At the end of the eighties of the last century, the military leadership of Iran took care of updating the fleet of multiple launch rocket systems. The Arash and Falaq-1 complexes available in service generally suited the military, but had a number of disadvantages. First of all, the claims were caused by the small radius of action. For example, "Falak-1", to a certain extent being a development of the Soviet MLRS BM-24, which got to Iran through third countries, hit only ten kilometers, which was already considered insufficient. Attempts to reverse engineer the Soviet BM-21 Grad also did not lead to any tangible result. On the basis of the Grada rocket, we managed to make four of our own designs, the most perfect of which even reached a firing range of 40 kilometers. However, the 122 mm caliber did not allow equipping the Arash-4 rocket with a powerful engine and a warhead of sufficient power at the same time. As a result, even the fourth version of the Arash missiles could not justify all the hopes placed on it.
In connection with such problems, by the end of the eighties, several programs were deployed, which eventually resulted in the emergence of a family of multiple launch rocket systems called Fajr (translated from Arabic for "dawn"). The first representative of the line - Fajr-1 - was first purchased from China and then mastered in production towed MLRS "Type 63". On the two-wheeled chassis of the system was a launcher with twelve tubes of 107 mm caliber. A fairly simple design of the chassis and guidance system made it possible to rotate a package of barrels within a horizontal sector with a width of 32 ° and lower / raise the launch tubes at angles from -3 ° to + 57 °. If necessary, the design of the launcher made it possible to mount it on any suitable chassis. Chinese missiles "Type-63" in Iran received a new designation - Haseb-1. 19-kilogram ammunition at the optimum elevation angle flew over eight kilometers. By Iranian standards, this was not enough, because of which the refinement of the Fajr-1 began. The upgraded Haseb missiles allowed to increase the firing range, but not to the level that the military wanted.
Fajr-3
Around the beginning of the nineties (exact information about the timing is not available), Shahid Bagheri Industries Group and Sanam Industrial Group, under the auspices of the state Defense Industries Organization, began work on a new multiple launch rocket system, in which it was planned to take into account all previous experience. The project received the designation Fajr-3. There is information that specialists from North Korea took part in the creation of "Dawn-3". Perhaps the Iranian military and engineers, cooperating with the Chinese, came to certain conclusions and decided to change the country with which it is worth working; however, a series of subsequent events showed that, most likely, the Iranians simply decided to expand the number of joint projects. As a result of cooperation in the Fajr-3 multiple launch rocket system, some features of the North Korean M1985 are clearly visible, in particular, the layout with the placement in the middle of the wheeled chassis of an additional cabin for the calculation. For the first time, the existence of the Fajr-3 MLRS became known in 1996, when several of these SPGs were shown at a parade in Tehran. It is noteworthy that those combat vehicles were built on the basis of a three-axle truck by the Japanese company Isuzu, which at first served as the basis for the version of a simple purchase of systems from the DPRK, whose M1985 is based on such a chassis.
Further study of photographs and video materials from that parade led Western experts to the conclusion about, at least, cooperation. The fact is that the launch tubes of the Iranian "Rassvet-3" had twice the diameter of the guides of the Korean M1985 installation. Later it became known that the caliber of Fajr-3 rockets is 240 millimeters. Due to the larger caliber, the Fajr-3 rail package with similar dimensions to the Grad or M1985 consists of only 12 tubes. Structurally, the package is divided into two parts with six guides, each of which is attached to the frame separately. The guidance mechanisms have a manual drive and allow you to aim at an elevation from zero to 57 degrees. Horizontally, the guides rotate 90 ° from the machine axis to the left and 100 ° to the right. The difference in the angles of the horizontal guidance is caused by the characteristics of the chassis used. Later, when changing the base car, the horizontal guidance sector remained the same. Like other multiple launch rocket systems, Fajr-3 does not have the ability to fire on the move and requires preliminary preparation. Among other things, it should be noted the need for the use of four hydraulic outriggers, which do not allow the machine to roll over when firing. The total weight of the combat vehicle with a loaded launcher exceeds 15 tons. The maximum travel speed on the highway is 60 km / h.
Ammunition "Rassvet-3" are unguided rockets of the classic layout of 240 mm caliber and 5.2 meters in length. The weight of the rocket varies depending on the type of warhead, but in all cases it does not exceed 420-430 kilograms. Of this mass, approximately 90 kg are reserved for the warhead. It can be high-explosive, incendiary, chemical, smoke or cluster. Missiles of all types are delivered to the troops in boxes of three. Thus, in the course of one volley, four boxes of ammunition are consumed. Firing is carried out using a fairly simple control system that allows you to shoot both single and volley. The interval between launches of individual missiles is adjustable from four to eight seconds. At the maximum value of this parameter, a full salvo takes one and a half minutes. According to various estimates, the solid-propellant engine of Fajr-3 missiles is based on a gunpowder pellet weighing at least 70-80 kilograms, which allows ammunition to fly at a distance of up to 43 kilometers. When firing at the maximum range, the missile, moving along a ballistic trajectory, reaches an altitude of 17 kilometers. During flight, the projectile is stabilized by the rotation provided by the tail fins. Before starting, they are in a folded position and, after exiting the launch tube, unfold. The initial launch of the rocket is carried out using a pin moving along a spiral groove in the wall of the launch tube.
No later than 1996, Iran launched mass production of Fajr-3 combat vehicles and ammunition for them. At the same time, further development of the project began. First of all, it is worth touching on the change in the wheelbase of the self-propelled unit. Initially, all systems of the combat vehicle were installed on three-axle all-wheel drive Isuzu trucks. A little later, launchers began to be mounted on modified Mercedes-Benz 2624 6x6 trucks. The search for the optimal chassis for Fajr-3 ended with the choice of a Mercedes-Benz 2631 truck. According to available data, all new Rassvet-3 MLRS are assembled on this base, and the old ones receive it during repair and modernization. Replacing the base truck had almost no effect on the driving performance of the combat vehicle. Only the efficiency indicators changed, which ultimately became the reason for the transition to the Mercedes-Benz 2631.
According to various sources, the Fajr-3 multiple launch rocket system was adopted by the Iranian army no later than 1996, when it was demonstrated at the parade. A little later, several dozen combat vehicles with ammunition were transferred to Hezbollah units, which began to use them during the fighting in southern Lebanon. The combat use of Fajr-3 complexes is not something special. All cases of real use of "Rassvet-3" are completely similar to the use of other systems of this class: combat vehicles enter the position, fire at targets and hurriedly leave. The high lethality characteristic of the MLRS forced the South Lebanese and Israeli troops opposing Hezbollah to react as quickly as possible and to retaliate as quickly as possible. Iranian Fajr-3, in turn, have not yet taken part in hostilities.
Fajr-5
Simultaneously with the Fajr-3, Iranian designers, this time together with the Chinese, began work on the next MLRS, called the Fajr-5. The Chinese side handed over to Iran a number of documents on its own project of unguided missiles of the WS-1 family, which to some extent became a prototype for the Fajr-5. The goal of the new project was to create a multiple launch rocket system with an even greater firing range, at least 60 kilometers. At the same time, the economic and foreign policy situation demanded from Iranian engineers to make the "Rassvet-5" as unified as possible with a less long-range installation. As a result of this requirement, among other things, the Fajr-5 went through the same “adventures” with a three-axle wheelbase. At present, all combat vehicles of this project are assembled on the basis of Mercedes 2631. The auxiliary equipment of the combat vehicle is also similar to the Fajr-3: outriggers for stabilization during firing, an additional cabin for the crew, etc.
However, the requirements for the firing range and, as a result, the new ammunition led to fundamental changes in the design of the launcher. Calculations have shown that achieving a given range is possible only with a caliber of at least 300 millimeters. After a series of calculations, a variant of the 333 mm unguided rocket was chosen. The large dimensions of the ammunition made it necessary to significantly reduce the volume of the volley. While maintaining the acceptable dimensions of the launcher, only four launch tubes were placed on it. With the exception of the number of guides and, apparently, some elements, the design of the launcher is similar to the corresponding unit "Rassvet-3". The launcher was initially guided manually, like on artillery pieces. Vertical guidance angles Fajr-5 - from horizontal to 57 degrees. Horizontal guidance is only possible within a sector with a width of 45 ° from the vehicle axis.
The main element of the new long-range MLRS is a 333 mm unguided missile. The ammunition is six and a half meters long and weighs about 900-930 kilograms. The warhead of the rocket, depending on the type, has a mass of 170-190 kg. Despite the increase in the size of the rocket and the weight of the warhead, the nomenclature of the types of the latter remained the same. According to the situation, high-explosive fragmentation, incendiary, chemical and cluster warheads can be used. In the case of the high-explosive fragmentation variant, the rocket carries 90 kilograms of explosives. A heavy rocket with a large supply of solid fuel has excellent range performance. The maximum distance that it can fly is 75 kilometers (the top point of the trajectory is at an altitude of about 30 km). Flight stabilization is carried out only by rotating the rocket. This nuance of the project is one of the most controversial - as the calculations of Soviet and American designers have shown, a rocket without any control systems at ranges over 55-60 km deviates too much from the aiming point. Fajr-5 missiles are not equipped with any additional control systems, which raises corresponding doubts about the accuracy and accuracy of fire.
All measures to ensure the accuracy of hits in the "Rassvet-5" system affected only the sighting complex. For the first time in Iranian practice, the MLRS received an automated weapon control system, which independently calculates the aiming angles and provides automatic fire in one gulp or one shot at a time. The values of the intervals between starts remained the same: 4-8 seconds. During the modernization, the Fajr-5 complex received an updated weapon control system. The main consequence of the modernization is to ensure the possibility not only of determining the guidance parameters, but also of the direct rotation and guidance of the launcher. For this, the latter is equipped with reversal drives; the possibility of manual guidance remains. In addition, the equipment of the upgraded Fajr-5 included communication equipment that allows the transfer of data on targets and guidance to them between the MLRS batteries and command and staff vehicles. According to the available data, with the presence of new equipment, batteries of multiple launch rocket systems can be dispersed at a distance of up to 20 km from control vehicles or headquarters.
The exact time of adoption of the Fajr-5 MLRS is unknown. The first copies of these combat vehicles were shown to the public at the beginning of the 2000s. It soon became known that several installations had been transferred to Hezbollah. For some reasons - most likely, this is a small number of delivered vehicles and low accuracy - only a few cases of the use of this weapon during the Israeli-Lebanese war of 2006 are known. The results were not much higher than when using the Fajr-3, although the longer firing range allowed them to attack targets over a larger area. There is information about the further modernization of the multiple launch rocket system, up to and including changing its purpose. According to some sources, a variant of "Dawn-5" intended for coastal defense is being developed or already exists. Probably, it is based on a new anti-ship missile in the dimensions of an unguided munition. Otherwise, firing standard missiles at ships, even in the presence of radar search and target tracking, looks at least ineffective. Another rumor that has not been confirmed in official Iranian sources concerns the creation of a full-fledged short-range ballistic missile based on the same Fajr-5. Official data on the modernization of the ammunition so far relate to an increase in accuracy and a slight increase in flight range.
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A characteristic feature of all the latest Iranian multiple launch rocket systems is extensive cooperation with foreign countries in their development. This fact is quite interesting, especially in light of the “origin” of the Chinese or North Korean experience. It is not hard to guess that the Chinese and Koreans learned how to make their own combat vehicles and unguided missiles not without studying their Soviet-made multiple launch rocket systems. Thus, the Iranian "Dawn" to some extent are the descendants of the Soviet complexes with the "BM" index in the name. At the same time, the characteristics of Iranian systems, depending on the model of the combat vehicle and the projectile used, are at a level corresponding to the Soviet MLRS of previous years, and do not represent something exceptional.
