At present, Russia continues to work on improving and building up the combat capabilities of multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS). Russian military experts believe that this class of artillery weapons is the best fit for the new military doctrine of our state, however, like any other country that seeks to create effective and mobile armed forces with a small number of professional military personnel. In the modern world, there are few examples of military equipment, a few calculations of which would operate weapons with such significant striking power.
On the basis of an analysis of the samples of Russian and foreign MLRS in service, representatives of the Main Missile and Artillery Directorate (GRAU) of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation are considering the possibility of creating a MLRS "Grad" with mechanized loading of a package of guides. The new combat vehicle is a development of the well-proven Grad MLRS, which is one of the symbols of Russian military power and is in service with a huge number of countries around the world. The layout of the new combat vehicle that is currently being developed provides for the use of a KamAZ truck chassis with an 8x8 wheel arrangement and the ability to transport 80 rockets (2 sets), with mechanized reloading of the package of guides after a salvo.
Each type of rocket and artillery weapon at the disposal of the ground forces solves its tasks on the battlefield. For example, guided missiles are used to destroy individual remote enemy targets of special importance (command posts, missile launchers, depots). Fighting, for example, with enemy armored vehicles, troops dispersed over large areas, conducting remote mining of the area - this is the task of MLRS, such as "Grad".
Field 122-mm divisional MLRS "Grad" still does not lose its relevance. This multiple launch rocket system is designed to engage manpower in open areas and in shelters, armored personnel carriers and unarmored vehicles in concentration areas, mortar and artillery batteries, command posts and other targets. The development of the system began on the basis of a decree of the Government of the USSR as early as May 30, 1960. The first two experimental installations passed factory tests at the end of 1961. From March 1 to May 1, 1962, installations of the "Grad" complex were undergoing state field trials on the territory of the Leningrad Military District. The new system was adopted on March 28, 1963, and the serial production of MLRS began in 1964.
Volley battery MLRS "Grad", photo: Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
The Grad multiple launch rocket system consists of the BM-21 combat vehicle itself, which can be executed on the chassis of the Ural-375D and Ural-4320 trucks; fire control systems, 122 mm unguided rockets; transport and loading vehicle 9Т254. Fighting vehicle BM-21 "Grad" was created according to the classical scheme with the location of the artillery unit in the rear of the vehicle chassis, the base for the MLRS was the vehicle "Ural". The artillery part of the installation was a package of 40 tubular guides, it was placed on a rotary base with the possibility of guidance both in the horizontal and in the vertical plane. The guides are 3 meters long, the inner diameter of the bore is 122.4 mm. The tubular guides are arranged in four rows of 10 pipes each, forming together a package of guides. Guidance mechanisms allow you to direct this package in a vertical plane in the range of angles from 0 to +55 degrees, the angle of horizontal firing is 172 degrees (102 degrees to the left of the vehicle and 70 degrees to the right).
The implemented fire control system allows you to shoot not only with a salvo, but also with single shots. At the same time, the operation of the impulse sensor, which ensures the triggering of the pyro-igniters of the engines of unguided rockets, can be controlled both with the help of a remote control at a distance of up to 50 meters from the car, and from the BM-21 cab using the current distributor located in it. The duration of a full salvo of the Grad MLRS is 20 seconds.
The further development of this system was the 9K51M "Tornado-G" MLRS. The main difference from the predecessor MLRS 9K51 "Grad" is a significantly improved fire control system using a computer for calculating ballistic indicators and satellite navigation. This solution allows the installation to be guided to the coordinates of the target in automatic mode. State tests of "Tornado-G" were completed in 2013, after which the 9K51M system was adopted by the Russian army.
The updated system includes an upgraded BM-21 combat vehicle, old and new 122-mm rockets, as well as the Kapustnik-BM automated fire control complex. In the cockpit of the modernized combat vehicle, remote mount equipment was installed, as well as an automated fire control system developed by specialists from the Signal VNII. The new automated fire control system allows you to fire without conducting topographic and geodetic preparation, while the guidance package of guides to the target is carried out without the crew leaving the cockpit. A special video monitor automatically displays information about the route and the position of the guide package. But, as you know, there is no limit to perfection, and each new day dictates new challenges for constructors.
Combat vehicle from the complex MLRS "Tornado-G"
In modern realities, when ground forces conduct fleeting and highly maneuverable combat operations, the MLRS complex must meet the following requirements:
1. Ensure the defeat of enemy manpower and military equipment in the areas of their concentration and on the lines of combat deployment throughout the depth of the battle formation;
2. To strike at enemy troops in marching columns and when deploying them in a pre-battle formation;
3. Possess a firing range and mobility, allowing to effectively engage group targets across the entire width of the front of the first echelon combat operations and to withdraw from the battle in advance before the enemy strike groupings reach their positions;
4. To ensure a sufficiently high accuracy of a salvo hitting a battery (platoon) of platoon and company strongpoints of the enemy at minimum firing distances;
5. Be able to combat enemy tanks deploying in battle formation;
6. Be on constant alert for immediate fire.
As noted in the GRAU, one of the solutions that allows you to meet the requirements of No. 3 and No. 6 is the presence of an additional stock of rockets on the combat vehicle with the possibility of their fast mechanized loading into a package of launch guides released after the first salvo. The concept of further modernization of the Grad MLRS is a new combat vehicle with an updated artillery unit borrowed from the BM-21, but received a charging mechanism and an additional second transportable set of ammunition. The load values calculated by GRAU specialists, obtained as a result of the new layout of the combat vehicle for 80 rockets (two salvoes), satisfy the permissible load of the KamAZ chassis. As noted by Russian military experts, the automation of the launcher charging operations and the necessary preparatory operations in the combat position will not only reduce the number of MLRS combat crews, but also reduce the time for the system's deployment and deployment on the ground, which, in turn, will have a positive effect on it. vitality.
Image from the collection "Missile-technical and artillery-technical support of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation - 2018"
The experience of the combat use of MLRS demonstrates to us that they are still highly effective weapons when firing in areas. That is why in recent years, interest in creating new effective systems, as well as eliminating the shortcomings of the systems already in service, has not weakened. One of the options under consideration to increase the combat characteristics of the existing Russian Grad multiple launch rocket system is just an increase in the number of transported launcher shots from 40 to 80 pieces, as well as the use of a charging mechanism for the second ammunition load. As noted in the GRAU, such changes pursue several main goals at once: they increase the firepower of one launcher, reduce the number of combat crew from four to two people, and also reduce the residence time of a combat vehicle in a firing position, which increases its survivability coefficient in real combat conditions … This modernization option meets two main factors for improving the characteristics of modern MLRS: increasing firepower and mobility.
An increase in the mobility and power of launchers (PU) of MLRS complexes is achieved by eliminating the dependence of the launcher on interaction with the transport-loading vehicle (TZM) and the location of additional rockets for the second salvo on the launcher itself. With such a placement, an important task becomes the creation of a MLRS combat vehicle of a new design, which allows in a short period of time to reload rockets to perform a second salvo at the enemy without involving TPM or manual labor on the part of the crew. The technical solution to this problem is to combine the functions of a combat vehicle and a transport-loading vehicle on one launcher, that is, on one chassis.
The installation being developed today with the participation of GRAU specialists provides for the presence of a second ammunition load with mechanized charging on a single chassis with an artillery unit from the BM-21. A KamAZ-63501 off-road truck with an 8x8 wheel arrangement is used as a chassis. The proposed changes make it possible to double the firepower of the new installation in comparison with the previous analogue, since the launcher is able to fire two consecutive salvoes, firing 80 rockets at enemy targets. At the same time, the use of the second ammunition reloading mechanism allows reducing the time required to transfer the installation from the traveling position to the combat position and vice versa.
Image from the collection "Missile-technical and artillery-technical support of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation - 2018"
The updated combat vehicle is a self-propelled rocket launcher, which consists of an artillery unit, a mechanism for charging the second ammunition load and an all-terrain chassis of the KamAZ-63501 vehicle. The artillery unit consists of 40 launch guides, cradle, base, swivel, lifting and balancing mechanisms, shoulder straps, locking mechanisms, frame, pneumatic equipment, electric drive, control equipment, sighting devices, auxiliary equipment and radio equipment. The charging mechanism is originally intended for transporting an additional (second) set of rockets, and after shooting the first set for mechanized charging of a combat vehicle.
The updated combat vehicle will allow the crew to fire from the cockpit without preliminary preparation of the firing position, which makes it possible to quickly open fire. The increased fire power (up to 80 rounds), high maneuverability and firing range will make it possible to successfully solve all the tasks facing the MLRS in the conditions of modern combat. With the same number of guides (40 pieces) and salvo time (20 seconds), the total number of transported rockets will increase to 80 pieces (twice), and the reloading time of a promising combat vehicle will be reduced from 6.5 to 2 minutes. The use of a new all-terrain chassis with an 8x8 wheel arrangement not only increases the cross-country ability of the combat vehicle on the ground, but also ensures an increase in the maximum speed of a loaded BM from 75 km / h (for previous versions in the Urals) to 90 km / h. At the same time, the mass and dimensional characteristics of the combat vehicle inevitably grow (in the stowed position): length up to 10150 mm (for BM-21 - 7350 mm), width up to 2500 mm (for BM-21 - 2400 mm), height up to 3325 mm (for BM-21 - 3090 mm), weight without shells and calculation no more than 13 440 kg (for BM-21 - 10 870 kg).
Thus, as the GRAU experts note, the proposed promising combat vehicle, due to the combination of a number of functions of different elements of the MLRS complex, surpasses the classic model of the BM-21 combat vehicle from the Grad complex in many respects.
