no equal.

From behind, suddenly there was a grinding noise, a rumble, and fiery arrows flew through us to the heights... At the heights, everything was covered with fire, smoke and dust. In the midst of this chaos, fiery candles flared from individual explosions. A terrible roar reached us. When all this calmed down and the command “Forward” was heard, we took the height, meeting almost no resistance, we “played the Katyushas” so cleanly... At the height, when we got up there, we saw that everything had been plowed up. There are almost no traces left of the trenches in which the Germans were located. There were many corpses of enemy soldiers. The wounded fascists were bandaged by our nurses and, together with a small number of survivors, sent to the rear. There was fear on the faces of the Germans. They had not yet understood what had happened to them, and had not recovered from the Katyusha salvo.

From the memoirs of war veteran Vladimir Yakovlevich Ilyashenko (published on the website Iremember.ru)

The production of BM-13 units was organized at the Voronezh plant named after. Comintern and at the Moscow plant "Compressor". One of the main enterprises for the production of rockets was the Moscow plant named after. Vladimir Ilyich.

During the war, the production of launchers was urgently launched at several enterprises with different production capabilities, and in connection with this, more or less significant changes were made to the design of the installation. Thus, the troops used up to ten varieties of the BM-13 launcher, which made it difficult to train personnel and had a negative impact on the operation of military equipment. For these reasons, a unified (normalized) launcher BM-13N was developed and put into service in April 1943, during the creation of which the designers critically analyzed all parts and components in order to increase the manufacturability of their production and reduce cost, as a result of which all components received independent indexes and became universal.

BM-13N

Composition: The BM-13 "Katyusha" includes the following military means:
. Combat vehicle (BM) MU-2 (MU-1); . Missiles. M-13 rocket:

The M-13 projectile consists of a warhead and a powder jet engine. The design of the warhead resembles a high-explosive fragmentation artillery shell and is equipped with an explosive charge, which is detonated using a contact fuse and an additional detonator. A jet engine has a combustion chamber in which a propellant propellant charge is placed in the form of cylindrical blocks with an axial channel. To ignite powder charge igniters are used. The gases formed during the combustion of powder bombs flow through the nozzle, in front of which there is a diaphragm that prevents the bombs from being ejected through the nozzle. Stabilization of the projectile in flight is ensured by a tail stabilizer with four feathers welded from stamped steel halves. (This method of stabilization provides lower accuracy compared to stabilization by rotation around the longitudinal axis, but allows for a greater range of projectile flight. In addition, the use of a feathered stabilizer greatly simplifies the technology for producing rockets).

1 — fuse retaining ring, 2 — GVMZ fuse, 3 — detonator block, 4 — explosive charge, 5 — warhead, 6 — igniter, 7 — chamber bottom, 8 — guide pin, 9 — propellant rocket charge, 10 — rocket part, 11 - grate, 12 - critical section of the nozzle, 13 - nozzle, 14 - stabilizer, 15 - remote fuse pin, 16 - AGDT remote fuse, 17 - igniter.

The flight range of the M-13 projectile reached 8470 m, but there was very significant dispersion. According to the shooting tables of 1942, with a firing range of 3000 m, the lateral deviation was 51 m, and at the range - 257 m.

In 1943, a modernized version of the rocket was developed, designated M-13-UK (improved accuracy). To increase the accuracy of fire of the M-13-UK projectile, 12 tangentially located holes were made in the front centering thickening of the missile part, through which during operation rocket engine part of the powder gases comes out, causing the projectile to rotate. Although the projectile’s flight range decreased somewhat (to 7.9 km), the improvement in accuracy led to a decrease in the dispersion area and an increase in fire density by 3 times compared to M-13 projectiles. The adoption of the M-13-UK projectile into service in April 1944 contributed to a sharp increase in the fire capabilities of rocket artillery.

MLRS "Katyusha" launcher:

A self-propelled multi-charge launcher has been developed for the projectile. Its first version, MU-1, based on the ZIS-5 truck, had 24 guides mounted on a special frame in a transverse position relative to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle. Its design made it possible to launch rockets only perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle, and jets of hot gases damaged the elements of the installation and the body of the ZIS-5. Safety was also not ensured when controlling fire from the driver's cabin. The launcher swayed strongly, which worsened the accuracy of the rockets. Loading the launcher from the front of the rails was inconvenient and time-consuming. The ZIS-5 vehicle had limited cross-country ability.

The more advanced MU-2 launcher based on the ZIS-6 off-road truck had 16 guides located along the axis of the vehicle. Every two guides were connected, forming a single structure called a “spark”. A new unit was introduced into the design of the installation - a subframe. The subframe made it possible to assemble the entire artillery part of the launcher (as a single unit) on it, and not on the chassis, as was previously the case. Once assembled, the artillery unit was relatively easily mounted on the chassis of any make of car with minimal modification to the latter. The created design made it possible to reduce the labor intensity, manufacturing time and cost of launchers. The weight of the artillery unit was reduced by 250 kg, the cost by more than 20 percent. The combat and operational qualities of the installation were significantly increased. Due to the introduction of armor for the gas tank, gas pipeline, side and rear walls of the driver's cabin, the survivability of the launchers in combat was increased. The firing sector was increased, the stability of the launcher in the traveling position was increased, and improved lifting and turning mechanisms made it possible to increase the speed of pointing the installation at the target. Before launch, the MU-2 combat vehicle was jacked up similarly to the MU-1. The forces rocking the launcher, thanks to the location of the guides along the chassis of the vehicle, were applied along its axis to two jacks located near the center of gravity, so the rocking became minimal. Loading in the installation was carried out from the breech, that is, from the rear end of the guides. This was more convenient and made it possible to significantly speed up the operation. The MU-2 installation had a rotating and lifting mechanism of the simplest design, a bracket for mounting a sight with a conventional artillery panorama, and a large metal fuel tank mounted at the rear of the cabin. The cockpit windows were covered with armored folding shields. Opposite the seat of the commander of the combat vehicle, on the front panel there was mounted a small rectangular box with a turntable, reminiscent of a telephone dial, and a handle for turning the dial. This device was called the “fire control panel” (FCP). From it went a wiring harness to a special battery and to each guide.

With one turn of the launcher handle, the electrical circuit closed, the squib placed in the front part of the projectile’s rocket chamber was triggered, the reactive charge was ignited and a shot was fired. The rate of fire was determined by the rate of rotation of the PUO handle. All 16 shells could be fired in 7-10 seconds. The time it took to transfer the MU-2 launcher from traveling to combat position was 2-3 minutes, the vertical firing angle ranged from 4° to 45°, and the horizontal firing angle was 20°.

The design of the launcher allowed it to move in a charged state at a fairly high speed (up to 40 km/h) and quickly deploy to a firing position, which facilitated the delivery of surprise attacks on the enemy.

After the war, Katyushas began to be installed on pedestals - the combat vehicles turned into monuments. Surely many have seen such monuments throughout the country. They are all more or less similar to each other and almost do not correspond to those vehicles that fought in the Great Patriotic War. The fact is that these monuments almost always feature a rocket launcher based on the ZiS-6 vehicle. Indeed, at the very beginning of the war, rocket launchers were installed on ZiSs, but as soon as American Studebaker trucks began to arrive in the USSR under Lend-Lease, they were turned into the most common base for Katyushas. ZiS, as well as Lend-Lease Chevrolets, were too weak to carry a heavy installation with guides for missiles off-road. It's not just the relatively low-power engine - the frames on these trucks couldn't support the weight of the unit. Actually, the Studebakers also tried not to overload with missiles - if they had to travel to a position from afar, then the missiles were loaded immediately before the salvo.

"Studebaker US 6x6", supplied to the USSR under Lend-Lease. This car had increased cross-country ability, provided by a powerful engine, three drive axles (6x6 wheel arrangement), a range multiplier, a winch for self-pulling, and a high location of all parts and mechanisms sensitive to water. The development of the BM-13 serial combat vehicle was finally completed with the creation of this launcher. In this form she fought until the end of the war.

based on the STZ-NATI-5 tractor

on the boat

In addition to ZiSovs, Chevrolets and the most common Studebakers among Katyushas, ​​the Red Army used tractors and T-70 tanks as chassis for rocket launchers, but they were quickly abandoned - the tank’s engine and its transmission turned out to be too weak for so that the installation can continuously cruise along the front line. At first, the rocketeers did without a chassis at all - the M-30 launch frames were transported in the backs of trucks, unloading them directly to their positions.

Installation M-30

Testing and operation

The first battery of field rocket artillery, sent to the front on the night of July 1–2, 1941, under the command of Captain I.A. Flerov, was armed with seven installations manufactured by the Jet Research Institute. With its first salvo at 15:15 on July 14, 1941, the battery wiped out the Orsha railway junction along with the German trains with troops and military equipment located on it.

The exceptional efficiency of the battery of Captain I. A. Flerov and the seven more such batteries formed after it contributed to the rapid increase in the rate of production of jet weapons. Already in the autumn of 1941, 45 three-battery divisions with four launchers per battery operated at the fronts. For their armament, 593 BM-13 installations were manufactured in 1941. As military equipment arrived from industry, the formation of rocket artillery regiments began, consisting of three divisions armed with BM-13 and anti-aircraft division. The regiment had 1,414 personnel, 36 BM-13 launchers and 12 37-mm anti-aircraft guns. The regiment's salvo amounted to 576 132mm shells. At the same time, enemy manpower and military equipment were destroyed over an area of ​​over 100 hectares. Officially, the regiments were called Guards Mortar Regiments of the Reserve Artillery of the Supreme High Command.

Each projectile was approximately equal in power to a howitzer, but the installation itself could almost simultaneously fire, depending on the model and size of the ammunition, from eight to 32 missiles. "Katyushas" operated in divisions, regiments or brigades. Moreover, in each division, equipped, for example, with BM-13 installations, there were five such vehicles, each of which had 16 guides for launching 132-mm M-13 projectiles, each weighing 42 kilograms with a flight range of 8470 meters. Accordingly, only one division could fire 80 shells at the enemy. If the division was equipped with BM-8 launchers with 32 82-mm shells, then one salvo would already amount to 160 missiles. What are 160 rockets that fall on a small village or fortified height in a few seconds - imagine for yourself. But in many operations during the war, artillery preparation was carried out by regiments and even Katyusha brigades, and this is more than a hundred vehicles, or more than three thousand shells in one salvo. Probably no one can imagine what three thousand shells are that plow up trenches and fortifications in half a minute...

During the offensive Soviet command tried to concentrate as much artillery as possible at the forefront of the main attack. Super-massive artillery preparation, which preceded the breakthrough of the enemy front, was the trump card of the Red Army. Not a single army in that war was able to provide such fire. In 1945, during the offensive, the Soviet command concentrated up to 230-260 cannon artillery guns along one kilometer of the front. In addition to them, for every kilometer there were, on average, 15-20 rocket artillery combat vehicles, not counting the stationary launchers - M-30 frames. Traditionally, Katyushas completed an artillery attack: rocket launchers fired a salvo when the infantry was already attacking. Often, after several volleys of Katyusha rockets, the infantrymen entered an empty settlement or enemy positions without encountering any resistance.

Of course, such a raid could not destroy all enemy soldiers - Katyusha rockets could operate in fragmentation or high-explosive mode, depending on how the fuse was configured. When set to fragmentation action, the rocket exploded immediately after it reached the ground; in the case of a “high-explosive” installation, the fuse fired with a slight delay, allowing the projectile to go deeper into the ground or other obstacle. However, in both cases, if the enemy soldiers were in well-fortified trenches, then the losses from the shelling were small. Therefore, Katyushas were often used at the beginning of an artillery attack in order to prevent enemy soldiers from having time to hide in the trenches. It was thanks to the surprise and power of one salvo that the use of rocket mortars brought success.

Already on the slope of the height, just a short distance from reaching the battalion, we unexpectedly came under a salvo from our native Katyusha - a multi-barreled rocket mortar. It was terrible: large-caliber mines exploded around us within a minute, one after another. It took them a while to catch their breath and come to their senses. Now newspaper reports about cases in which German soldiers who were under fire from Katyusha rockets went crazy seemed quite plausible. From the memoirs of war veterans (published on the website Iremember.ru) “If you attract an artillery regiment, the regiment commander will definitely say: “I don’t have this data, I have to shoot the guns.” If he starts shooting, but they shoot with one gun, taking target in the fork - this is a signal to the enemy: what to do? Take cover. Usually 15-20 seconds are given for cover. During this time, the artillery barrel will fire one or two shells. And with my division, in 15-20 seconds I will fire 120 missiles, all of which go at once." , says the commander of the rocket mortar regiment, Alexander Filippovich Panuev.

The only people in the Red Army who were not comfortable with the Katyusha were the artillerymen. The fact is that mobile installations of rocket mortars usually moved into positions immediately before the salvo and just as quickly tried to leave. At the same time, the Germans, for obvious reasons, tried to destroy the Katyushas first. Therefore, immediately after a salvo of rocket mortars, their positions, as a rule, began to be intensively processed German artillery and aviation. And given that the positions of cannon artillery and rocket mortars were often located not far from each other, the raid covered the artillerymen who remained where the rocket men were firing from.

“We select firing positions. They tell us: “There is a firing position in such and such a place, you will wait for soldiers or placed beacons.” We take the firing position at night. At this time the Katyusha division is approaching. If I had time, I would immediately remove from there their position. The Katyushas fired a salvo at the vehicles and left. And the Germans raised nine Junkers to bomb the division, and the division ran away. They went to the battery. There was a commotion! It was an open place, they were hiding under the cannon carriages. They bombed anyone at random, those who didn’t get it and left,” says former artilleryman Ivan Trofimovich Salnitsky.

According to former Soviet missilemen who fought on Katyushas, ​​most often the divisions operated within several tens of kilometers of front, appearing where their support was needed. First, officers entered the positions and made the appropriate calculations. These calculations, by the way, were quite complex.

- they took into account not only the distance to the target, the speed and direction of the wind, but even the air temperature, which influenced the trajectory of the missiles. After all the calculations were done, the machines moved out

position, fired several salvos (most often no more than five) and urgently went to the rear. Delay in this case was indeed like death - the Germans immediately covered the place from which the rocket mortars were fired with artillery fire.

During the offensive, the tactics of using Katyushas, ​​which were finally perfected by 1943 and were used everywhere until the end of the war, were different. At the very beginning of the offensive, when it was necessary to break through the enemy’s deeply layered defenses, artillery (barrel and rocket) formed the so-called “barrage of fire.” At the beginning of the shelling, all howitzers (often even heavy self-propelled guns) and rocket-propelled mortars “processed” the first line of defense. Then the fire was transferred to the fortifications of the second line, and the infantry occupied the trenches and dugouts of the first. After this, the fire was transferred inland to the third line, while the infantrymen occupied the second line. Moreover, the further the infantry went, the less cannon artillery could support it - towed guns could not accompany it throughout the entire offensive. This task was assigned to self-propelled guns and Katyushas. It was they who, together with the tanks, followed the infantry, supporting them with fire. According to those who participated in such offensives, after the “barrage” of Katyusha rockets, the infantry walked along a scorched strip of land several kilometers wide, on which there were no traces of carefully prepared defenses.

Performance characteristics

M-13 missile Caliber, mm 132 Projectile weight, kg 42.3 Warhead weight, kg 21.3
Mass of explosive, kg 4.9
Maximum firing range, km 8.47 Salvo production time, sec 7-10

MU-2 combat vehicle Base ZiS-6 (6x4) Vehicle weight, t 4.3 Maximum speed, km/h 40
Number of guides 16
Vertical firing angle, degrees from +4 to +45 Horizontal firing angle, degrees 20
Calculation, pers. 10-12 Year of adoption 1941

It is difficult to imagine what it would be like to be hit by Katyusha missiles. According to those who survived such attacks (both Germans and Soviet soldiers), it was one of the most terrible experiences of the entire war. Everyone describes the sound that the rockets made during the flight differently - grinding, howling, roaring. Be that as it may, in combination with subsequent explosions, during which for several seconds, over an area of ​​​​several hectares, the earth mixed with pieces of buildings, equipment, and people flew into the air, this gave a strong psychological effect. When the soldiers occupied enemy positions, they were not met with fire, not because everyone was killed - it was just that the rocket fire drove the survivors crazy.

The psychological component of any weapon should not be underestimated. The German Ju-87 bomber was equipped with a siren that howled during a dive, also suppressing the psyche of those who were on the ground at that moment. And during attacks by German Tiger tanks, the crews anti-tank guns sometimes they left their positions in fear of the steel monsters. "Katyushas" had the same psychological effect. For this terrible howl, by the way, they received the nickname “Stalin’s organs” from the Germans.

It is well known that on September 18, 1941, by order of the People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR No. 308, four rifle divisions of the Western Front (100th, 127th, 153rd and 161st) for the battles near Yelnya - “for military exploits, for organization, discipline and approximate order” - the honorary titles “Guards” were assigned. They were renamed the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Guards respectively. Subsequently, many units and formations of the Red Army that distinguished themselves and were hardened during the war were converted into guards units.

But Moscow researchers Alexander Osokin and Alexander Kornyakov discovered documents from which it follows that the issue of creating guards units was discussed in the circles of the USSR leadership back in August. And the first guards regiment was to be a heavy mortar regiment, armed with rocket artillery combat vehicles.

When did the guard appear?

While getting acquainted with documents about weapons at the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, we discovered a letter from the People's Commissar of General Mechanical Engineering of the USSR P.I. Parshin No. 7529ss dated August 4, 1941 addressed to the Chairman of the State Defense Committee I.V. Stalin with a request to allow the production of 72 M-13 vehicles (later called “Katyushas” in our country) in excess of the plan with ammunition to form one heavy guards mortar regiment.
We decided that there was a typo, since it is known that the guards rank was first awarded by order of the People's Commissar of Defense No. 308 of September 18, 1941 to four rifle divisions.

The main points of the GKO resolution, unknown to historians, read:

"1. Agree with the proposal of the People's Commissar of General Engineering of the USSR Comrade Parshin on the formation of one guards mortar regiment armed with M-13 installations.
2. To assign the name of the People's Commissariat of General Engineering to the newly formed guards regiment.
3. Please note that NCOM is producing equipment for the regiment with systems and ammunition in excess of the established assignment for M-13 for August.”
From the text of the resolution it follows that not only was consent given to produce above-plan M-13 installations, but it was also decided to form a guards regiment on their basis.

The study of other documents confirmed our guess: on August 4, 1941, the concept of “guards” was used for the first time (and without any decision on this matter by the Politburo of the Central Committee, the Presidium Supreme Council or Council of People's Commissars) in relation to one specific regiment with a new type of weapon - M-13 missile launchers, encrypted with the word "mortar" (inscribed personally by Stalin).

It is amazing that the word “guard” for the first time in the years of Soviet power (except for the Red Guard detachments of 1917) was introduced into circulation by People’s Commissar Parshin, a man who was not too close to Stalin and had never even visited his Kremlin office during the war.

Most likely, his letter, printed on August 2, was handed over to Stalin on the same day by military engineer 1st rank V.V. Aborenkov is the deputy head of the GAU for missile launchers, who was in the leader’s office together with the head of the GAU, Colonel General of Artillery N.D. Yakovlev for 1 hour 15 minutes. The regiment created by the decision taken that day became the first mobile regiment in the Red Army. rocket launchers M-13 (with RS-132) - before this, only batteries of these installations were formed (from 3 to 9 vehicles).

It is noteworthy that on the same day, in a memo by the chief of artillery of the Red Army, Colonel General of Artillery N.N. Voronov about the work of 5 rocket artillery installations, Stalin wrote: “To Beria, Malenkov, Voznesensky. Promote this thing with all its might. Increase the production of shells four, five, or six times.”

What gave impetus to the decision to create guards regiment M-13? Let's express our hypothesis. In June-July 1941, by decision of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks, the system of strategic leadership of the armed forces was rebuilt. On June 30, 1941, the State Defense Committee (GKO) was created under the chairmanship of Stalin, to which all power in the country was transferred for the duration of the war. On July 10, the State Defense Committee transformed the Headquarters of the Main Command into the Headquarters of the Supreme Command. The Headquarters included I.V. Stalin (chairman), V.M. Molotov, marshals S.K. Timoshenko, S.M. Budyonny, K.E. Voroshilov, B.M. Shaposhnikov, Army General G.K. Zhukov.

July 19 Stalin becomes people's commissar Defense, and on August 8, 1941, by Politburo decision No. P. 34/319 - “Supreme Commander-in-Chief of all troops of the Workers’ and Peasants’ Red Army and Navy.” On the same day, August 8, the staff of “one guards mortar regiment” was approved.

We take the liberty of suggesting that initially there was talk, perhaps, of the formation of a unit intended to ensure the protection of the Supreme Command Headquarters. Indeed, the staff of the field Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Army during the First World War, which was quite likely taken by Stalin and Shaposhnikov as a prototype, had heavy weapons, in particular, the aviation division of the Headquarters defense.

But in 1941, things did not come to the creation of such a field Headquarters - the Germans were approaching Moscow too quickly, and the management active army Stalin preferred to carry it out from Moscow. Therefore, the regiment of M-13 guard mortars never received the task of guarding the Supreme High Command Headquarters.

On July 19, 1941, Stalin, setting the task for Timoshenko to create strike groups For offensive operations in the Battle of Smolensk and the participation of rocket artillery in them, said: “I think it’s time to move from petty struggles to action in large groups- shelves..."

On August 8, 1941, the regiments of the M-8 and M-13 installations were approved. They were supposed to consist of three or four divisions, three batteries in each division and four installations in each battery (from September 11, all regiments were transferred to a three-divisional structure). The formation of the first eight regiments began immediately. They were equipped with combat vehicles manufactured using the pre-war reserve of components and parts created by the People's Commissariat of General Engineering (since November 26, 1941, transformed into the People's Commissariat of Mortar Weapons).

In full force - with regiments of Katyushas - the Red Army first struck the enemy at the end of August - beginning of September 1941.

As for the M-13 Guards Regiment, conceived for use in the defense of the Supreme Command Headquarters, its formation was completed only in September. Launchers for it were produced in excess of the established task. It is known as the 9th Guards Regiment, which operated near Mtsensk.
It was disbanded on December 12, 1941. There is information that all of its installations had to be blown up when there was a threat of encirclement by the Germans. The second formation of the regiment was completed on September 4, 1943, after which the 9th Guards Regiment fought successfully until the end of the war.

The feat of Captain Flerov

The first salvo of a rocket launcher in the Patriotic War was fired on July 14, 1941 at 15.15 by a battery of seven (according to other sources, four) M-13 launchers at an accumulation of trains of military equipment at the railway junction of the city of Orsha. The commander of this battery (called differently in different sources and reports: experimental, experienced, first, or even all these names at the same time) is indicated by artillery captain I.A. Flerov, who died in 1941 (according to TsAMO documents, missing in action). For courage and heroism, he was posthumously awarded only in 1963 with the Order of the Patriotic War, 1st degree, and in 1995 he was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of Russia.

According to the directive of the Moscow Military District of June 28, 1941, No. 10864, ​​the first six batteries were formed. In the most reliable, in our opinion, source - the military memoirs of Lieutenant General A.I. Nesterenko (“Katyushas are firing.” - Moscow: Voenizdat, 1975) wrote: “On June 28, 1941, the formation of the first battery of field rocket artillery began. It was created in four days at the 1st Moscow Red Banner Artillery School named after L.B. Krasina. This was the now world famous battery of captain I.A. Flerov, who fired the first salvo at the concentration of fascist troops at the Orsha station... Stalin personally approved the distribution of guards mortar units along the fronts, plans for the production of combat vehicles and ammunition...”

The names of the commanders of all six first batteries and the locations of their first salvos are known.

Battery No. 1: 7 M-13 units. Battery commander Captain I.A. Flerov. The first salvo was fired on July 14, 1941 at the freight railway station in the city of Orsha.
Battery No. 2: 9 M-13 units. Battery commander Lieutenant A.M. Kun. The first salvo on July 25, 1941 at the crossing near the village of Kapyrevshchina (north of Yartsevo).
Battery No. 3: 3 M-13 units. Battery commander Lieutenant N.I. Denisenko. The first salvo was fired on July 25, 1941, 4 km north of Yartsevo.
Battery No. 4: 6 M-13 units. Battery commander, senior lieutenant P. Degtyarev. The first salvo on August 3, 1941 near Leningrad.
Battery No. 5: 4 M-13 units. Battery commander, senior lieutenant A. Denisov. The place and date of the first salvo are unknown.
Battery No. 6: 4 M-13 units. Battery commander, senior lieutenant N.F. Dyatchenko. The first salvo was fired on August 3, 1941 in the 12sp 53sd 43A band.

Five of the first six batteries were sent to the troops of the Western direction, where the main blow of the German troops was delivered to Smolensk. It is also known that in addition to the M-13, other types of rocket launchers were delivered to the Western direction.

In the book by A.I. Eremenko’s “At the Beginning of the War” says: “...A telephone message was received from Headquarters with the following content: “It is intended to widely use “eres” in the fight against the fascists and, in connection with this, to try them in battle. You are allocated one M-8 division. Test it and report your conclusion...

We experienced something new near Rudnya... On July 15, 1941, in the afternoon, the unusual roar of rocket mines shook the air. The mines darted upward like red-tailed comets. Frequent and powerful explosions struck the ears and eyes with a strong roar and dazzling shine... The effect of a simultaneous explosion of 320 minutes for 10 seconds exceeded all expectations... This was one of the first combat tests of the "eres".

In the report of Marshals Timoshenko and Shaposhnikov for July 24, 1941, Stalin was informed about the defeat of the German 5th Infantry Division on July 15, 1941 near Rudnya, in which three volleys of the M-8 division played a special role.

It is quite obvious that a sudden salvo of one M-13 battery (16 RS-132 launches in 5-8 seconds) with maximum range 8.5 km was capable of causing serious damage to the enemy. But the battery was not intended to hit a single target. This weapon is effective when working across areas with dispersed enemy manpower and equipment with a simultaneous salvo of several batteries. A separate battery could fire a barrage, stunning the enemy, causing panic in his ranks and stopping his advance for some time.

In our opinion, the purpose of sending the first multiple rocket launchers to the front by battery was, most likely, the desire to cover the headquarters of the front and armies in the direction threatening Moscow.

This is not just a guess. A study of the routes of the first Katyusha batteries shows that, first of all, they ended up in the areas where the headquarters of the Western Front and the headquarters of its armies were based: the 20th, 16th, 19th and 22nd. It is no coincidence that in their memoirs Marshals Eremenko, Rokossovsky, Kazakov, General Plaskov describe precisely the battery-by-battery combat work of the first rocket launchers, which they observed from their command posts.

They indicate increased secrecy in the use of new weapons. IN AND. Kazakov said: “Access to these “touchables” was allowed only to army commanders and members of military councils. Even the chief of artillery of the army was not allowed to see them.”

However, the very first salvo of M-13 rocket launchers, fired on July 14, 1941 at 15:15 at the railway commodity hub of the city of Orsha, was carried out while performing a completely different combat mission - the destruction of several trains with secret weapons, which under no circumstances should was to fall into the hands of the Germans.

A study of the route of the first separate experimental battery M-13 (“Flerov’s battery”) shows that at first it was apparently intended to guard the headquarters of the 20th Army.

Then she was given a new task. On the night of July 6 in the Orsha area, the battery with guards moved west across territory that had already been virtually abandoned Soviet troops. It moved along the Orsha-Borisov-Minsk railway line, loaded with trains heading east. On July 9, the battery and its guards were already in the area of ​​the city of Borisov (135 km from Orsha).

On that day, GKO decree No. 67ss was issued “On the redirection of transport with weapons and ammunition to the disposal of the newly formed NKVD divisions and reserve armies.” It demanded, in particular, to urgently find some very important cargo among the trains leaving for the east, which under no circumstances should fall to the Germans.

On the night of July 13-14, Flerov’s battery received orders to urgently move to Orsha and launch a missile attack on the station. On July 14 at 15:15, Flerov’s battery fired a salvo at echelons with military equipment, located at the Orsha railway junction.
What was in these trains is not known for certain. But there is information that after the salvo, no one approached the affected area for some time, and the Germans allegedly even left the station for seven days, which gives reason to assume that as a result of the missile strike, some toxic substances.

On July 22, in an evening radio broadcast, Soviet announcer Levitan announced the defeat of the German 52nd Chemical Mortar Regiment on July 15. And on July 27, Pravda published information about German secret documents allegedly captured during the defeat of this regiment, from which it followed that the Germans were preparing a chemical attack on Turkey.

Raid of battalion commander Kaduchenko

In the book by A.V. Glushko “Pioneers of Rocket Science” shows a photograph of NII-3 employees headed by Deputy Director A.G. Kostikov after receiving awards in the Kremlin in August 1941. It is indicated that Lieutenant General of Tank Forces V.A. is standing with them in the photo. Mishulin, who was awarded that day Gold Star Hero.

We decided to find out why he was awarded the country's highest award and what relation his award may have to the creation of M-13 missile launchers at NII-3. It turned out that the commander of the 57th Tank Division, Colonel V.A. Mishulin was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union on July 24, 1941 “for the exemplary execution of combat missions of the command... and the courage and heroism shown.” The most amazing thing is that at the same time he was also awarded the rank of general - and not major general, but immediately lieutenant general.

He became the third lieutenant general of tank forces in the Red Army. General Eremenko in his memoirs explains this as a mistake by the cipher operator, who took the title of the signer of the ciphergram to Eremenko's Headquarters with the idea of ​​awarding Mishulin the title of Hero and General.

It is quite possible that this was so: Stalin did not cancel the erroneously signed decree on the award. But just why did he also appoint Mishulin as deputy head of the Main Armored Directorate? Isn't there too much incentive for one officer at once? It is known that after some time General Mishulin, as a representative of Headquarters, was sent to the Southern Front. Usually marshals and members of the Central Committee acted in this capacity.

Did the courage and heroism shown by Mishulin have anything to do with the first Katyusha salvo on July 14, 1941, for which Kostikov and the workers of NII-3 were awarded on July 28?

A study of materials about Mishulin and his 57th Tank Division showed that this division was transferred to the Western Front from the South-Western. Unloaded at Orsha station on June 28 and became part of the 19th Army. The division's control with one motorized rifle guard regiment was concentrated in the area of ​​Gusino station, 50 kilometers from Orsha, where the headquarters of the 20th Army was located at that moment.

At the beginning of July, a tank battalion consisting of 15 tanks, including 7 T-34 tanks, and armored vehicles arrived from the Oryol Tank School to replenish Mishulin’s division.

After the death in battle on July 13 of commander Major S.I. Razdobudko's battalion was headed by his deputy, Captain I.A. Kaduchenko. And it was Captain Kaduchenko who became the first Soviet tank driver, who was awarded the title of Hero during the Patriotic War on July 22, 1941. He received this high rank even two days earlier than his division commander Mishulin for “leading 2 tank companies that defeated an enemy tank column.” In addition, immediately after the award he became a major.

It seems that the awards for division commander Mishulin and battalion commander Kaduchenko could take place if they completed some very important task for Stalin. And most likely, this was to ensure the first salvo of Katyusha rockets against trains with weapons that were not supposed to fall into the hands of the Germans.

Mishulin skillfully organized the escort of the secret Katyusha battery behind enemy lines, including the group assigned to it with T-34 tanks and armored vehicles under the command of Kaduchenko, and then its breakthrough from the encirclement.

On July 26, 1941, the Pravda newspaper published an article “Lieutenant General Mishulin,” which talked about Mishulin’s feat. About how he, wounded and shell-shocked, made his way in an armored vehicle through enemy rear lines to his division, which at that time was fighting fierce battles in the Krasnoye area and the Gusino railway station. It follows from this that commander Mishulin, for some reason, left his division for a short time (most likely, together with Kaduchenko’s tank group) and returned wounded to the division only on July 17, 1941.

It is likely that they carried out Stalin’s instructions to organize support for the “first salvo of Flerov’s battery” on July 14, 1941 at the Orsha station along trains with military equipment.

On the day of the salvo of Flerov’s battery, July 14, GKO decree No. 140ss was issued on the appointment of L.M. Gaidukov - an ordinary employee of the Central Committee, who oversaw the production of multiple launch rocket launchers, authorized by the State Defense Committee for the production of RS-132 missile shells.

On July 28, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR issued two decrees on rewarding the creators of the Katyusha. The first - “for outstanding services in the invention and design of one of the types of weapons that increases the power of the Red Army” A.G. Kostikov was awarded the title of Hero of Socialist Labor.

Secondly, 12 engineers, designers and technicians were awarded orders and medals. The Order of Lenin was awarded to V. Aborenkov, a former military representative who became deputy head of the Main Artillery Directorate for missile technology, and designers I. Gvai and V. Galkovsky. The Order of the Red Banner of Labor was received by N. Davydov, A. Pavlenko and L. Schwartz. The Order of the Red Star was awarded to the designers of NII-3 D. Shitov, A. Popov and the workers of plant No. 70 M. Malov and G. Glazko. Both of these decrees were published in Pravda on July 29, and on July 30, 1941, in an article published in Pravda, the new weapon was called formidable without specification.

Yes, it was a cheap and easy-to-manufacture and easy-to-use fire weapon. It could be quickly produced in many factories and quickly installed on everything that moves - on cars, tanks, tractors, even on sleighs (this is how it was used in Dovator’s cavalry corps). And “eres” were installed on airplanes, boats and railway platforms.

The launchers began to be called “guards mortars,” and their combat crews became the first guardsmen.

In the photo: Gvardeysky rocket launcher M-31-12 in Berlin in May 1945.
This is a modification of the “Katyusha” (by analogy it was called “Andryusha”).
Fired with unguided rockets of 310 mm caliber
(unlike 132 mm Katyusha shells),
launched from 12 guides (2 tiers of 6 cells each).
The installation is located on the chassis of an American Studebaker truck,
which was supplied to the USSR under Lend-Lease.

The first thing that comes to mind when you hear the word “Katyusha” is a deadly artillery vehicle used by the Soviet Union during the. These vehicles were widely used during the war and were known for the force of the jet strike.

The technical purpose of the Katyusha is a rocket artillery combat vehicle (BMRA), such installations cost less than a full-fledged one artillery piece, but at the same time they could literally bring hell down on the enemy’s head in a few seconds. Soviet engineers achieved a balance between firepower, mobility, accuracy and cost-effectiveness in creating this system, which made it world famous.

Creation of a combat vehicle

Work on the creation of Katyusha began in early 1938, when the Jet Research Institute (RNII) in Leningrad received permission to develop its own BMRA. Initially, large-scale testing of weapons began at the end of 1938, but great amount The Soviet army was not impressed by the shortcomings in the car, however, after the system was refined, in 1940, Katyusha was still released in a small batch.

You are probably wondering where the artillery vehicle got its special name - the history of the Katyusha is quite unique. Existence of this weapon was a secret until the very end of the war, during which the combat vehicle, in order to hide its true nature, was marked with the letters “KAT”, which stood for “Kostikova automatic termite”, which is why the soldiers dubbed it Katyusha, in honor of the patriotic song of Mikhail Isakovsky .

Katyusha also made a loud howling sound when fired, and the arrangement of missiles on the gun resembled a church organ, which is why German soldiers called the car “Stalin’s Organ” for the sound and fear that it generated in the ranks of the enemy. The weapon itself was so secret that only NKVD operatives and the most trusted people were trained to operate it, and had permission to do so, but when Katyusha went into mass production, the restrictions were lifted, and the machine came into the possession of the Soviet troops.

Capabilities of BMRA "Katyusha"

Katyusha used an improved aircraft rocket, the RS-132, adapted for ground installation - the M-13.

• The shell contained five kilograms of explosive.
• The vehicle on which the artillery mount was moved - BM-13 - was created specifically for rocket field artillery.
• The missile's flight range reached 8.5 kilometers.
• The dispersion of the projectile after a shot with fragmentation action reached ten meters.
• The installation contained 16 rockets.

A new, improved and enlarged version of the M-13 projectile, the three-hundred-millimeter M-30/31, was developed in 1942. This projectile was also launched from a specialized vehicle called BM-31.

• The bulbous warhead contained more explosive material and was launched, unlike the M-13, not from a rail installation, but from a frame.
• The frame on the BM-31 lacked mobility compared to the BM-13, since the original versions of such a launcher were not designed for mobile platforms.
• The explosive content of the M-31 increased to 29 kilograms, but at the cost of reducing the range to 4.3 km.
• Each frame contained 12 warheads.

A smaller projectile, the M-8, 82 millimeter caliber, attached to a mount on the BM-8, was also used.

• The range of the M-8 reached almost six kilometers, and the projectile itself contained half a kilo of explosive.
• To launch this warhead, a rail installation was used, on which, due to the smaller size of the projectiles, many more missiles could be placed.
• A machine that could hold thirty-six missiles was called BM-8-36, a vehicle that could hold forty-eight was called BM-8-48, and so on.

Initially, the M-13 was equipped only with explosive warheads and was used against concentrations of enemy troops, but the Katyusha, which proved its functionality during the war, began to be equipped with armor-piercing missiles to counter tank troops. Smoke, flare, and other missiles were also developed to complement explosive and armor-piercing warheads. However, the M-31 was still equipped exclusively with explosive shells. With a salvo of more than a hundred missiles, they inflicted not only maximum physical destruction, but also psychological damage to the enemy.

But all such missiles had one drawback - they were not accurate and were only effective in large quantities and in attacks on large targets spread over a territory.

Initially, Katyusha launchers were mounted on a ZIS-5 truck, but as the war progressed, the launchers were mounted on a variety of vehicles, including trains and boats, as well as on thousands of American trucks received during Lend-Lease.

The first battles of the BMRA "Katyusha"

Katyusha made its debut in combat in 1941, during the surprise invasion of German troops into the territory Soviet Union. This was not the best time to deploy the vehicle, as the single battery had only four days of training and the factories for mass production were barely established.

However, the first battery, consisting of seven BM-13 launchers and six hundred M-13 missiles, was sent into battle. At that time, Katyusha was secret development, so a huge number of measures were taken to hide the installation before participating in battle.

On July 7, 1941, the first battery went into battle, attacking the attacking German troops near the Berezina River. German soldiers panicked as a shower of explosive shells rained down on their heads, shell fragments flying several meters away wounded and shell-shocked the soldiers, and the howling sound of the shot demoralized not only the recruits, but also the seasoned soldiers.

The first battery continued to participate in the battle, time after time justifying the expectations placed on it, but in October the enemy soldiers were able to surround the battery - however, they failed to capture it, since the retreating troops Soviet army destroyed shells and launchers to prevent secret weapons from falling into enemy hands.

A salvo of M-13 missiles fired by a battery of four BM-13s within 7-10 seconds launched 4.35 tons of explosives over an area of ​​more than 400 square meters, which was approximately equal to destructive power seventy-two single-caliber artillery batteries.

The excellent demonstration of the combat capabilities of the first BM-13 battery led to mass production of the weapon, and already in 1942 an impressive number of launchers and missiles were available to the Soviet army. They were widely used in the defense of USSR territories and the subsequent attack on Berlin. More than five hundred Katyusha batteries served in the war with great success, and by the end of the war, more than ten thousand launchers and more than twelve million missiles were produced using about two hundred different factories.

The rapid production of guns benefited from the fact that the creation of Katyusha required only light equipment, and the time and resources spent on production were much less than those necessary to create howitzers.

Heirs BMRA " Katyusha"

The Katyusha's success in combat, its simple design and cost-effective production ensured that the weapon is still manufactured and used to this day. “Katyusha” has become a common name for Russian BMRAs of various calibers, along with the prefix “BM”.

The most famous variant, the post-war BM-21 Grad, which entered the army arsenal in 1962, is still in use today. Like the BM-13, the BM-21 is based on simplicity, combat power and efficiency, which ensured its popularity both among the state military and among the militarized opposition, revolutionaries and other illegal groups. The BM-21 has forty missiles, which it launches at a distance of up to 35 kilometers, depending on the type of projectile.

There is also another option that appeared before the BM-21, namely in 1952 - BM-14, with a caliber of 140 mm. Interestingly, this weapon is widely used by extremists because it has a cheap, compact and mobile version. The last confirmed use of BM-14 was in 2013, in Civil War in Syria, where it has once again demonstrated the ability to provide enormous firepower in massive attacks.

This was inherited by the BM-27 and BM-30 BMRAs, which use 220 and 300 mm calibers, respectively. Such Katyushas can be equipped with long-range, system-guided missiles, allowing them to attack the enemy with much greater accuracy at greater distances than during World War II. The range of the BM-27 reaches 20 km, and the range of the BM-30 is up to 90 km. These installations can launch a huge number of projectiles in a very short time, making the old BM-13 look like an innocent toy. A well-coordinated 300-caliber salvo from several batteries can easily level an entire enemy division.

The latest successor to Katyusha, the Tornado MLRS, is a universal missile launcher that combines BM-21, BM-27 and BM-30 missiles on an eight-wheeled chassis. It uses automatic ammunition placement, guidance, satellite navigation and positioning systems that allow it to fire with much greater accuracy than its predecessors. MLRS Tornado - the future of the Russian rocket artillery, ensuring that Katyusha will always remain in demand in the future.

Jet System Salvo Fire BM-13 "Katyusha" -Soviet rocket artillery combat vehicle of the Great Patriotic War period, the most widespread and famous soviet car this class.
Has a modification BM-13N

Modification of Guards rocket-propelled mortars of the "Katyusha" type. Index "N" - normalized. Produced since 1943. It was distinguished by the fact that American Studebaker US6 trucks, supplied to the USSR under Lend-Lease, were used as the chassis.

Characteristics of the BM-13 combat vehicle

Chassis ZiS-6
Number of guides 16
Weight in stowed position without shells, kg 7200
Time to transfer from traveling to combat position, min 2-3
[Charging time, min 5-8
Full salvo time, s 8-10

History of creation

Back in 1921, employees of the Gas Dynamics Laboratory N.I. Tikhomirov and V.A. Artemyev began developing rockets for aircraft.

In 1937-1938, rockets developed by the RNII (GDL together with the GIRD in October 1933 formed the newly organized RNII) under the leadership of G. E. Langemak were adopted by the RKKVF. RS-82 rockets (82 mm caliber rocket) were installed on I-15, I-16, I-153 fighters, during the war - on Il-2 attack aircraft, with the development of the RS-132 - on SB bombers and Il-attack aircraft 2.
In the summer of 1939, RS-82 on I-16 and I-153 were successfully used in battles with Japanese troops on the Khalkhin Gol River.
In 1939-1941, RNII employees I. I. Gvai, V. N. Galkovsky, A. P. Pavlenko, A. S. Popov and others created a multi-charge launcher mounted on a truck.
In March 1941, field tests of BM-13 installations (a combat vehicle with 132 mm caliber shells) were successfully carried out.

The famous “Katyusha” left its unforgettable mark on the history of the Great Patriotic War ever since, on July 14, 1941, this secret weapon under the command of Captain I. A. Flerov literally wiped off the face of the earth the station in the city of Orsha along with the German trains on it. with troops and equipment. The first samples of rockets launched from a mobile carrier (vehicles based on the ZIS-5 truck) were tested at Soviet test sites from the end of 1938.
On June 21, 1941, they were demonstrated to the leaders of the Soviet government, and literally a few hours before the start of the Great Patriotic War, a decision was made to urgently launch mass production of rockets and a launcher, officially named “BM-13.”

It was truly a weapon of unprecedented power - the projectile’s flight range reached eight and a half kilometers, and the temperature at the epicenter of the explosion was one and a half thousand degrees. The Germans repeatedly tried to capture a sample of the Russian miracle technology, but the Katyusha crews strictly adhered to the rule - they could not fall into the hands of the enemy. In case of emergency, the vehicles were equipped with a self-destruct mechanism. From those legendary installations This is essentially the entire history of Russian rocket technology. And rockets for Katyushas were developed by Vladimir Andreevich Artemyev.

The fate of the developers

On November 2, 1937, as a result of the “war of denunciations” within the institute, the director of RNII-3 I. T. Kleymenov and the chief engineer G. E. Langemak were arrested. On January 10 and 11, 1938, respectively, they were shot at the NKVD Kommunarka training ground.
Rehabilitated in 1955.
By decree of the President of the USSR M. S. Gorbachev dated June 21, 1991, I. T. Kleimenov, G. E. Langemak, V. N. Luzhin, B. S. Petropavlovsky, B. M. Slonimer and N. I. Tikhomirov were posthumously awarded the title of Hero of Socialist Labor.

Device

The weapon is relatively simple, consisting of rail guides and a device for guiding them. For aiming, rotating and lifting mechanisms and an artillery sight were provided. There were two jacks at the rear of the vehicle, providing greater stability when firing. One machine could accommodate from 14 to 48 guides.
Due to secrecy, 30 kg of explosives were installed on each car.
The crew (calculation) consisted of 5 - 7 people,
Gun commander - 1.
Gunner - 1.
Driver - 1.
Loader - 2 - 4.
The crew swore an oath to destroy the car, even at the cost of their lives, but not to give the car to the enemy.

The BM-13 "Katyusha" includes the following combat weapons:
Combat vehicle (BM) MU-2 (MU-1) ;
Missiles .

Katyusha rockets

Unguided surface-to-surface missile - simple rocket, equipped with an engine, a warhead with a fuse and an aerodynamic stabilizer (tail). Aiming is accomplished by setting the initial launch angle, usually using a guide beam or pipe, and sometimes by setting the engine run time.

Let's look at the most common M-13 projectile


Characteristics of the M-13 missile

Caliber, mm 132
Stabilizer blade span, mm 300
Length, mm 1465
Weight, kg:
finally equipped projectile 42,36
equipped warhead 21,3
bursting charge 4,9
loaded jet engine 20,8
Projectile speed, m/s:
muzzle (when leaving the guide) 70
maximum 355
Length of the active trajectory section, m 125
Maximum firing range, m 8470

origin of name

It is known why BM-13 installations began to be called “guards mortars” at one time. The BM-13 installations were not actually mortars, but the command sought to keep their design secret for as long as possible:

When, at a firing range, soldiers and commanders asked a GAU representative to name the “true” name of the combat installation, he advised: “Call the installation as an ordinary artillery piece. This is important for maintaining secrecy."

.

There is no single version of why the BM-13 began to be called “Katyusha”. There are several assumptions:

Based on the title of Blanter’s song “Katyusha”, which became popular before the war, based on the words of Isakovsky. The version is convincing, since the battery fired for the first time on July 14, 1941 (on the 23rd day of the war). On July 14 at 15.15, on the direct order of the deputy chief of artillery of the Western Front, General G.S. Cariophylli, Flerov’s battery fired a salvo at the Orsha railway junction. This was the first combat use"Katyusha". Shot from high steep mountain- the association with the high steep bank in the song immediately arose among the fighters. Finally, the former sergeant of the headquarters company of the 217th separate communications battalion of the 144th Infantry Division of the 20th Army, Andrei Sapronov, is alive, now a military historian, who gave it this name. Red Army soldier Kashirin, having arrived with him at the battery after the shelling of Rudnya, exclaimed in surprise: “What a song!” “Katyusha,” answered Andrei Sapronov (from the memoirs of A. Sapronov in the Rossiya newspaper No. 23 of June 21-27, 2001 and in the Parliamentary Gazette No. 80 of May 5, 2005). Through the communications center of the headquarters company, the news about a miracle weapon called “Katyusha” within 24 hours became the property of the entire 20th Army, and through its command - the entire country. On July 13, 2011, the veteran and “godfather” of Katyusha turned 90 years old.

There is also a version that the name is associated with the “K” index on the mortar body - the installations were produced by the Kalinin plant (according to another source, by the Comintern plant). And front-line soldiers loved to give nicknames to their weapons. For example, the M-30 howitzer was nicknamed “Mother”, the ML-20 howitzer gun was nicknamed “Emelka”. Yes, and the BM-13 was at first sometimes called “Raisa Sergeevna,” thus deciphering the abbreviation RS (missile).

The third version suggests that this is what the girls from the Moscow Kompressor plant who worked on the assembly dubbed these cars.

Germans about Katyusha
In the German troops, these machines were called “Stalin’s organs” due to the external resemblance of the rocket launcher to the pipe system of this musical instrument and the powerful, stunning roar that was produced when the missiles were launched.

During the battles for Poznan and Berlin, the M-30 and M-31 single-launch installations received the nickname “Russian Faustpatron” from the Germans, although these shells were not used as an anti-tank weapon. With “dagger” (from a distance of 100-200 meters) launches of these shells, the guards broke through any walls.

Foreign "analogs"

Germany

"Nebelwerfer" - German towed rocket mortar from the Second World War. For the characteristic sound made by the shells, he received the nickname “donkey” from Soviet soldiers.
Maximum range, m: 6 km