Katyusha missile system. Unique combat vehicle "Katyusha"

Barrelless field rocket artillery system, which received affectionate treatment in the Red Army female name“Katyusha”, without exaggeration, became probably one of the most popular types of military equipment of the Second World War. In any case, neither our enemies nor our allies had anything like this.

Initially, barrelless rocket artillery systems in the Red Army were not intended for ground battles. They literally descended from heaven to earth.

The 82 mm caliber rocket was adopted by the Red Army Air Force back in 1933. They were installed on fighters designed by Polikarpov I-15, I-16 and I-153. In 1939, they underwent baptism of fire during the fighting at Khalkhin Gol, where they performed well when shooting at groups of enemy aircraft.

In the same year, employees of the Jet Research Institute began work on a mobile ground launcher that could fire rockets at ground targets. At the same time, the caliber of the rockets was increased to 132 mm.
In March 1941, field tests were successfully carried out new system weapons, and the decision to mass produce combat vehicles with RS-132 missiles, called BM-13, was made the day before the start of the war - June 21, 1941.

How was it structured?

The BM-13 combat vehicle was a chassis of a three-axle ZIS-6 vehicle, on which a rotary truss with a package of guides and a guidance mechanism was installed. For aiming, a rotating and lifting mechanism and an artillery sight were provided. At the rear of the combat vehicle there were two jacks, which ensured its greater stability when firing.
The missiles were launched using a hand-held electric coil connected to a battery and contacts on the guides. When the handle was turned, the contacts closed in turn, and the starting squib was fired in the next projectile.
The explosive material in the warhead of the projectile was detonated from both sides (the length of the detonator was only slightly less than the length of the explosive cavity). And when two waves of detonation met, the gas pressure of the explosion at the meeting point increased sharply. As a result, the hull fragments had significantly greater acceleration, heated up to 600-800 ° C and had a good ignition effect. In addition to the body, part of the rocket chamber also burst, which was heated from the gunpowder burning inside; this increased the fragmentation effect by 1.5-2 times compared to artillery shells of the same caliber. That is why the legend arose that Katyusha rockets were equipped with a “thermite charge.” The “thermite” charge was indeed tested in besieged Leningrad in 1942, but it turned out to be unnecessary - after the Katyusha salvo, everything around was burning. And the joint use of dozens of missiles at the same time also created interference of blast waves, which further enhanced the damaging effect.

Baptism of fire near Orsha

The first salvo of a battery of Soviet rocket launchers (as they began to call it for greater secrecy) the new kind military equipment) consisting of seven combat installations BM-13 was produced in mid-July 1941. This happened near Orsha. An experienced battery under the command of Captain Flerov launched a fire strike at the Orsha railway station, where a concentration of enemy military equipment and manpower was noticed.
At 15:15 on July 14, 1941, heavy fire was opened on enemy trains. The entire station instantly turned into a huge cloud of fire. On the same day, the Chief of the German General Staff, General Halder, wrote in his diary: “On July 14, near Orsha, the Russians used weapons unknown until that time. A fiery barrage of shells burned the Orsha railway station and all the trains with personnel and military equipment of the arriving military units. The metal was melting, the earth was burning.”

The morale effect of the use of rocket mortars was stunning. The enemy lost more than an infantry battalion and a huge amount of military equipment and weapons at the Orsha station. And Captain Flerov’s battery dealt another blow on the same day - this time at the enemy crossing over the Orshitsa River.
The Wehrmacht command, having studied the information received from eyewitnesses of the use of new Russian weapons, was forced to issue a special instruction to its troops, which stated: “ There are reports from the front about the Russians using a new type of weapon that fires rockets. A large number of shots can be fired from one installation within 3-5 seconds. Any appearance of these weapons must be reported on the same day to the general commander of the chemical forces at the high command." A real hunt began for Captain Flerov's battery. In October 1941, she found herself in the Spas-Demensky “cauldron” and was ambushed. Of the 160 people, only 46 managed to reach their own. The battery commander himself died, having first made sure that all the combat vehicles were blown up and would not fall into enemy hands intact.

On land and sea...

In addition to the BM-13, in the SKB of the Voronezh plant. The Comintern, which produced these combat installations, developed new options for placing missiles. For example, taking into account the extremely low cross-country ability of the ZIS-6 vehicle, an option was developed for installing guides for missiles on the chassis of the STZ-5 NATI tracked tractor. In addition, an 82 mm caliber rocket has also found use. Guides were developed and manufactured for it, which were later installed on the chassis of the ZIS-6 vehicle (36 guides) and on the chassis of the T-40 and T-60 light tanks (24 guides).

A 16-charging installation for RS-132 shells and a 48-charging installation for RS-82 shells for armored trains were developed. In the fall of 1942, during the fighting in the Caucasus, 8-round mining pack launchers for RS-82 shells were manufactured for use in mountain conditions.

Later they were installed on American Willys all-terrain vehicles, which came to the USSR under Lend-Lease.
Special launchers for 82 mm and 132 mm caliber missiles were manufactured for their subsequent installation on warships - torpedo boats and armored boats.

The launchers themselves received the popular nickname “Katyusha”, under which they entered the history of the Great Patriotic War. Why Katyusha? There are many versions on this matter. The most reliable - due to the fact that the first BM-13 had the letter “K” - as information that the product was produced at the plant named after. Comintern in Voronezh. By the way, the cruising boats of the Soviet Navy, which had the letter index “K,” received the same nickname. In total, 36 launcher designs were developed and produced during the war.

And the Wehrmacht soldiers nicknamed the BM-13 “Stalin's organs.” Apparently, the roar of the rockets reminded the Germans of the sounds of a church organ. This “music” clearly made them feel uncomfortable.
And from the spring of 1942, guides with missiles began to be installed on British and American all-wheel drive chassis imported into the USSR under Lend-Lease. Still, the ZIS-6 turned out to be a vehicle with low cross-country ability and payload capacity. The three-axle all-wheel drive American truck Studebakker US6 turned out to be most suitable for installing rocket launchers. Combat vehicles began to be produced on its chassis. At the same time, they received the name BM-13N (“normalized”).

During the entire Great Patriotic War, Soviet industry produced more than ten thousand rocket artillery combat vehicles.

Relatives of the Katyusha

For all their advantages, high-explosive fragmentation rockets RS-82 and RS-132 had one drawback - large dispersion and low efficiency when affecting enemy personnel located in field shelters and trenches. To correct this shortcoming, special 300 mm caliber rockets were manufactured.
They received the nickname “Andryusha” among the people. They were launched from a launching machine (“frame”) made of wood. The launch was carried out using a sapper blasting machine.
“Andryushas” were first used in Stalingrad. The new weapons were easy to manufacture, but installing them in position and aiming at the target required a lot of time. In addition, the short range of the M-30 rockets made them dangerous for their own crews.

Therefore, in 1943, the troops began to receive an improved missile, which, with the same power, had a greater firing range. An M-31 shell could hit manpower over an area of ​​2 thousand square meters or create a crater 2-2.5 m deep and 7-8 m in diameter. But the time to prepare a salvo with new shells was significant - one and a half to two hours.
Such shells were used in 1944-1945 during the assault on enemy fortifications and during street battles. One hit from an M-31 missile was enough to destroy an enemy bunker or a firing point located in a residential building.

Fire sword of the "god of war"

By May 1945, rocket artillery units had about three thousand combat vehicles of the most different types and many “frames” with M-31 shells. Not a single Soviet offensive since Battle of Stalingrad, did not begin without artillery preparation using Katyusha rockets. Salvos from combat installations became the “fiery sword” with which our infantry and tanks made their way through enemy fortified positions.
During the war, BM-13 installations were sometimes used for direct fire at enemy tanks and firing points. To do this, the rear wheels fighting machine drove onto some elevation so that its guides assumed a horizontal position. Of course, the accuracy of such shooting was quite low, but a direct hit from a 132-mm rocket would blow any enemy tank to pieces, and a nearby explosion would knock over military equipment enemy, and heavy hot fragments reliably disabled it.

After the war Soviet designers combat vehicles continued work on the Katyushas and Andryushas. Only now they began to be called not guards mortars, but systems volley fire. In the USSR, such powerful SZOs as “Grad”, “Hurricane” and “Smerch” were designed and built. At the same time, the losses of an enemy caught in a salvo from a battery of Hurricanes or Smerchs are comparable to losses from the use of tactical nuclear weapons with a power of up to 20 kilotons, that is, with the explosion of an atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima.

BM-13 combat vehicle on a three-axle vehicle chassis

The caliber of the projectile is 132 mm.
Projectile weight - 42.5 kg.
The mass of the warhead is 21.3 kg.
The maximum projectile flight speed is 355 m/s.
The number of guides is 16.
The maximum firing range is 8470 m.
Charging time of the installation is 3-5 minutes.
The duration of a full salvo is 7-10 seconds.

Guards mortar BM-13 Katyusha

1. Launcher
2. Missiles
3. The car on which the installation was mounted

Guide package
Cabin armor shields
Hiking support
Lifting frame
Launcher battery
Sight bracket
Swivel frame
Lifting handle

The launchers were mounted on the chassis of ZIS-6, Ford Marmont, International Jiemsi, Austin vehicles and on STZ-5 tracked tractors. The largest number of Katyushas were mounted on all-wheel drive three-axle Studebaker vehicles.

M-13 projectile

01. Fuse retaining ring
02. GVMZ fuze
03. Detonator checker
04. Bursting charge
05. Head part
06. Igniter
07. Bottom of the chamber
08. Guide pin
09. Powder rocket charge
10. Missile part
11. Grate
12. Critical section of the nozzle
13. Nozzle
14. Stabilizer

Few survived

The effectiveness of the combat use of Katyushas during an attack on an enemy fortified unit can be illustrated by the example of the defeat of the Tolkachev defensive unit during our counteroffensive near Kursk in July 1943.
The village of Tolkachevo was turned by the Germans into a heavily fortified center of resistance with big amount dugouts and bunkers of 5-12 rolls, with a developed network of trenches and communication passages. The approaches to the village were heavily mined and covered with wire fences.
Salvos of rocket artillery destroyed a significant part of the bunkers, the trenches, along with the enemy infantry in them, were filled up, and the fire system was completely suppressed. Of the entire garrison of the node, numbering 450-500 people, only 28 survived. The Tolkachevsky node was taken by our units without any resistance.

Supreme High Command Reserve

By decision of the Headquarters, in January 1945, the formation of twenty guards mortar regiments began - this is how the units armed with the BM-13 began to be called.
The Guards Mortar Regiment (Gv.MP) of the artillery of the Reserve of the Supreme High Command (RVGK) consisted of a command and three divisions of three batteries. Each battery had four combat vehicles. Thus, a salvo of only one division of 12 BM-13-16 PIP vehicles (Staff Directive No. 002490 prohibited the use of rocket artillery in quantities less than a division) could be compared in strength to a salvo of 12 heavy howitzer regiments of the RVGK (48 152 mm howitzers per regiment ) or 18 heavy howitzer brigades of the RVGK (32 152 mm howitzers per brigade).

Victor Sergeev

Katyusha - a unique combat vehicle of the USSR which had no analogues in the world. The unofficial name for barrelless field rocket artillery systems (BM-8, BM-13, BM-31 and others) was developed during the Great Patriotic War of 1941-45. Such installations were actively used Armed Forces USSR during World War II. The popularity of the nickname turned out to be so great that post-war MLRS on automobile chassis, in particular BM-14 and BM-21 Grad, were often referred to colloquially as “Katyushas”.

"Katyusha" BM-13-16 on the ZIS-6 chassis

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.

BM-31-12 on the ZIS-12 chassis in the Museum on Sapun Mountain, Sevastopol

BM-13N on a Studebaker US6 chassis (with exhaust protection armor plates lowered) at the Central Museum of the Great Patriotic War in Moscow

Origin of the name Katyusha

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 range shooting, soldiers and commanders asked a GAU representative to name the “true” name of the combat installation, he advised: “Name the installation as usual 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:
1. Based on the name of Blanter’s song, which became popular before the war, based on the words of Isakovsky “Katyusha”. The version is convincing, since the battery first fired on July 14, 1941 (on the 23rd day of the war) at a concentration of fascists on Bazarnaya Square in the city of Rudnya, Smolensk region. She was shooting from a 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.

2. 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).

3. The third version suggests that this is how the girls from the Moscow Kompressor plant who worked on the assembly dubbed these cars.
Another, exotic version. The guides on which the projectiles were mounted were called ramps. The forty-two-kilogram projectile was lifted by two fighters harnessed to the straps, and the third usually helped them, pushing the projectile so that it lay exactly on the guides, and he also informed those holding that the projectile stood up, rolled, and rolled onto the guides. It was allegedly called “Katyusha” (the role of those holding the projectile and the one rolling it was constantly changing, since the crew of the BM-13, unlike cannon artillery, was not explicitly divided into loader, aimer, etc.)

4. It should also be noted that the installations were so secret that it was even forbidden to use the commands “fire”, “fire”, “volley”, instead they sounded “sing” or “play” (to start it was necessary to turn the handle of the electric coil very quickly) , which may also have been related to the song “Katyusha”. And for our infantry, a salvo of Katyusha rockets was the most pleasant music.

5. There is an assumption that initially the nickname “Katyusha” was a front-line bomber equipped with rockets - an analogue of the M-13. And the nickname jumped from an airplane to a rocket launcher through shells.

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.

BM-13-16 on the chassis of the STZ-5-NATI tractor (Novomoskovsk)

Soldiers loading Katyusha

If Hitler's oracles had looked more closely at the signs of fate, then surely July 14, 1941 would have become a landmark day for them. It was then that in the area of ​​​​the Orsha railway junction and the crossing of the Orshitsa River, Soviet troops first used BM-13 combat vehicles, which received the affectionate name “Katyusha” among the army. The result of two salvos at the accumulation of enemy forces was stunning for the enemy. German losses fell under the “unacceptable” heading.

Here are excerpts from a directive to the troops of Hitler's high military command: "The Russians have an automatic multi-barrel flamethrower cannon... The shot is fired by electricity... During the shot, smoke is generated..." The obvious helplessness of the wording testified to the complete ignorance of the German generals regarding the device and technical characteristics new Soviet weapon - a rocket mortar.

A striking example of the effectiveness of the Guards mortar units, and their basis was “Katyushas,” can be seen in the lines from the memoirs of Marshal Zhukov: “The rockets, by their actions, caused complete devastation. I looked at the areas where shelling was carried out and saw the complete destruction of defensive structures... "

The Germans developed a special plan to seize new Soviet weapons and ammunition. Late autumn In 1941 they managed to do this. The “captured” mortar was truly “multi-barreled” and fired 16 rocket mines. Its firepower was several times more effective than the mortar used by the fascist army. Hitler's command decided to create equivalent weapons.

The Germans did not immediately understand that the Soviet mortar they captured was a truly unique phenomenon, opening a new page in the development of artillery, the era of multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS).

We must pay tribute to its creators - scientists, engineers, technicians and workers of the Moscow Jet Research Institute (RNII) and related enterprises: V. Aborenkov, V. Artemyev, V. Bessonov, V. Galkovsky, I. Gvai, I. Kleimenov, A. Kostikov, G. Langemak, V. Luzhin, A. Tikhomirov, L. Schwartz, D. Shitov.

The main difference between the BM-13 and similar German weapons was its unusually bold and unexpected concept: mortarmen could reliably hit all targets in a given square with relatively inaccurate rocket-propelled mines. This was achieved precisely due to the salvo nature of the fire, since every point of the area under fire necessarily fell into the affected area of ​​one of the shells. German designers, realizing the brilliant “know-how” of Soviet engineers, decided to reproduce, if not in the form of a copy, then using the main technical ideas.

It was in principle possible to copy the Katyusha as a combat vehicle. Insurmountable difficulties arose when trying to design, test and establish mass production of similar missiles. It turned out that German gunpowder cannot burn in the chamber of a rocket engine as stably and steadily as Soviet ones. The analogues of Soviet ammunition designed by the Germans behaved unpredictably: they either sluggishly left the guides only to immediately fall to the ground, or they began flying at breakneck speed and exploded in the air from an excessive increase in pressure inside the chamber. Only a few successfully reached the target.

The point turned out to be that for effective nitroglycerin powders, which were used in Katyusha shells, our chemists achieved a spread in the values ​​of the so-called heat of explosive transformation of no more than 40 conventional units, and the smaller the spread, the more stable the gunpowder burns. Similar German gunpowder had a spread of this parameter, even in one batch, above 100 units. This led to unstable operation of the rocket engines.

The Germans did not know that ammunition for the Katyusha was the fruit of more than ten years of activity by the RNII and several large Soviet research teams, which included the best Soviet gunpowder factories, outstanding Soviet chemists A. Bakaev, D. Galperin, V. Karkina, G. Konovalova, B Pashkov, A. Sporius, B. Fomin, F. Khritinin and many others. They not only developed the most complex formulations of rocket powders, but also found simple and effective ways their mass, continuous and cheap production.

At a time when at Soviet factories, according to ready-made drawings, the production of guards rocket mortars and shells for them was expanding at an unprecedented pace and literally daily increasing, the Germans had yet to conduct research and design work by MLRS. But history has not given them time for this.

BM-13N "Katyusha"

Main characteristics

Briefly

Details

3.7 / 3.7 / 3.7 BR

2 people Crew

75% Visibility

forehead / side / stern Booking

0 / 1 / 0 shell

0 / 5 / 0 towers

Mobility

7.9 tons Weight

179 l/s 94 l/s Engine power

23 hp/t 12 hp/t specific

78 km/h forward
10 km/h back72 km/h forward
9 km/h back Speed

Armament

132 mm M-13 rocket Main gun

16 rounds of ammunition

8.0 / 10.4 sec recharge

8° / 45° UVN

10° / 10° UGN

355 m/s speed

10,000 m range

Economy

Description

BM-13- Soviet rocket artillery combat vehicle of the Great Patriotic War, the most widespread and famous Soviet combat vehicle (BM) of this class. Most widely known as popular nickname“Katyusha”, soldiers of the Third Reich called it “Stalin’s organ” because of the sound made by the fins of the missiles. Modification "BM-13N" - a variant on the chassis of the Studebaker US6 car, adopted for service in 1943. This is the model presented in the game.

Main characteristics

Armor protection and survivability

Armor plates covering the cabin

Since the MLRS was mounted on a chassis truck Studebaker US6, then it makes no sense to talk about the presence of any armor protection. The thickness of the frontal protection of the cabin did not exceed 4 mm, which protected it from infantry-caliber bullets and small, light fragments. So we should beware of absolutely everyone and everything! A tank machine gun, anti-aircraft gun, rocket and cannon weapons of a fighter, and even more so high-explosive shells and bombs - these are all things that will not leave us a chance to survive. Therefore, shooting should be carried out from extreme distances, using all kinds of cover (be it allied tanks, rocks, houses, tank skeletons, terrain). Some of the most dangerous opponents are fast, light and maneuverable self-propelled guns, which have a huge rate of fire and the presence of armor-piercing and high-explosive shells in the belt, which will allow them to literally turn the Katyusha into a pile of burning metal in just a few seconds. Try to avoid air attacks and shelling from enemy artillery, since even a not too close explosion of a large-caliber shell can lead to death or, at best, lengthy repairs.

Mobility

Location of modules and crew

Since our vehicle is not equipped with armor, its mobility remains quite good. Thanks to the very tolerable specific engine power (approximately 12 hp per ton), the Katyusha has good acceleration dynamics and good cross-country ability. However, you will only achieve a maximum forward speed of 72 km/h from a hill, and even then not from any hill. There are undoubtedly problems with the reverse speed. You can only reach the declared 9 km/h in a straight line and on the road. We don’t know how to turn around like a tank without moving, and we don’t really need it. It will be faster to make a complete turn in a circle than to try to turn around in place.

Armament

Diagram of the M-13 rocket:

The main armament of this combat vehicle were M-13 rockets, which are modernization RS-132 (known cases, when these missiles were installed on Il-2 attack aircraft).

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. Jet engine has a combustion chamber in which a propellant propellant charge is placed in the form of cylindrical blocks with an axial channel. Pyro-igniters are used to ignite the powder charge. 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 of rotation around the longitudinal axis, but allows for a greater flight range of the projectile. In addition, the use of a feathered stabilizer greatly simplifies the technology for producing missiles.

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 the range deviation was 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 are made in the front centering thickening of the rocket part, through which, during operation of the rocket engine, part of the powder gases escapes, 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.

Use in combat

Katyusha shot in the game

BM-13N "Katyusha" is poorly suited for close maneuverable combat due to the lack of a rotating turret and is quite poor for tank battle vertical aiming angles (to shoot forward you need to tilt your body forward or stand up back buildings to higher ground). In addition, often the very first hit in the hull of a given combat vehicle becomes fatal, and inaccurate missiles do not guarantee instant destruction of the target. As such, close combat should only be considered as a last resort, such as in Realistic Combat when trying to break through to a reload or capture point. The most suitable shooting distance is from 200 to 400 meters. Closer, you can only shoot from an ambush and with the body tilted in advance, otherwise all the missiles will fly over the target, making your opponent laugh.

Don't forget that you can hit with missiles heavy tank more difficult (often only possible by hitting the roof or under the bottom of the tank), so it is advisable to first focus your attention on light and medium armored vehicles.

Advantages and disadvantages

Advantages:

• Excellent missile flight ballistics
• Excellent launcher elevation angle
• High rate of fire
• High lethality missiles
• Automatic reloading of missiles in Arcade battles

Flaws:

• Lack of normal bulletproof armor
• Extremely low survivability due to only 2 crew members
• Poor mobility and maneuverability
• Small angles of declination and horizontal guidance of the launcher
• Small ammunition capacity with no possibility of quick reloading in Realistic battles

Historical reference

In the December days of 1941, SKB, on the instructions of the Main Armored Directorate of the Red Army, developed, in particular, for the defense of the city of Moscow, a 16-round installation on an armored railway platform. The installation was a missile launcher of the serial M-13 installation on a modified ZIS-6 truck chassis with a modified base.

At a technical meeting at SKB on April 21, 1942, a decision was made to develop a normalized MLRS, known as the M-13N (after the war BM-13N). The goal of the development was to create the most advanced combat vehicle, the design of which would take into account all the changes previously made to various modifications of the M-13 installation, and the creation of such a throwing system that could be manufactured and assembled on a stand and installed and assembled when assembled on the chassis of a car of any brand without extensive processing of technical documentation, as was the case previously. The goal was achieved by dividing the M-13 system into separate units. Each node was considered as an independent product with an index assigned to it, after which it could be used as a borrowed product in any BM.

BM-13N "Katyusha" - a variant of installing the M-13 MLRS on the chassis of the American Studebaker US6 truck, adopted for service in 1943

When testing components and parts for the normalized combat installation BM-13N, the following were obtained:

• increase in the firing sector by 20%
• reduction of forces on the handles of guidance mechanisms by one and a half to two times
• doubling the vertical aiming speed
• increasing the survivability of the combat installation by armoring the rear wall of the cabin; gas tank and gas lines
• increasing the stability of the installation in the stowed position by introducing a support bracket to disperse the load on the side members of the vehicle
• increasing the operational reliability of the unit (simplification of the support beam, rear axle, etc.
• significant reduction in the amount of welding work, machining, elimination of bending of truss rods
• reduction in unit weight by 250 kg, despite the introduction of armor on the rear wall of the cabin and gas tank
• reduction of production time for the manufacture of the installation due to the assembly of the artillery part separately from the vehicle chassis and installation
• installation on a vehicle chassis using mounting clamps, which made it possible to eliminate drilling holes in the side members
• reduction by several times of the idle time of vehicle chassis arriving at the plant for installation of the unit
• reduction in the number of standard sizes of fasteners from 206 to 96, as well as the number of part names: in the rotary frame - from 56 to 29, in the truss from 43 to 29, in the support frame - from 15 to 4, etc.

The use of normalized components and products in the design of the installation made it possible to use a high-performance in-line method for assembling and installing the installation.

The launcher was mounted on a modified chassis of a Studebaker truck (see photo) with a 6x6 wheel arrangement, supplied under Lend-Lease. The normalized M-13N mount was adopted by the Red Army in 1943. The installation became the main model used until the end of the Great Patriotic War. Other types of modified chassis of foreign-made trucks were also used.

Origin of the nickname

The Katyusha monument in the city of Rudnya, dedicated to the world's first rocket battery of Captain I.A. Flyorova

There is no single version of why the BM-13 began to be called “Katyusha”. There are several assumptions. The most common and well-founded are two versions of the origin of the nickname, which are not mutually exclusive:

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 Captain Flerov’s battery fired at the enemy, firing a salvo at the Market Square of the city of Rudnya. This was one of the first combat uses of Katyushas, ​​confirmed in historical literature. The installations were shooting from a high, steep mountain - the association with the high, steep bank in the song immediately arose among the fighters. Finally, until recently, Andrei Sapronov, a former sergeant of the headquarters company of the 217th separate communications battalion of the 144th Infantry Division of the 20th Army, was alive until recently, later 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, 2012, the veteran and “godfather” of Katyusha turned 91, and on February 26, 2013 he passed away. He left his on the desk last job- a chapter about the first Katyusha salvo for the forthcoming multi-volume history of the Great Patriotic War. The name may be associated with the “K” index on the mortar body - the installations were produced 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). In addition to the two main ones, there are also many other, less known versions the origin of the nickname - from very realistic to having a purely legendary character:

There was a legend among the Soviet troops that the nickname “Katyusha” came from the name of a partisan girl who became famous for the destruction of a significant number of Nazis. An experienced squadron of SB bombers (commander Doyar) in the battles on Khalkhin Gol was armed with RS-132 missiles. These planes were sometimes called “Katyushas” - a nickname they received during civil war in Spain. The incendiary rockets used were marked “KAT” - “Kostikova automatic thermite”. Hence "KATYUSHA"

Combat use

The Great Patriotic War

The first combat use of rocket launchers took place in mid-July 1941. The Germans occupied Orsha, a large junction station in Belarus. A large amount of enemy military equipment and manpower had accumulated on it. It was for this purpose that the battery of rocket launchers (seven units) of Captain Flerov fired two salvos.

As a result of the actions of the artillerymen, the railway junction was practically wiped off the face of the earth, and the Nazis suffered severe losses in people and equipment. Over many decades, this story has become almost canonical, although modern researchers have certain questions about it.

Salvo of the BM-13 Katyusha MLRS battery

"Katyusha" was also used in other sectors of the front. The appearance of new Soviet weapons was a very unpleasant surprise for the German command. Particularly strong psychological impact The pyrotechnic effect of the use of shells had a pyrotechnic effect on the German military personnel: after the Katyusha salvo, literally everything that was capable of burning burned. This effect was achieved through the use of TNT blocks for equipping the projectiles, which upon explosion formed thousands of burning fragments.

Since the advent of rocket artillery (RA), its formations have been subordinate to the Supreme High Command. They were used to strengthen the rifle divisions defending in the first echelon, which significantly increased their firepower and increased stability in defensive battles. The requirements for the use of new weapons - mass and surprise - were reflected in the Directive of the Supreme Command Headquarters No. 002490 of October 1, 1941.

But by the end of 1941, the number of rocket artillery in the troops increased significantly and reached 5-10 divisions in the armies operating in the main direction. Controlling the fire and maneuver of a large number of divisions, as well as supplying them with combat supplies and other types of food, became difficult. By decision of the Headquarters, in January 1942, the creation of 20 guards mortar regiments began.

The “Guards Mortar Regiment (Gv.mp) of the Reserve Artillery of the Supreme High Command (RVGK)” consisted of a department, three divisions of three batteries. Each battery had four combat vehicles. Thus, a salvo of only one division of 12 BM-13-16 GMP vehicles (Staff Directive No. 002490 prohibited the use of RA in numbers of less than a division) could be compared in strength to a salvo of 12 heavy howitzer regiments of the RVGK (48 152 mm howitzers per regiment) or 18 heavy howitzer brigades of the RVGK (32 152 mm howitzers per brigade).

The emotional effect was also important: during the salvo, all the missiles were fired almost simultaneously - within a few seconds the ground in the target area was literally plowed up by rockets. The mobility of the installation made it possible to quickly change position and avoid a retaliatory strike from the enemy.

In July-August 1942, the Katyushas (three regiments and a separate division) were the main striking force of the Mobile Mechanized Group of the Southern Front, which held back the advance of the German 1st Tank Army south of Rostov for several days. This is even reflected in the diary of General Halder: “increased Russian resistance south of Rostov”

In August 1942, in the city of Sochi, in the garage of the Caucasian Riviera sanatorium, under the leadership of the head of mobile repair shop No. 6, military engineer of the 3rd rank A. Alferov, a portable version of the installation was created based on M-8 shells, which was later called the “mountain Katyusha”. The first “mountain Katyushas” entered service with the 20th Mountain Rifle Division and were used in battles at the Goytkh Pass. In February - March 1943, two divisions of “Mountain Katyushas” became part of the troops defending the legendary bridgehead on Malaya Zemlya near Novorossiysk.

In the 62nd Army in Stalingrad, on the T-70 base, the Katyusha division fought, which was directly subordinate to the commander of the 62nd Army, V.I. Chuikov.

In addition, 4 installations based on railcars were created at the Sochi locomotive depot, which were used to protect the city of Sochi from the shore.

The minesweeper "Skumbria" was equipped with eight installations, which covered the landing on Malaya Zemlya.

In September 1943, the Katyusha maneuver along the front line made it possible to carry out a sudden flank attack on the Bryansk Front. As a result, the German defense was “collapsed” along the entire front - 250 kilometers. During the artillery preparation, 6,000 rocket shells were expended and only 2,000 barrel shells. Rocket artillery was actively used in the battle of Moscow, Katyushas destroyed the enemy at Stalingrad, and they were tried to be used as anti-tank weapons on the Kursk Bulge. To do this, special recesses were made under the front wheels of the vehicle, so the Katyusha could fire directly. However, the use of the BM-13 against tanks was less effective, since the M-13 rocket was a high-explosive fragmentation projectile, and not armor-piercing. In addition, "Katyusha" has never been distinguished by high accuracy of fire. Although, if such a shell hit a tank, all the vehicle’s attachments were destroyed, the turret often jammed, and the crew received severe concussion.
During the Berlin operation, Soviet soldiers actively used the experience of street fighting they gained during the capture of Poznan and Königsberg. It consisted of firing single heavy rockets M-31, M-13 and M-20 in direct fire. Special assault groups were created, which included an electrical engineer. The rocket was launched from machine guns, wooden caps, or simply from any flat surface. A hit from such a shell could easily destroy a house or be guaranteed to suppress an enemy firing point.

Korean War

BM-13s were widely used by Chinese volunteers during Korean War. In particular, the massive use of BM-13 made a significant contribution to the Battle of Triangular Hill (Mount Shingan (Chinese), Sungam (Kor.) in the fall of 1952 - one of the most significant military operations of the period of trench warfare. 10/30/1952 the Chinese counter-offensive began on Triangular Hill: the 15th People's Volunteer Corps fired at the UN-sheep for 12 hours with 133 large-caliber guns, 22 Katyusha BM-13s and 30 heavy 120-mm mortars in the largest Chinese artillery operation of the entire war.

Afghan war

In the period from 1961 to 1963, the USSR supplied a number of BM-13s to the Kingdom of Afghanistan, which were used by government forces in initial stage war, until they were replaced by Soviet-supplied BM-21s.

Media

Review by CrewGTW

Review by Thorneyed

Rocket artillery combat vehicles BM-8, BM-13 and BM-31, better known as “Katyushas”, are one of the most successful developments of Soviet engineers during the Great Patriotic War.
The first rockets in the USSR were developed by designers Vladimir Artemyev and Nikolai Tikhomirov, employees of the gas dynamics laboratory. Work on the project, which involved the use of smokeless gelatin powder, began in 1921.
From 1929 to 1939, tests were carried out on the first prototypes of various calibers, which were launched from single-charge ground and multi-charge air installations. The tests were supervised by the pioneers of Soviet rocket technology - B. Petropavlovsky, E. Petrov, G. Langemak, I. Kleimenov.

The final stages of projectile design and testing were carried out at the Jet Research Institute. The group of specialists, which included T. Kleimenov, V. Artemyev, L. Shvarts and Yu. Pobedonostsev, was headed by G. Langemak. In 1938, these shells were put into service by the Soviet Air Force.

I-15, I-153, I-16 fighters and Il-2 attack aircraft were equipped with unguided rockets of the RS-82 model of 82 mm caliber. The SB bombers and later modifications of the Il-2 were equipped with RS-132 shells of 132 mm caliber. For the first time, the new weapons installed on the I-153 and I-16 were used during the Khalkhin-Gol conflict of 1939.

In 1938-1941, the Jet Research Institute was developing a multi-charge launcher on a truck chassis. Tests were carried out in the spring of 1941. Their results were more than successful, and in June, on the eve of the war, an order was signed to launch a series of BM-13 combat vehicles equipped with launchers for M-13 132-mm high-explosive fragmentation shells. On June 21, 1941, the gun was officially put into service with artillery troops.

Serial assembly of the BM-13 was carried out by the Voronezh plant named after the Comintern. The first two launchers, mounted on the ZIS-6 chassis, rolled off the assembly line on June 26, 1941. The quality of the assembly was immediately assessed by employees of the Main Artillery Directorate; Having received customer approval, the cars went to Moscow. Field tests were carried out there, after which, from two Voronezh samples and five BM-13s assembled at the Jet Research Institute, the first battery of rocket artillery was created, the command of which was taken by Captain Ivan Flerov.

The battery received its baptism of fire on July 14 in the Smolensk region; the enemy-occupied city of Rudnya was chosen as the target of the missile strike. A day later, on July 16, BM-13s fired at the Orsha railway junction and the crossing on the Orshitsa River.

By August 8, 1941, 8 regiments were equipped with rocket launchers, each of which had 36 combat vehicles.

In addition to the plant named after. Comintern in Voronezh, the production of BM-13 was established at the capital's Kompressor enterprise. Missiles were produced at several factories, but their main manufacturer was the Ilyich plant in Moscow.

The original design of both projectiles and installations was repeatedly changed and modernized. The BM-13-SN version was produced, which was equipped with spiral guides, providing more accurate shooting, as well as modifications BM-31-12, BM-8-48 and many others. The most numerous was the BM-13N model of 1943; in total, about 1.8 thousand of these machines were assembled by the end of the Great Patriotic War.

In 1942, production of 310 mm M-31 shells was launched, for the launch of which they were originally used ground systems. In the spring of 1944, the BM-31-12 self-propelled gun, which has 12 guides, was developed for these shells.

It was installed on truck chassis.

In the period from July 1941 to December 1944, the total number of Katyushas produced was more than 30 thousand units, and rockets of various calibers - about 12 million. The first samples used a domestically produced chassis; about six hundred of these vehicles were produced, and all but a few of them were destroyed during the fighting. After the conclusion of the Lend-Lease agreement, the BM-13 was mounted on American Studebakers.


BM-13 on an American Studebaker
The BM-8 and BM-13 rocket launchers were mainly in service with the Guards mortar units, which were part of the artillery reserve of the armed forces. Therefore, the unofficial name “Guards Mortars” was assigned to the Katyushas.

The glory of the legendary cars could not be shared by their talented developers. The struggle for leadership at the Jet Research Institute provoked a “war of denunciations”, as a result of which in the fall of 1937 the NKVD arrested the chief engineer of the research institute, G. Langemak, and the director, T. Kleimenov. Two months later, both were sentenced to death. The designers were rehabilitated only under Khrushchev. In the summer of 1991, President Soviet Union M. Gorbachev signed a decree conferring posthumous titles of Heroes of Socialist Labor on a number of scientists who participated in the development of Katyusha.

origin of name
Now it is difficult to say for sure who, when and why called the BM-13 rocket launcher “Katyusha”.

There are several main versions:
The first is the connection with the song of the same name, which was extremely popular in the pre-war period. During the first combat use of Katyushas in July 1941, firing was carried out at the German garrison located in the city of Rudnya near Smolensk. The fire was direct fire from the top of a steep hill, so the version seems very convincing - the soldiers probably could have associated it with the song, because there is a line “to the high, to the steep bank.” And Andrei Sapronov, who, according to him, gave the nickname to the rocket mortar, is still alive and served as a signalman in the 20th Army. On July 14, 1941, exactly after the shelling of occupied Rudnya, Sergeant Sapronov, together with Red Army soldier Kashirin, arrived at the location of the battery. Amazed by the power of the BM-13, Kashirin enthusiastically exclaimed: “What a song!”, to which A. Sapronov calmly replied: “Katyusha!” Then, broadcasting information about the successful completion of the operation, the staff radio operator called the miracle installation “Katyusha” - from then on, such a formidable weapon acquired a gentle girl’s name.

Another version considers the origin of the name from the abbreviation “KAT” - supposedly the test site workers called the system “Kostikovskaya automatic thermal” (A. Kostikov was the project manager). However, the plausibility of such an assumption raises serious doubts, since the project was classified, and it is unlikely that the rangers and front-line soldiers could exchange any information with each other.

According to another version, the nickname comes from the “K” index, which marked the systems assembled at the Comintern plant. Soldiers had a custom of giving original names to weapons. Thus, the M-30 howitzer was affectionately called “Mother”, the ML-20 cannon received the nickname “Emelka”. By the way, BM-13 was first called very respectfully, by his first name and patronymic: “Raisa Sergeevna.” RS – rockets used in installations.

According to the fourth version, the first to call rocket launchers “Katyushas” were the girls who assembled them at the Kompressor plant in Moscow.

The following version, although it may seem exotic, also has a right to exist. The shells were mounted on special guides called ramps. The weight of the projectile was 42 kilograms, and three people were required to install it on the ramp: two, harnessed into straps, dragged the ammunition onto the holder, and the third pushed it from behind, controlling the accuracy of fixing the projectile in the guides. So, some sources claim that it was this last fighter who was called “Katyusha”. The fact is that here, unlike armored units, there was no clear division of roles: any member of the crew could roll or hold shells.

At the initial stages, the installations were tested and operated in strict secrecy. Thus, when launching shells, the crew commander did not have the right to give the generally accepted commands “fire” and “fire”; they were replaced with “play” or “sing” (the launch was carried out by quickly rotating the handle of an electric coil). Needless to say, for any front-line soldier, the salvoes of Katyusha rockets were the most desirable song.
There is a version according to which at first “Katyusha” was the name given to a bomber equipped with rockets similar to BM-13 missiles. It was these ammunition that transferred the nickname from the airplane to the jet mortar.
The fascists called the installations nothing less than “Stalin’s organ.” Indeed, the guides bore a certain resemblance to the pipes of a musical instrument, and the roar emitted by the shells when launched was somewhat reminiscent of the menacing sound of an organ.

During the victorious march of our army across Europe, systems that launched single M-30 and M-31 projectiles were widely used. The Germans called these installations “Russian Faustpatrons”, although they were used not only as a means of destroying armored vehicles. At a distance of up to 200 m, the projectile could penetrate a wall of almost any thickness, even bunker fortifications.

Device
BM-13 was distinguished by its comparative simplicity. The design of the installation included rail guides and a guidance system consisting of an artillery sight and a rotary-lifting device. Additional stability when launching missiles was provided by two jacks located at the rear of the chassis.

The rocket had the shape of a cylinder, divided into three compartments - the fuel and combat compartments and the nozzle. The number of guides varied depending on the modification of the installation - from 14 to 48. The length of the RS-132 projectile used in the BM-13 was 1.8 m, diameter - 13.2 cm, weight - 42.5 kg. The inside of the rocket under the fins was reinforced with solid nitrocellulose. The warhead weighed 22 kg, of which 4.9 kg was explosive (for comparison, an anti-tank grenade weighed about 1.5 kg).

The range of the missiles is 8.5 km. The BM-31 used M-31 shells of 310 mm caliber, having a mass of about 92.4 kg, almost a third of which (29 kg) was explosive. Range – 13 km. The salvo was carried out in a matter of seconds: the BM-13 fired all 16 missiles in less than 10 seconds, the same time was required to launch the BM-31-12 with 12 guides and the BM-8, equipped with 24-48 missiles.

Loading the ammunition took 5-10 minutes for the BM-13 and BM-8; the BM-31, due to the larger mass of the shells, took a little longer to load - 10-15 minutes. To launch, it was necessary to rotate the handle of the electric coil, which was connected to the batteries and contacts on the ramps - by turning the handle, the operator closed the contacts and activated the missile launch systems in turn.

The tactics of using Katyushas radically distinguished them from the Nebelwerfer rocket systems that were in service with the enemy. If the German development was used to deliver high-precision strikes, then Soviet vehicles had low accuracy, but covered a large area. The explosive mass of Katyusha missiles was half that of Nebelwerfer shells, however, the damage inflicted on manpower and lightly armored vehicles was significantly greater than the German counterpart. The explosive detonated by firing fuses on opposite sides of the compartment; after the meeting of two detonation waves, the gas pressure at the point of their contact increased sharply, which gave the fragments additional acceleration and increased their temperature to 800 degrees.

The power of the explosion also increased due to the rupture of the fuel compartment, which was heated by the combustion of gunpowder - as a result, the effectiveness of fragmentation damage was twice that of artillery shells of the same caliber. At one time there were even rumors that the rockets of rocket launchers used a “thermite charge”, which was tested in 1942 in Leningrad. However, its use turned out to be inappropriate, since the igniting effect was already sufficient.

The simultaneous explosion of several shells created an interference effect of blast waves, which also contributed to an increase in the damaging effect.
The Katyusha crew numbered from 5 to 7 people and consisted of a crew commander, driver, gunner and several loaders.

Application
From the very beginning of its existence, rocket artillery was subordinate to the Supreme High Command.

RA units were staffed rifle divisions who are on the front line. The Katyushas had exceptional firepower, so their support in both offensive and defensive operations can hardly be overestimated. A special directive was issued setting out the requirements for the use of the machine. It specifically stated that Katyusha strikes should be sudden and massive.

During the war years, Katyushas more than once found themselves in the hands of the enemy. Thus, on the basis of the captured BM-8-24 captured near Leningrad, the German Raketen-Vielfachwerfer rocket system was developed.

During the defense of Moscow, a very difficult situation developed at the front, and the use of missile launchers was carried out on a subdivisional basis. However, in December 1941, due to a significant increase in the number of Katyushas (in each of the armies that held back the main attack of the enemy, there were up to 10 divisions of rocket-propelled mortars, which made it difficult to supply them and the effectiveness of maneuvering and striking), it was decided to create twenty guards mortar regiments.

The Guards Mortar Regiment of the Reserve Artillery of the Supreme High Command consisted of three divisions of three batteries each. The battery, in turn, consisted of four vehicles. The fire efficiency of such units was enormous - one division, consisting of 12 BM-13-16, could deliver a strike comparable in power to a salvo of 12 artillery regiments equipped with 48,152 mm howitzers or 18 artillery brigades equipped with 32 howitzers of the same caliber.

It is also worth taking into account the emotional impact: thanks to the almost simultaneous launch of shells, the ground in the target area literally reared up in a matter of seconds. A retaliatory strike by the rocket artillery units was easily avoided, as the mobile Katyushas quickly changed their location.

In July 1942, near the village of Nalyuchi, the brother of the Katyusha, the 300 mm Andryusha rocket launcher, equipped with 144 guides, was tested for the first time in combat conditions.

In the summer of 1942, the Mobile Mechanized Group of the Southern Front held back the onslaught of the enemy's first armored army south of Rostov for several days. The basis of this unit was a separate division and 3 rocket artillery regiments.

In August of the same year, military engineer A. Alferov developed a portable model of the system for M-8 shells. Front-line soldiers began to call the new product “Mountain Katyusha.” The 20th Mountain Rifle Division was the first to use this weapon; the installation proved itself excellent in the battles for the Goytsky Pass. At the end of the winter of 1943, a unit of “Mountain Katyushas”, consisting of two divisions, participated in the defense of the famous bridgehead on Malaya Zemlya near Novorossiysk. At the Sochi railway depot, rocket systems were mounted on railcars - these installations were used for defense coastline cities. 8 rocket launchers were installed on the minesweeper "Skumbria", which covered the landing operation on Malaya Zemlya.

In the fall of 1943, during the battles near Bryansk, thanks to the rapid transfer of combat vehicles from one flank of the front to the other, a sudden attack was carried out, breaking the enemy’s defenses over a 250 km long area. On that day, enemy fortifications were hit by more than 6 thousand Soviet missiles fired by the legendary Katyushas.

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ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katyusha_(weapon)
ww2total.com/WW2/Weapons/Artillery/Gun-Motor-Carriages/Russian/Katyusha/
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Famous phrase: “I don’t know what weapon will be used to fight the third World War, but the fourth with stones and sticks” belongs to Albert Einstein. Perhaps everyone understands what the great scientist meant.

The process of development and improvement of weapons, going hand in hand with the achievements of science and technology, ultimately leads to the mass destruction of people. The father of the “theory of relativity” aphoristically explained what the outcome could be. What is there to argue about...?

But here's the paradox. Understanding that any weapon is intended to destroy a person (the nonsense about lethal and non-lethal is not worth repeating), people respectfully preserve the memory of its individual types.

“Weapon of victory”: T-34 tank or Katyusha rocket launcher.

Who hasn't heard of the Mosin three-line gun or the famous Maxim machine gun? Don’t the T-34 tank or the Katyusha rocket launcher deservedly bear the title “Weapon of Victory”. It's like that. And as long as the “doves of peace” give way to the “hawks,” weapons will continue to be produced.

How the weapon of Victory was created

Missiles, the principle of operation of which is based on powder rockets, have been tried to be used in many armies e back in the 19th century. Moreover, by the end of the century before last, they were even abandoned as ineffective. This was justified as follows:

• there was a danger of defeat personnel in the event of an unauthorized explosion of such shells;
• large dispersion and insufficient shooting accuracy;
• short flight range, practically no different from this indicator for cannon artillery.

The cause of the shortcomings was the use of low-quality rocket fuel. Black powder (black powder) was not suitable, and there was no other option. And for almost half a century they forgot about rockets. But as it turned out, not forever.

In the Soviet Union, work on creating new shells began in the early 20s. This process was led by engineers N.I. Tikhomirov and V.A. Artemyev.

by the end of the year, after numerous tests, 82 and 132 mm air-to-ground projectiles were created for aviation

The test results showed good results. The flight range was 5 and 6 km, respectively. But the large dispersion negated the effect of the shot.

As in other areas of the country’s life, many engineers and designers - the authors of new types of weapons - experienced the “delights” of repression. Nevertheless, in 1937-38. RS-82 and RS-132 missiles were developed and put into service for bomber aviation

At the same time, work was underway to create similar ammunition, but for artillery. The most successful option turned out to be a modified RS-132, which became known as the M-13.

After the next tests carried out on June 21, 1945, the new M-13 projectile was sent to mass production. Accordingly, BM-13 launchers, the Katyusha weapon of victory, also began to be produced.

Military vehicle Katyusha BM-13 with launcher

The first unit equipped with the new systems to arrive at the front was a battery consisting of 7 launchers based on ZiS-6 trucks. The unit was commanded by Captain Flerov.

Katyusha fired her first salvo on July 16, 1941 at the railway junction of the Orsha station, where a large number enemy troops. The effect was impressive. Explosions and flames destroyed everything. After delivering the first crushing blow, Katyusha became the main weapon of the Second World War.

The successful results of using rocket mortars (following Captain Flerov’s unit, 7 more batteries were formed) contributed to increasing the pace of production of new weapons.

By the fall of 1941, the defense industry was able to deliver about 600 BM-13s to the front, which made it possible to form 45 divisions. Each battery contains three batteries with four launchers. These units were equipped with military equipment and personnel first and 100%.

Later, the reorganization of rocket artillery began, uniting individual divisions into regiments. The regiments had four divisional composition (in addition to three jets there was one anti-aircraft division). The regiment was armed with 36 Katyushas and 12 anti-aircraft guns (37 mm caliber).

The regiment was armed with 36 Katyushas and 12 anti-aircraft guns.

Each regiment had 1,414 personnel on staff. The formed regiments were immediately awarded the rank of Guards and were officially called Guards Mortar Regiments.

During the war, for the creators of rocket artillery, despite results achieved, the combat missions remained unchanged: to increase the firing range, increase the power of the missile warhead, and increase the accuracy and accuracy of fire.

To solve them, work was simultaneously carried out to improve the missile charge and to increase the combat capabilities of the missile projectile as a whole. Along with the shells that were put into service even before the war, the M-31 version was developed and began to be mass-produced.

BM-13 on Studebaker

Characteristics of rockets

Options	M-13	M-8	M-31
Mass of the rocket engine body, kg	14	4,1	29
Inner diameter of the case, mm	123,5	73	128
Case wall thickness, mm	4	3,5	5
Diameter of the critical section of the nozzle α cr, mm	37,5	19	45
Diameter of the nozzle bell α a, mm	75	43	76,5
Ratio α a /α cr	2	2,26	1,7
Pobedonostsev criterion	170	100	160
Charge density, g/cm 3	1,15	1,0	1,0
Engine mass perfection coefficient α	1,95	3,5	2,6
Engine intensity indicator β, kgf.s/kg	95	55	70

The Germans were terribly afraid of these deadly weapons of ours, calling them “Stalin’s organs.” Rocket shells were most often used to suppress an advancing enemy. Usually, after a missile strike, infantry and tanks stopped moving forward and were not active for a long time on this section of the front.

Therefore, the rapid development of rocket artillery during the war does not need explanation.

launchers and 12 million missile shells were produced by the country's defense industry in the period from 1941-1945

The bulk of the installations were based first on ZiS-6 vehicles, and after deliveries under Lend-Lease, on American Studebaker vehicles. Other vehicles were also used: motorcycles, snowmobiles, armored boats, railway platforms and even certain types of tanks. But BM-13, "Katyusha" was the most effective installation.

The secret behind the name of the BM-13 rocket launcher is “Katyusha”

Practice of assigning official and unofficial names certain species weapons has been known for a long time. It exists in many countries of the world.

In the Red Army, some tank models were named statesmen(KV - Kliment Voroshilov, IS - Joseph Stalin), the aircraft were named after the names of their creators (La-Lavochkin, Pe-Petlyakov).

But to the factory abbreviations of artillery systems, taking into account their features, soldiers’ invention added proper names (For example, the M-30 howitzer was called “Mother”).

There are several versions about why the Katyusha artillery mount received this name:

1. Name rocket launcher associated with the popular song by M. Isakovsky and M. Blanter “Katyusha”. The first salvo of the rocket battery was fired from a hill. So an association arose with a line from the song...
2. On the body of the mortar there was the letter “K”, denoting the plant named after. Comintern. It is possible that the first letter of the name was the reason for assigning it to the rocket launcher.
3. There is another version. In the battles at Khalkhin Gol bomber aircraft used M-132 shells, the land equivalent of which was the M-13 Katyusha ammunition. And these planes were sometimes called “Katyushas”.

In any case, the most widespread, well-known and deserving of the title “weapon of Victory” rocket-propelled mortar (and during the war it was not the only one) was the “Katyusha”.

Modifications of military equipment Katyusha

Even during the war years, German experts tried to obtain descriptions, characteristics, diagrams, and technical details associated with the formidable Soviet weapons. The feature film “Special Forces Squad” was dedicated to one of the episodes of the war associated with the increased secrecy surrounding the BM-13.

As already noted, several modifications of rocket launchers were created during the war. Among them it is worth highlighting:

A feature of this installation is the presence of spiral guides. This innovation contributed to increased shot accuracy.

Military equipment Katyusha BM-13-SN (photo)

BM-8-48

Here the relationship between quantity and quality was tested. A less powerful M-8 projectile was used and at the same time the number of guides was increased to 48.

The numbers show that the more powerful 310mm M-31 ammunition was used for this installation.

But, apparently, the developers of new variants, trying to improve the BM-13, came to the banal conclusion that the best is the enemy of the good. The characteristics presented in the table emphasize the main advantage of the Guards mortar - its simplicity.

Performance characteristics of BM-13

CharacteristicBM-13 launcher		CharacteristicM-13 missile
Chassis	ZiS-6	Caliber (mm)	132
Number of guides	16	Stabilizer blade span (mm)	300
Guide length	5	Length (mm)	1465
Elevation angle (deg)	+4/+ 45	Weight, kg)
Horizontal aiming angle (deg)	-10/+10	loaded ammunition	42,36
Length in stowed position (m)	6,7	equipped warhead	21,3
Width (m)	2,3	bursting charge	4,9
Height in stowed position (m)	2,8	loaded jet engine	20,8
Weight without shells (kg)	7200	Projectile speed (m/sec)
Engine power (hp)	73	when leaving the guide	70
Speed ​​(km/h)	50	maximum	355
Crew (persons)	7	Length of active trajectory section (m)	1125
Transition from traveling position. in combat (min)	2-3	Maximum firing range (m)	8470
Installation charging time (min)	5-10
Full salvo time - 7-10 minutes

Advantages and disadvantages

The simple design of the Katyusha and its launcher is the main trump card in evaluating the BM-13 batteries. The artillery unit consists of eight five-meter I-beam guides, a frame, a rotating mechanism and starting electrical equipment.

During technical improvements, a lifting mechanism and an aiming device appeared on the installation.

The crew consisted of 5-7 people.

The Katyusha rocket consisted of two parts: a combat one, similar to a high-explosive fragmentation artillery round, and a rocket propellant projectile.

The ammunition was also quite simple and inexpensive. In a word, along with the effectiveness of combat use, the simplicity and low cost of the system can easily be attributed to the advantages of the Katyusha.

For the sake of objectivity, it is necessary to point out the shortcomings of the BM-13:

• low accuracy and dispersion of projectiles when firing a salvo. With the advent of spiral guides, this problem was partially solved. By the way, modern MLRS still have these shortcomings to some extent;
• short, compared to cannon artillery, range of combat use;
• the heavy smoke that appeared during the shooting unmasked the unit’s combat position;
• the high-explosive fragmentation effect of the rocket did not pose a particular danger to those in long-term shelters or armored vehicles;
• The tactics of the BM-13 divisions provided for their rapid movement from one firing position to another. The increased center of gravity of cars often led to their overturning while on the move.

Post-war history of the multiple launch rocket system

After the victory, the story of the creation of Katyusha continued. Work to improve the multiple rocket launcher has not stopped. They continued in peacetime. The main model was the BM-13-SN rocket system, the improvement and testing of which continued for several years with varying degrees of success.

It is interesting that the Katyusha multiple launch rocket system, almost unchanged (only the chassis changed), remained in demand until 1991. The USSR sold MLRS to almost all socialist and some developing countries. And Iran, China, Czechoslovakia and North Korea produced them.

If we abstract from complex technical innovations, then all the post-war MLRS, known under the names: BM-24, BM-21 “Grad”, 220 mm “Hurricane”, “Smerch”, can undoubtedly consider the world-famous “ Katyusha."