Rocket artillery, presented today by the Tornado MLRS, is a completely different type of military. A powerful new weapon created by Russian designers and engineers is radically changing the idea of ​​the massive use of rocket artillery in the front line. The rocket launcher can now fire not just across areas, but is a high-precision weapon capable of causing irreparable damage to the enemy in a matter of seconds.

Looking back to history

Even during the Second World War, it became known what destructive capabilities it had. rocket artillery. On the Soviet-German front, rocket launchers volley fire BM-13, mounted on the chassis of a ZIS-6 truck, appeared in the summer of 1941. Fire test of a new missile artillery system happened on July 14, 1941, during stubborn battles with the advancing by German troops near the city of Orsha. As a result of combat use, it turned out that the new soviet weapons produced a colossal psychological effect. Talk about high efficiency rocket launchers it was not necessary, since the rockets fired from conventional metal guides did not provide the required accuracy of impact. Despite obvious shortcomings in the design of the installation, rocket artillery contributed to achieving victory over the enemy.

Only after the war, when completely different technologies appeared, did the USSR manage to create powerful multiple launch rocket systems capable of inflicting serious damage on the enemy, both in manpower and in logistical terms. The first success came in missile system salvo fire BM-21 "Grad", which for the first time showed its firepower during the Soviet-Chinese armed conflict on Far East, near Damansky Island. Having received excellent results from the work of Soviet rocket artillery, the Soviet Union decided to create more powerful multiple launch rocket systems. The power could be increased by increasing the caliber of the rockets and increasing the accuracy when firing. Following the Grad MLRS into service Soviet army Hurricane and Smerch rocket systems were adopted.

All three multiple launch rocket systems, which appeared during the Soviet Union, continue to be in service with the current Russian army. However, even such successful and successful developments have their own technical and technological resource limits. The main drawback that all of the listed reactive systems suffered from - low accuracy - has now been overcome. Today, the new Tornado MLRS has the best tactical and technical characteristics for rocket artillery. This system can easily be called a weapon of the 21st century, formidable, powerful and high-tech.

Today, when it is already 2017, a new rocket launcher has passed State tests. There is no official information yet about the adoption of the new missile system. However, according to various sources, the new system continues to be produced in limited quantities. Today, across the entire armed forces of the Russian Federation, there are only 30-40 new rocket systems, which can be included in individual missile and artillery divisions. It was assumed that the new multiple launch rocket system would be able to completely replace the Grad, Uragan and Smerch MLRS in the troops by 2020, which in most cases have exhausted their technological resource.

The future of new weapons

When creating a new multiple launch rocket system, the designers decided to follow the path of unifying the main systems of the new weapon. It was planned to create two modifications at once:

• MLRS 9K51M "Tornado - G" to replace artillery missile systems"Grad";
• complex 9K515 “Tornado-S”, to replace the Smerch combat missile systems.

In the first case, we are talking about rocket artillery equipped with 122-mm rockets. The second option involved the creation of a rocket launcher capable of firing 300 mm caliber rockets.

Information that there is also a third version of the Uragan-U MLRS has not been confirmed. Probably, the confusion arose due to the similarity of the name with the Ural car brand, a modification of which was called “Tornado”.

The main innovation that distinguishes the new weapon from its old counterparts is the presence of an automated fire control system (AFCS) “Kapustnik-BM”. In addition, the missile complex received a more advanced transport base. The installation is equipped with new unguided rocket projectiles of 112 and 300 mm caliber.

The maximum flight range of 300 mm caliber rockets is 120 km. This is significantly more than the data possessed by the Smerch missiles. New unguided missiles can be equipped with high-explosive fragmentation or cluster warheads. Modernization allowed rocket engines rockets, which will increase the flight range to 200 km. During a full salvo, all 40 fired Tornado-G MLRS shells can cover an area of ​​65 hectares. A missile and artillery division can accordingly cover an area 3-4 times larger.

The system can fire in one volley or in single shots, which indicates the versatility of the system.

Design Features

Like its predecessors, the new MLRS has tubular guides assembled into a single unit. On new car"Tornado-G" the number of guides was 30 pieces, two blocks of 12 launch tubes each. For the Tornado-S system, the number of guides is 12 pieces, six pipes in two blocks. Significant changes have also occurred in terms of maintenance of the missile system. The crew of the Tornado MLRS was reduced to 2 people. Full automation of the process reduced the control time allocated for deployment, even taking into account a poorly prepared position. It should be noted that the launcher received a new loading mechanism. Previously, loading of launch tubes was carried out using a crane, one rocket into each tube. The entire loading process could take 15-20 minutes.

In a modern installation, the loading process by the crew is carried out in a matter of minutes. Reload speed is key for this weapon system. The shorter the time interval between salvoes, the higher the probability of fire hitting targets. A delay in reloading may leave the missile launcher vulnerable to a retaliatory strike.

The missile system is installed on the Ural automobile chassis and on MAZ-543M and Kamaz tractors, which have increased cross-country ability. Both variants have completely new guidance systems remote control, thanks to which projectiles are aimed at the target inside the launcher cabin. Manual aiming mode can only be used in exceptional cases. The operator's main job is to control the position of the missile system in relation to the location of the target. The GLONASS navigation satellite system is a mandatory attribute of the new missile and artillery complex. Thanks to its presence, the accuracy of a missile salvo has increased.

Our own satellite navigation system GLONASS, the development of which began back in 1982, can significantly improve guidance accuracy modern systems weapons. Today, more than two dozen satellites deployed in orbit, together with relay satellites, provide high accuracy in determining coordinates. Modern missile weapons are equipped with receivers that provide control over compliance with target designations.

Operating principle

The artillery missile system operates on the following principle. After obtaining the exact parameters of the target, it is linked to the coordinate system. The collection of such data is carried out by aerial and space reconnaissance, which has optical and radio engineering means of data collection. In the current conditions, combat work is being carried out to train personnel in the methodology of collecting data on targets on their own, without the involvement of funds and components of the Military Space Forces of the Russian Federation.

The emphasis is on using unmanned aerial vehicles for these purposes. aircraft. By making a preliminary launch of a drone into the target area, the combat crew will be able to receive necessary information about the target and coordinates. After receiving target data, the necessary parameters are transmitted to each launcher, which has already taken its pre-launch position.

Further fire control is carried out using the combat control and communications hardware complex, which replaced the conventional radio station, guidance and fire control systems. Both the first and second systems have a single computer information base, which is used to integrate all computational processes regarding the ballistics of a flying missile.

In other words, new modern electronic equipment allows you to accurately aim a missile at a target in a matter of minutes, prepare it for launch and control the flight of the missile during autonomous flight.

The electronics and navigation system adjust the control surfaces taking into account meteorological factors. As a result, the missile during flight retains all target designation parameters specified before launch.

Possessing similar characteristics, the Russian new-generation Tornado multiple launch rocket system is significantly superior to its outdated Soviet counterparts, the BM-21 Grad and the Smerch MLRS. The domestic missile and artillery system is not inferior to foreign analogues, which also have an automated loading mechanism and satellite control over the flight of military projectiles.

In the current conditions, work is underway to improve the warhead of the MLRS. It is planned to equip the missiles with radio-electronic filling, used for reconnaissance purposes as a target designator. According to some reports, a missile system capable of firing cruise missiles can be deployed on the basis of the Tornado-S MLRS.

In the common consciousness, defense technology is usually associated with the cutting edge of science and technology. In fact, one of the main properties of military equipment is its conservatism and continuity. This is explained by the colossal cost of weapons. Among the most important tasks in development new system weapons - the use of the reserve on which money was spent in the past.

Precision vs Mass

And the guided missile of the Tornado-S complex was created precisely according to this logic. Its ancestor is the Smerch MLRS projectile, developed in the 1980s at NPO Splav under the leadership of Gennady Denezhkin (1932−2016) and in service since 1987 national army. It was a 300-mm caliber projectile, 8 m long and weighing 800 kg. It could deliver a warhead weighing 280 kg over a distance of 70 km. The most interesting property"Smerch" had a stabilization system introduced into it.

Russian modernized multiple launch rocket system, successor to the 9K51 Grad MLRS.

Before this system missile weapons were divided into two classes - controlled and uncontrollable. Guided missiles had high accuracy, achieved through the use of an expensive control system - usually inertial, supplemented by correction using digital maps to increase accuracy (like the American MGM-31C Pershing II missiles). Unguided rockets were cheaper, their low accuracy was compensated either by the use of thirty-kiloton nuclear warhead(as in the MGR-1 Honest John missile), or a salvo of cheap, mass-produced ammunition, as in the Soviet Katyushas and Grads.

“Smerch” was supposed to hit targets at a distance of 70 km with non-nuclear ammunition. And in order to hit an area target at such a distance with an acceptable probability, a very large number of unguided missiles in a salvo were required - after all, their deviations accumulate with distance. This is neither economically nor tactically profitable: there are very few targets that are too large, and scattering a lot of metal to guarantee coverage of a relatively small target is too expensive!

Soviet and Russian 300 mm multiple launch rocket system. Currently, the Smerch MLRS is being replaced with the Tornado-S MLRS.

"Tornado": new quality

Therefore, a relatively cheap stabilization system was introduced into the Smerch, inertial, working on gas-dynamic (deflecting gases flowing from the nozzle) rudders. Its accuracy was sufficient for the salvo—and each launcher housed a dozen launch tubes—to hit its target with an acceptable probability. After being put into service, Smerch was improved along two lines. The range of combat units grew - cluster anti-personnel fragmentation units appeared; cumulative fragmentation, optimized to destroy lightly armored vehicles; anti-tank self-aiming combat elements. In 2004, the 9M216 “Volnenie” thermobaric warhead entered service.

And at the same time, fuel mixtures in solid fuel engines were improved, which increased the firing range. Now it ranges from 20 to 120 km. At some point, the accumulation of changes in quantitative characteristics led to a transition to a new quality - the emergence of two new MLRS systems under the common name “Tornado”, continuing the “meteorological” tradition. “Tornado-G” is the most popular vehicle; it will replace the Grads, which have honestly served their time. Well, the Tornado-S is a heavy vehicle, the successor to the Smerch.

As you can understand, the Tornado will retain the most important characteristic - the caliber of the launch tubes, which will ensure the possibility of using expensive older generation ammunition. The length of the projectile varies within a few tens of millimeters, but this is not critical. Depending on the type of ammunition, the weight may vary slightly, but this is again automatically taken into account by the ballistic computer.

Minutes and again “Fire!”

The most noticeable change in the launcher is the loading method. If previously the 9T234-2 transport-loading vehicle (TZM) used its crane to load 9M55 missiles into the launch tubes of a combat vehicle one at a time, which took the trained crew a quarter of an hour, now the launch tubes with Tornado-S missiles are placed in special containers , and the crane will install them in minutes.

Needless to say, how important the reloading speed is for MLRS, rocket artillery, which must unleash salvo fire on particularly important targets. The shorter the breaks between salvos, the more missiles can be fired at the enemy and the less time the vehicle will remain in a vulnerable position.

And the most important thing is the introduction of long-range guided missiles into the Tornado-S complex. Their appearance became possible thanks to Russia’s own global navigation satellite system GLONASS, deployed since 1982 - another confirmation of the colossal role of technological heritage in the creation of modern weapons systems. 24 GLONASS satellites deployed in an orbit at an altitude of 19,400 km, with working together with a pair of Luch relay satellites provide meter-level accuracy in determining coordinates. By adding a cheap GLONASS receiver to the already existing missile control loop, the designers received a weapon system with a CEP of several meters (exact data is not published for obvious reasons).

Rockets to battle!

How is the combat work of the Tornado-S complex carried out? First of all, he needs to get the exact coordinates of the target! Not only to detect and recognize the target, but also to “link” it to the coordinate system. This task must be performed by space or air reconnaissance using optical, infrared and radio equipment. However, perhaps artillerymen will be able to solve some of these tasks themselves, without videoconferencing. The 9M534 experimental projectile can be delivered to a previously reconnoitred target area by the Tipchak UAV, which will transmit information about the coordinates of the targets to the control complex.

Further from the control complex, the target coordinates go to combat vehicles. They have already taken up firing positions, mapped themselves topographically (this is done using GLONASS) and determined at what azimuth and at what elevation angle the launch tubes need to be deployed. These operations are controlled using combat control and communications equipment (ABUS), which replaced the standard radio station, and an automated guidance and fire control system (ASUNO). Both of these systems operate on a single computer, thereby achieving integration of digital communication functions and the operation of a ballistic computer. These same systems, presumably, will enter the exact coordinates of the target into the missile control system, doing this at the last moment before launch.

Let's imagine that the target range is 200 km. The launch tubes will be deployed at the maximum angle for the Smerch of 55 degrees - this way it will be possible to save on drag, because most of the projectile’s flight will take place in the upper layers of the atmosphere, where there is noticeably less air. When the rocket leaves the launch tubes, its control system will begin to operate autonomously. The stabilization system will, based on data received from inertial sensors, correct the movement of the projectile using gas-dynamic rudders - taking into account thrust asymmetry, wind gusts, etc.

Well, the GLONASS system receiver will begin to receive signals from satellites and determine the rocket’s coordinates from them. As everyone knows, the receiver satellite navigation it takes some time to determine your position - navigators in phones strive to bind to cell towers to speed up the process. There are no telephone towers along the flight path, but there is data from the inertial part of the control system. With their help, the GLONASS subsystem will determine the exact coordinates, and on their basis, corrections for the inertial system will be calculated.

Not by chance

It is unknown what algorithm underlies the operation of the guidance system. (The author would have applied Pontryagin optimization, created by a domestic scientist and successfully used in many systems.) One thing is important - by constantly clarifying its coordinates and adjusting the flight, the rocket will go to a target located at a distance of 200 km. We do not know which part of the gain in range is due to new fuels, and which part is achieved due to the fact that more fuel can be put into a guided missile, reducing the weight of the warhead.

The diagram shows the operation of the Tornado-S MLRS - precision missiles are aimed at the target using space-based means.

Why can you add fuel? Due to greater accuracy! If we place a projectile with an accuracy of a few meters, then we can destroy a small target with a smaller charge, but the energy of the explosion decreases quadratically, we shoot twice as accurately - we get a fourfold gain in destructive power. Well, what if the target is not a targeted one? Say, a division on the march? Will new guided missiles, if equipped with cluster warheads, become less effective than the old ones?

But no! Stabilized missiles of early versions of Smerch delivered heavier warheads to a closer target. Nose big mistakes. The salvo covered a significant area, but the ejected cassettes with fragmentation or cumulative fragmentation elements were distributed randomly - where two or three cassettes opened nearby, the density of damage was excessive, and somewhere insufficient.

Now it is possible to open the cassette or throw out a cloud of thermobaric mixture for a volumetric explosion with an accuracy of a few meters, exactly where it is necessary for optimal destruction of an area target. This is especially important when shooting at armored vehicles with expensive self-aiming combat elements, each of which is capable of hitting a tank - but only with an accurate hit...

The high accuracy of the Tornado-S missile also opens up new possibilities. For example, for the Kama 9A52−4 MLRS with six launch tubes based on KamAZ, such a vehicle will be lighter and cheaper, but will retain the ability to carry out long-range strikes. Well, with mass production, which reduces the cost of on-board electronics and precision mechanics, guided missiles can have a price comparable to the cost of conventional, unguided projectiles. This will be able to bring the firepower of domestic rocket artillery to a qualitatively new level.

After the ever-memorable Katyusha, our Armed Forces have always paid special attention to multiple launch rocket systems. This is not surprising: they are relatively cheap, easy to manufacture, but at the same time they are extremely mobile, ensuring the defeat of the enemy’s manpower and material base almost anywhere where hostilities take place.

One of the most effective representatives of this family was the Smerch system. Over the entire period of its use, this MLRS has proven itself to be an effective and extremely reliable weapon.

What can the system be used for?

The Smerch was designed to destroy both enemy personnel and heavily armored rolling stock. Using this system, command centers and communication centers can be destroyed, and can also be remotely installed at a distance of up to 70 km.

History of creation

In 1961, the M-21 MLRS was adopted by the USSR Armed Forces, the characteristics of which did not completely suit the Soviet military. Therefore, at the end of the 1970s, scientific research was quickly carried out at the State Research and Production Enterprise "Splav" aimed at creating a weapon that would ensure more reliable destruction of targets by equipping it with powerful projectiles with a high content of explosives.

As a result, in mid-1980, the Smerch project was sent to the state expert commission for consideration. This MLRS ensured the delivery of a projectile over a distance of up to 70 km. Let us recall that the military requirements then provided for a chassis that would allow maneuvering on terrain at speeds of up to 70 km/h (with high cross-country ability).

Start of production

New rocket launcher"Smerch" met all the stated requirements, had great prospects due to the low cost of production, and therefore already in 1985 a decree was issued to begin work on mass production of the system. Already in 1987, the work was completely completed, and the first “Smerchs” began test shooting.

At the beginning of the next year, the MLRS (taking into account the elimination of some shortcomings and comments) was finally recommended for adoption by the country.

Main characteristics of the prototype

The system adopted for service fired 200 mm caliber shells, with a range of effective enemy suppression of 20/70 km. A huge advantage of the type is that their action was not much inferior to the combat characteristics of the “blanks” previously adopted for service.

Thus, the range of destruction of lying (!) enemy infantry exceeds 1300 meters from the epicenter of the charge explosion. One tracked chassis could carry from 25 to 35 shells.

Characteristics of the system adopted for service

Despite all the above performance characteristics, military experts were not completely satisfied with the destructive power of the shells. After revision, the final version of the Smerch MLRS was born, the performance characteristics of which are given below.

Thus, the caliber was raised to 300 mm, the weight of the projectile was increased to 815 kilograms. The charge itself has a mass of more than 250 kilograms. The firing range remained the same (maximum - 90 kilometers). This time, the designers provided not only a tracked (object 123), but also a wheeled chassis based on the MAZ-543A vehicle.

It should be noted that the 9k58 Smerch MLRS is precisely a complex that includes several structural elements at once.

Main components

• Chassis 9A52-2 based on MAZ-543A.
• Transport and loading machine 9T234-2.
• The shells themselves.
• shooting and correction "Vivarium".
• Facilities for training and training of complex operators.
• Automotive complex for topographical study of terrain 1T12-2M.
• Direction finding system 1B44.
• Equipment for repair and maintenance of material parts 9F381.

Deployed performance characteristics

As mentioned above, the 9A52-2 chassis was created on the basis of the MAZ-543A car, whose wheel arrangement is 8x8. As for the artillery part, it includes sixteen guides, a rotating mechanism with sighting and correction devices, as well as electromechanical and hydraulic stabilizing devices.

Guidance and rotation mechanisms can direct projectiles at an angle of 5-55 degrees. Horizontal guidance is within 30 degrees in each direction. In this way, the Smerch rocket system differs in many respects from the Hurricane, which has a horizontal guidance limit of the same 30 degrees (15 degrees per side). To make the installation more stable when firing, there are two hydraulic stops in the rear part, which can be manually brought to their original position.

Another advantage of the complex is the fact that rockets can be transported directly in the guides. Considering that the chassis vehicle is equipped with night vision devices and a high-quality radio station, even night transportation does not present any particular difficulties.

Guide Details

The guides themselves are made in the form of thick-walled pipes, in the walls of which there is a screw groove, to which the pin of the reactive charge clings at the moment the shot is fired. This pin is an analogue of rifling in barrels small arms, since it sets the required flight vector of the projectile.

The entire set of guides is rigidly fixed on the rectangular cradle. Thanks to the two axles with which it is connected to the upper machine, this base can be accurately aimed at the target using rotary mechanisms.

The charge is held on a given trajectory using drop-down stabilizers (like RPG shots). The Smerch multiple launch rocket system covers more than 67 hectares at one time!

Most often, shooting is carried out from closed positions. It is possible to control fire directly from the operator's cabin. The calculation of the complex includes four people per Peaceful time and six - in the military. A BM commander, one gunner, and a driver are appointed. The number of soldiers servicing the weapon varies.

A little about shells

The most commonly used standard high explosive shell 9M55F. Head part- solid, the weight of the explosive does not exceed 100 kg. They are used to treat advanced enemy fortifications, to combat lodged infantry and destroy light armored vehicles on the march.

The 9M55K model was developed specifically for the destruction of enemy personnel. The head of each projectile contains 72 separable elements (2 kilograms each) with explosive and destructive elements. Just 10-12 such charges are enough to completely destroy a standard motorized infantry company.

On the contrary, the 9M55K1 projectile was developed specifically to combat armored vehicles (including heavy tanks). In its head there are five projectiles with automatic aiming. If the Smerch combat system is used in the role of a “tank hunter,” then a simultaneous salvo of just four vehicles is sufficient to completely destroy an entire tank company (!).

Other mechanisms

The rotating part of the machine is the most complex in its design. Its design includes a rocking chair, rotating, lifting and compensating mechanisms, as well as a manual guidance mechanism and workplace guidance operator. Locking mechanisms are important (including for the pumping hydraulics), on which shooting accuracy largely depends. The compensation mechanism includes a pair of torsion bars and fastening parts.

In general, the Smerch MLRS, a photo of which is in the article, is subjected to catastrophic overloads during salvo fire, so not only the shooting accuracy, but also the safety of the entire crew depends on the state of the compensatory mechanisms.

In normal mode, a hydroelectric drive is used to guide the guides to the target. If the mechanism fails or is damaged, there is a manual drive. When moving, all rotating parts are blocked by locking blocks. In addition, the hydraulic lock of the rocking chair greatly relieves the entire complex when performing shooting.

The sighting system includes the proven and proven sight D726-45. The goniometer device is the usual standard PG-1M gun panorama.

What does the Smerch complex provide?

• Complete safety of the crew, which provides the ability to conduct both combat and training shooting.
• Possibility of single and salvo fire. If a salvo strike is carried out, then all the shells go away in 38 seconds. This distinguishes the Smerch rocket artillery from its other analogues, which require more time to fire.
• If there is a possibility that the firing crew will be hit by sniper or harassing fire from the enemy, then it is possible to control fire from cover located at a distance of up to 60 meters from the vehicle.
• More than half of the control components are duplicated. Even if the main elements fail, you can aim at the target and shoot manually.

Other features

Since the complex was put into service relatively recently (in 1987), there are currently no plans to remove it from production. Moreover, today several programs have been developed to modernize the Smerchs currently in service.

So, it was within the framework of this program that the complex received a system automatic control fire "Vivarium", although before that the "Kapustnik" was installed, which was simultaneously used in the "Uragan" MLRS.

Traditionally, our designers took care of the flawless operation of all systems in those climatic conditions, which can be found throughout the territory former Union. Thus, the Smerch multiple launch rocket system can be used at temperatures from -50 to +45 degrees Celsius.

In addition, today operators combat complex have the ability to clearly see the target, even in the absence of pre-issued coordinates or communication with the gunner. The fact is that (in full accordance with the rearmament program until 2020), the equipment of the updated Smerchs works perfectly with the guidance of unmanned aerial vehicles, which are currently also being adopted by our aircraft.

The same applies to other guidance control systems that are already in service or are just being developed. Thus, in combat conditions, operators can use the guidance systems of Hurricanes or Grads. In general, the Smerch MLRS is surprisingly “plastic”, which provides an incredible range of possibilities for its use.

The order of combat use

As in all other cases, the use of this multiple rocket launcher system is fully subject to the special provisions of the Charter.

First, the command post of a brigade of MLRS vehicles must receive data about the enemy, as well as about his location. Based on the information obtained, calculations are made about the direction of the impact. The type of ammunition, the density of fire, and its adjustment depending on the conditions on the ground are selected. After this, all information is transmitted to the command post of the division that was selected to solve the corresponding combat mission.

After this, the command staff studies the received data, correlating them with the available resources. Considering that the Smerch is a reactive system, its operation requires a fairly open and spacious position, since in heavily wooded or mountainous terrain, launching projectiles may be unsafe for the operators themselves.

The transmitted data is processed on the computing facilities of the Smerch battery (six machines). Everything happens automatically, since the military has repeatedly found out that this approach dramatically increases the effectiveness of fire. In addition, this reduces the time required to bring the complex into combat position by hundreds of times.

Immediately after this, the unit commanders wait for the order to open fire on enemy positions.

That's what "Smerch" is. This MLRS has proven to be a surprisingly effective and reliable weapon, and therefore is in service today with dozens of countries around the world. Modernized versions of it are constantly supplied to our troops today.

The Smerch long-range multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) is designed to destroy any group targets at long range, the vulnerable elements of which are open and covered manpower, unarmored, lightly armored and armored vehicles of motorized infantry and tank companies, artillery units, tactical missiles, anti-aircraft systems and helicopters in parking lots, destruction of command posts, communications centers and military-industrial structures.

The Smerch MLRS entered service in 1987 and is still rated as the most powerful in the world. The system was developed in the early 80s by the State Scientific and Production Enterprise "Splav" (Tula) in collaboration with more than 20 other enterprises of the USSR. The design began under the leadership of the general designer of the State Research and Production Enterprise "Splav" - A.N. Ganichev, and ended under the leadership of G.A. Denezhkin.

A number of fundamentally new technical solutions embodied in the design of this system and the missile allow it to be classified as a completely new generation of this kind. Having created the MLRS MLRS, the Americans came to the conclusion that a firing range of 30-40 km is the maximum for the MLRS. Its further increase leads to too much dispersion of the projectiles. The rockets developed for the Smerch MLRS have a unique design that ensures hit accuracy 2-3 times higher than that of foreign rocket artillery systems.

The 9K58 "Smerch" MLRS is close to tactical missile systems due to its long firing range and the effectiveness of hitting a target, therefore, along with them, it was tested and put into service in military unit 42202.
In 1989, a modernized model of the 9A52-2 MLRS was released.
Currently, the Smerch MLRS is in service with the armies of Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Kuwait and the United United Arab Emirates. Representatives of India and China have shown interest in purchasing this system.
The Smerch MLRS includes the following combat weapons:
Combat vehicle (BM) 9K58;
Transport-loading vehicle 9T234-2;
Missiles;
Educational and training means 9F827;
Special kit arsenal equipment and tool 9F819;
Complex of funds automated control fire (KSAUO) 9S729M1 "Slepok-1";
Vehicle for topographic survey 1T12-2M;
Radio direction-finding meteorological complex 1B44.

The launcher consists of an artillery unit and a four-axle chassis of a MAZ-543 all-terrain vehicle. The artillery unit is mounted in the rear of the wheeled chassis, and in front are the driver's cabin (on the left in the direction of travel), the engine and transmission compartment and the crew cabin, which houses radio communications and fire control system equipment.
The MLRS provides combat and operational characteristics at any time of the day and year in the range of surface temperatures from +50 to -50C.

"Smerch" is a weapon of a new quality level; it has no analogues in terms of range and effectiveness of fire, area of ​​destruction of manpower and armored vehicles. If "Grad" covers an area of ​​4 hectares at a distance of 20 km, "Hurricane" - 29 hectares at a distance of 35 km, MLRS - 33 hectares at a distance of 30 km, then "Smerch" has a fantastic affected area - 67 hectares (672 thousand sq. m) with a salvo range from 20 to 70 km, in the near future - up to a hundred. Moreover, “Smerch” burns everything, even armored vehicles.

The 300-mm Smerch MLRS shells have a classic aerodynamic design and are equipped with an efficient solid fuel engine running on mixed fuel. Distinctive feature projectiles is the presence of a flight control system that corrects the trajectory of movement in pitch and yaw. Due to the use of this system, the accuracy of Smerch's hits was increased by 2 times (does not exceed 0.21% of the salvo range, that is, about 150 m, which brings its accuracy closer to artillery pieces.), and the accuracy of fire is 3 times. The correction is carried out by gas-dynamic rudders driven by high-pressure gas from the on-board gas generator. In addition, stabilization of the projectile in flight occurs due to its rotation around the longitudinal axis, provided by preliminary spinning while moving along a tubular guide and supported in flight by installing the blades of the drop-down stabilizer at a certain angle to the longitudinal axis of the projectile.

The ammunition includes the following types of shells:
9M55F projectile with a detachable monoblock high-explosive fragmentation warhead;
9M55K projectile with a cassette warhead containing 72 fragmentation-type combat elements;
9M55K1 projectile with a cluster warhead containing five self-aiming ammunition;
9M55K4 projectile with cassette warhead for anti-tank mining of terrain;
9M55K5 projectile with a cassette warhead with cumulative fragmentation warheads;
9M55S projectile with thermobaric warhead;
9M528 projectile with high-explosive fragmentation warhead.

Firing can be carried out with single shells or in a salvo. A full salvo of a combat vehicle is fired in 38 seconds. Projectiles are launched from the cockpit of the combat vehicle or using a remote control. The power of a salvo of three Smerch MLRS installations is equal in effectiveness to the “work” of two brigades armed with 9K79 Tochka-U missile systems. A salvo of one vehicle covers an area of ​​672 thousand square meters. A salvo of 12 9M55K missiles with cluster high-explosive fragmentation elements covers an area of ​​400,000 square meters. m.
It is also characteristic of the Smerch adjustable projectile that out of its 800 kg combat unit is 280 - this is the ideal ratio between the main engine and the destructive elements. The cassette contains 72 rounds of ammunition weighing 2 kg. The angle of their meeting with the target (with the ground, trenches, enemy military equipment) is not like that of a conventional projectile - from 30 to 60 degrees, but due to a special device it is strictly vertical - 90 degrees. The cones of such “meteorites” easily make holes in towers, the top covering of armored personnel carriers, combat vehicles, self-propelled guns where the armor is not very thick, and even the covers of tank transmissions.

Modernization of the BM 9A52-2 in terms of the introduction of combat control and communications equipment (ABUS) and an automated guidance and fire control system (ASUNO) made it possible to additionally provide:
automated high-speed reception (transmission) of information and its protection from unauthorized access, visual display of information on the board and its storage;
autonomous topographical reference and orientation of the vehicle on the ground with display on an electronic map;
automated calculation of firing settings and flight mission data;
aimless guidance of a package of guides without the crew leaving the cockpit.

An important contribution to increasing the combat effectiveness of the Smerch MLRS was made by the Vivarium automated fire control system, developed and produced by Tomsk production association"Circuit". This system combines several command and staff vehicles at the disposal of the commander and chief of staff of the MLRS brigade, as well as the commanders of divisions (up to three) and batteries (up to eighteen) subordinate to them. Each of these machines, based on the KamAZ-4310 vehicle, has a digital computer E-715-1.1, displays, printing devices, communications equipment and classified communications equipment. The vehicles have autonomous power supply systems in position and in motion.

The equipment of command and staff vehicles of the Vivarium system ensures information exchange with higher, subordinate and interacting control bodies, solves the problems of planning concentrated fire and fire along columns, prepares data for firing, collects and analyzes information on the state of artillery units.

11:33 / 27.12.11

Russian multiple launch rocket systems and foreign countries(rating)

The information agency "Arms of Russia" begins to publish ratings of various weapons and military equipment.

Experts evaluated multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS).

The comparative assessment was carried out according to the following parameters: -firepower(caliber of the projectile, number of guides, firing range, affected area in one salvo, time of a full salvo);
-mobility (movement speed, reload time, range);
-operation (weight of the installation in combat position, number of combat crews, ammunition).

The total points for all parameters gave overall assessment MLRS.

It was taken into account that each MLRS, when compared with other systems, was assessed based on technical requirements of its time.

	India
	Spain
	Israel
	Israel
	Belarus
	Germany
	China
	China
	China
	China
	China
	China
	Poland
	Russia
	Russia
	Russia
	Russia
	Russia
	Russia
	USA
	USA
	Ukraine
	Türkiye
	Czech
	South Africa

	India
	Spain
	Israel
	Israel
	Belarus
	Germany
	China
	China
	China
	China
	China
	China
	Poland
	Russia
	Russia
	Russia
	Russia
	Russia
	Russia
	USA
	USA
	Ukraine
	Türkiye
	Czech
	South Africa

In terms of the number of points scored, the leading positions were occupied by:

1.MLRS "Tornado" (Russia)

• projectile caliber - 122 mm
• number of guides - 40
• firing range - 100 km
• full salvo time - 38 s
• travel speed - 60 km
• reload time - 3 min
• range - 650 km
• ammunition - 3 volleys

1.MLRS "Tornado" (Russia)

Basic tactics specifications(TTX):

• projectile caliber - 122 mm
• number of guides - 40
• firing range - 100 km
• affected area by one salvo - 840,000 m2
• full salvo time - 38 s
• travel speed - 60 km
• reload time - 3 min
• range - 650 km
• installation weight in combat position - 25,000 kg
• combat crew size - 3 people
• ammunition - 3 volleys

The Tornado system is being developed at the Splav enterprise in two modifications - Tornado-G and Tornado-S. The first is lighter, it is planned to replace the Grad systems, the second is heavier, it will replace the Smerch and Uragan systems. Both systems are based on the use of universal launch containers in which missile guides of various calibers are mounted.

It is planned to use a full range of ammunition - 122mm Grad, 220mm Uragan, 300mm Smerch. The Tornado-G chassis will be either the usual Ural or KAMAZ. A more powerful chassis is being selected for the Tornado-S - but most likely it will not be a MAZ. The automation of the system’s firing has been brought to such a level that the installation will be able to leave the position even before its shells reach the target.

2. MLRS 9K51 "Grad" (Russia)

Basic performance characteristics:

• projectile caliber - 122 mm
• number of guides - 40
• firing range - 21 km
• full salvo time - 20 s
• travel speed - 85 km
• reload time - 7 min
• range - 1400 km
• ammunition - 3 volleys

2. MLRS 9K51 "Grad" (Russia)

Basic performance characteristics:

• projectile caliber - 122 mm
• number of guides - 40
• firing range - 21 km
• affected area in one salvo - 40,000 m2
• full salvo time - 20 s
• travel speed - 85 km
• reload time - 7 min
• range - 1400 km
• installation weight in combat position - 5,950 kg
• combat crew size - 4 people
• ammunition - 3 volleys

MLRS 9K51 "Grad" is a Russian MLRS. Designed to destroy manpower, unarmored and lightly armored enemy targets, and solve other problems in various combat conditions.

The artillery unit is mounted on modified types of truck chassis of the Ural-375 or Ural-4320 families, depending on the modification. First combat use BM-21 "Grad" occurred during the Sino-Soviet conflict on Damansky Island in 1969.

Subsequently, these multiple launch rocket systems were used in all serious armed conflicts since 1964 in which the USSR and post-Soviet states participated. Exported to more than 55 countries

3. HIMARS MLRS (USA)

Basic performance characteristics:

• projectile caliber - 227 mm
• number of guides - 6
• firing range - 80 km
• full salvo time - 15 s
• travel speed - 85 km
• reload time - 7 min
• range - 600 km
• combat crew size - 3 people
• ammunition - 3 volleys

3. HIMARS MLRS (USA)

Basic performance characteristics:

• projectile caliber - 227 mm
• number of guides - 6
• firing range - 80 km
• affected area in one salvo - 67,000 m2
• full salvo time - 15 s
• travel speed - 85 km
• reload time - 7 min
• range - 600 km
• installation weight in combat position - 5,500 kg
• combat crew size - 3 people
• ammunition - 3 volleys

HIMARS (High Mobility Artillery Rocket System) is an American highly mobile missile and artillery system for operational-tactical purposes, is a lightweight multiple launch rocket system mounted on a wheeled chassis.

HIMARS carries six MLRS missiles or one ATACMS missile based on the five-ton wheeled chassis of the US Army FMTV (Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles - Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles), and can launch the entire range of ammunition created for the US Army MLRS.

Baptism of fire the system received on the second day of Operation Moshtarak, the largest ISAF offensive operation since the outbreak of hostilities in Afghanistan in 2001, which began on the night of February 12-13, 2010 in Helmand province in southern Afghanistan.

4. MLRS WS-1B (WS-1) (China)

Main performance characteristics:

• projectile caliber - 302 mm
• number of guides - 4
• firing range -100 km
• full salvo time - 15 s
• travel speed - 60 km/h
• recharge time - 20 min
• range - 900 km
• ammunition - 3 volleys

4. MLRS WS-1B (WS-1) (China)

Main performance characteristics:

• projectile caliber - 302 mm
• number of guides - 4
• firing range -100 km
• affected area in one salvo - 45,000 m2
• full salvo time - 15 s
• travel speed - 60 km/h
• recharge time - 20 min
• range - 900 km
• weight of the installation in combat position - 5 100 km
• number of combat crew - 6 people
• ammunition - 3 volleys

The WS-1B multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) is designed to strike the most important goals located deep in enemy defenses, including military bases, troop concentration areas, missile launchers, airports and transport hubs, administrative and industrial centers.

The WS-1B (WeiShi-1B) MLRS is the result of a modernization of the WS-1 multiple launch rocket system. The systems were not adopted by the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA). The WS-1B is currently offered in international markets by the China National Precision Machinery Corporation (CPMIEC).

In 1997, China supplied a WS-1 MLRS battery (5 combat vehicles) for the Turkish armed forces and provided technical assistance in organizing the independent production of 5 more modernized batteries. These systems, designated "Kasirga", are in service Turkish army. Subsequently it was organized licensed production and MLRS WS-1B under the designation "Jaguar".

5. MLRS Pinaka (India)

Main performance characteristics:

• projectile caliber - 214 mm
• number of guides - 12
• firing range - 40 km
• full salvo time - 44 s
• travel speed - 80 km/h
• recharge time - 15 min
• range - 850 km
• combat crew size - 4 people
• ammunition - 3 volleys

5. MLRS Pinaka (India)

Main performance characteristics:

• projectile caliber - 214 mm
• number of guides - 12
• firing range - 40 km
• affected area in one salvo - 130,000 m2
• full salvo time - 44 s
• travel speed - 80 km/h
• recharge time - 15 min
• range - 850 km
• installation weight in combat position - 5,952 kg
• combat crew size - 4 people
• ammunition - 3 volleys

The Indian all-weather 214-mm multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) "Pinaka" is designed to destroy manpower, lightly armored and armored vehicles, launchers rocket launchers, destruction of command posts, communication centers and military-industrial infrastructure facilities, remote installation of anti-tank and anti-personnel minefields. The MLRS received its baptism of fire in the Indo-Pakistani war of 1999.