The use of Katyusha in WWII. Unique combat vehicle “Katyusha. Katyusha MLRS launcher

Katyusha (BM-13): Our weapon of retaliation

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 a 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.

Detonation explosive the warhead of the projectile was carried out on both sides (the length of the detonator was only slightly less than the length of the cavity for the explosive). 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 a significantly higher 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 similar caliber. That is why the legend arose that Katyusha rockets were equipped with a “thermite charge”. The “thermite” charge was, indeed, tested in 1942 besieged Leningrad, but it turned out to be unnecessary - after the volley of Katyushas, ​​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, in his diary, the head of the German General Staff General Halder wrote: “On July 14, near Orsha, the Russians used weapons unknown until that time. A fiery barrage of shells burned railway station Orsha, all echelons 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 special instructions 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. Comintern, which produced these combat installations, new options for placing missiles have been developed. 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 rockets were manufactured for their subsequent installation on warships - torpedo boats and an armored boat.

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 carrying 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 combat vehicles rocket artillery.

Relatives of the Katyusha

For all their advantages, high-explosive fragmentation rockets RS-82 and RS-132 had one drawback - high dispersion and low effectiveness 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. The M-31 shell could hit manpower in an area of ​​2 thousand square meters or form 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, a close explosion would knock over enemy military equipment, and heavy hot fragments would reliably put it out of action.

After the war, Soviet designers of combat vehicles continued to work on 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

Projectile caliber - 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.

Number of guides - 16.

Maximum firing range - 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 on a Studebaker chassis

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

About efficiency combat use"Katyusha" during an attack on an enemy fortified unit can serve as an 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 located in them, were filled up, fire system completely depressed. 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, the salvo is only one division of 12 BM-13-16 PIP vehicles (Headquarters directive No. 002490 prohibited the use of rocket artillery in quantities of less than a division) could be compared in strength to a salvo of 12 heavy howitzer regiments of the RVGK (48 howitzers of 152 mm caliber per regiment) or 18 heavy howitzer brigades of the RVGK (32 152 mm howitzers per brigade).

art of weapon making

The decision to mass produce Katyushas in the USSR was made 12 hours before the start of the Great Patriotic War, on June 21, 1941. Only then they were still called not “Katyushas”, but BM-13 installations.

Just 10 days later, on July 2, 1941, the first battery of seven BM-13s under the command of Captain I. A. Flerov moved to the front. And two days later she fired the first salvo at the Nazis who occupied the Orsha station.

The commander of one of the guns, Valentin Ovsov, recalled: “The earth shook and lit up.” “The effect of a one-time explosion of 112 mines in a matter of seconds exceeded all expectations,” wrote Marshal A. I. Eremenko, commander of the Western Front. “The enemy soldiers began to run in panic. Our soldiers who were on the ground also retreated back.” cutting edge, near the ruptures (in order to maintain secrecy, no one was warned about the tests)."

After the salvo, the German General Staff received a telegram from the Eastern Front:

“The Russians used a battery with an unprecedented number of guns. Shells of unusual action. The troops fired at by the Russians testify: the fire raid is like a hurricane. The shells explode simultaneously.

The loss of life is significant."

Destruction of the first installations

After the first salvos, Nazi aircraft began hunting for Captain Flerov’s battery and intensively bombed its supposed base areas. To capture at least one Katyusha, several sabotage groups were sent to our rear and a large reward was announced for the one who would obtain the Russian secret weapon.

As a result of large-scale operations undertaken by the Germans in October 1941, Flerov’s battery found itself surrounded near the Smolensk village of Bogatyr. On October 7, a salvo of the remaining shells was fired. After this, the installations had to be blown up.

Thus the first page of the legendary Katyusha battery was turned.

Chassis search

The deadly BM-13 is actually a frame of eight guide rails connected to each other by welded spars. Rocket mines, each weighing 42.5 kg, launched from the frame, emitting wild grinding sounds. There were 16 of them attached to the frame. You can’t carry such a setup by hand. Therefore, the question of what to carry the Katyusha with arose immediately.

Before the war, only one truck was produced in the USSR - the famous lorry in various modifications. The ZIS-5 truck turned out to be rather weak for the Katyusha, and this became clear almost immediately. 73 hp motor could reach a speed of only 60 km/h, and only on asphalt, while consuming 33 liters of gasoline for every 100 km. But the truck did not have the strength to plow the front-line off-road terrain with a heavy installation.

In addition, the BM-13 from its body only fired in a transverse position; there was no other way. The transverse location of the installation during a salvo rocked the vehicle so much that there was no need to talk about the accuracy of the hit.

Therefore, it was decided to install a rocket launcher on the improved three-axle ZIS-6.

ZIS did not improve the situation

It is interesting that many “one and a half” have survived to this day; you can find them in almost every military museum and in private collections, but the ZIS-6 is a rarity.

The ZIS-6 crew consisted of 5-7 people, and with full ammunition the vehicle weighed more than eight tons. The three-axle truck provided much greater maneuverability. Unlike its two-axle counterpart, the ZIS-6 had a reinforced frame, a larger radiator and a gas tank of up to 105 liters. The car was equipped with brakes with a vacuum booster and a compressor for inflating the tires. Thanks to two rear drive axles, the ZIS-6 was no longer so afraid of wet roads and snow drifts. Is it true, maximum speed it turned out to be lower than that of the ZIS-5: 55 km/h on asphalt and 10 km/h on off-road. This is not surprising, because the engine remains the same - 73 hp. Fuel consumption on the highway reached 40 liters per 100 km, on a country road - up to 70.

The ZIS-6 was assembled until October 1941, and in total a little more than 20 thousand of them came off the assembly line.

Studebaker for the Russian miracle

During the war years greatest number"Katyusha" was mounted on all-wheel drive three-axle Studebakers. No matter how unpatriotic it may sound, it was thanks to powerful and reliable American trucks that our rocket launch batteries received the desired mobility.

The first three-axle army vehicles, designated US-6, rolled off the Studebaker assembly line at the end of 1941. It was then decided to send them to the Allied armies, mainly to the USSR. As a result, most of the 197 thousand trucks produced were delivered to us. They arrived in the USSR mainly in disassembled form. The assembly and installation of rocket launchers was carried out at the evacuated ZIS plant.

The Americans produced a dozen different modifications of the US-6 - some of them were equipped with a driven front axle (6x6), some with a conventional one (6x4). The Red Army preferred vehicles with a 6x6 wheel arrangement. Their six-cylinder carburetor engine developed a power of 95 hp, and the maximum speed of the car with a full load reached 70 km/h on the highway.

In front-line conditions, “Studebakers” (or, as they were also called, “students”) proved themselves to be reliable vehicles, which could easily be loaded with up to five tons of cargo, compared with the three tons recommended by the American manufacturer.

This is how this couple fought until the end of the war: our Katyusha on American wheels.

Armed tractors

History in pictures

In general, in addition to American trucks, since 1942, the Katyusha, as a very respected “woman,” was transported on any suitable vehicle.

Subsequently, by analogy with “Katyusha”, the nickname “Andryusha” was given by Soviet soldiers to another rocket artillery installation BM-31-12, but this nickname did not become so widespread and popular.

History of the creation of weapons

M-13 shell

Memorial complex in the village of Pishchalovo, Orsha district. Place of first use of the BM-13 “KATYUSHA” installation

Back in 1920, employees of the Riga VEF plant under the leadership of Alexander Tipainis developed an experimental prototype of the Oscars experimental rocket launcher. Despite the success of the prototype, no funds were allocated for further production, and the project never reached the mass production. In January 1921, the drawings and other important documentation fell into the hands of Soviet security officers and NKVD agents. [ ] In 1921, employees of the Gas Dynamics Laboratory (GDL) N.I. Tikhomirov and V.A. Artemyev began developing rockets for aircraft.

In 1938-1941, at Research Institute No. 3 of the NKB (from 1938, former RNII) under the leadership of chief designer A.V. Kostikov, engineers: I.I. Gvai, V.N. Galkovsky, A.P. Pavlenko, R. I . Popov, N.I. Tikhomirov, V.A. Artemyev and others created a multi-charge launcher mounted on a truck.

In March 1941, field tests of the installations, designated BM-13 (combat vehicle with 132 mm caliber shells), were successfully carried out. The 132 mm M-13 rocket and the launcher based on the ZIS-6 BM-13 truck were put into service on June 21, 1941; It was this type of combat vehicle that first received the nickname “Katyusha”. The BM-13 installations were first tested in combat conditions at 10 a.m. on July 14, 1941. The battery of Captain Flerov, who took part in the creation of the BM-13, fired at enemy troops and equipment at the railway junction of the city of Orsha. Since the spring of 1942, the rocket mortar was installed mainly on English and American all-wheel drive chassis imported under Lend-Lease. The most famous among them was the Studebaker US6. During the Great Patriotic War, a significant number of variants of RS shells and launchers for them were created; In total, Soviet industry produced approximately 10,000 rocket artillery combat vehicles during the war years.

Origin of the nickname

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, which became popular before the war, based on the words of Isakovsky “Katyusha”. 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 dated June 21-27, 2001 and in the Parliamentary newspaper No. 80 dated 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 upcoming 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 sometimes called “Raisa Sergeevna” at first, 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:

Similar nicknames

In addition to the popular nickname “Katyusha”, which became widely known throughout the world, in relation to Soviet rocket artillery combat vehicles during the Great Patriotic War, there were also a number of its analogues, less known.

There is an opinion, expressed in English-language sources, that the BM-31-12 combat vehicle, by analogy with the Katyusha, received the nickname “Andryusha” from Soviet soldiers, although it is possible that the “Andryusha” was called the M-30. Also very popular, it, however, did not receive such significant distribution and fame as the Katyusha, and did not spread to other models of launchers; even the BM-31-12s themselves were often called “Katyushas” rather than by their own nickname. Following “Katyusha”, Soviet soldiers also christened it with the Russian name German weapons of a similar type is the 15 cm Nb.W 41 (Nebelwerfer) towed rocket mortar, nicknamed “Vanyusha”. In addition, the high-explosive M-30 rocket, used from the simplest portable frame-type multiple rocket launchers, subsequently also received several humorous nicknames of a similar type: “Ivan Dolbay”, associated with the high destructive power of the projectile, and “Luka” - on behalf of the character Luka Mudishchev from a 19th-century pornographic poem, in connection with the characteristic shape of the projectile head; Due to the obvious obscene subtext of the joke, the nickname “Luka,” which had a certain popularity among soldiers, was practically not reflected in the Soviet press and literature and remained little known in general.

Mortar launchers were called “Marusya” (derived from MARS - mortar artillery rockets), and on the Volkhov Front they were called “guitar”.

While in the Soviet troops the BM-13 combat vehicles and analogues received the stable nickname “Katyusha”, in the German troops these vehicles were nicknamed “Stalin’s organs” (German: Stalinorgel) - due to the association appearance guide package rocket launcher with the pipe system of this musical instrument and because of the characteristic sound produced when rockets are launched. Soviet installations of this type became known under this nickname, in addition to Germany, also in a number of other countries - Denmark (Danish: Stalinorgel), Finland (Finnish: Stalinin urut), France (French: Orgues de Staline), Norway (Norwegian: Stalinorgel), The Netherlands (Dutch: Stalinorgel), Hungary (Hungarian: Sztálinorgona) and Sweden (Swedish: Stalins orgel).

It should be noted that among German soldiers the Soviet nickname “Katyusha” also spread - Katjuscha. From the memoirs of intelligence officer N.P. Rusanov, we know about the inadequate reaction of some German soldiers to this word:

When they brought him (the sergeant major) to his team, there was a Katyusha at the headquarters. As soon as the German heard this word “Katyusha”, he immediately shook all over, rushed to the side, so that the spruce was held back. How much laughter we boys had! .

Notes

1. Luknitsky P. N. Through the entire blockade. - L.: Lenizdat, 1988. - P. 193.
2. Gordon L. Rottman.// FUBAR (F***ed Up Beyond All Recognition): Soldier Slang of World War II. - Osprey, 2007. - P. 278-279. - 296 p. - ISBN 1-84603-175-3.
3. Katyusha- article from the Great Soviet Encyclopedia.
4. Steven J. Zaloga, James Grandsen. Soviet Tanks and Combat Vehicles of World War Two. - London: Arms and Armor Press, 1984. - P. 153. - 240 p. - ISBN 0-85368-606-8.
5. “Luka” and “Katyusha” against “Vanyusha”. “Equipment and weapons” No. 1 1995
6. AKIMOV V. N., KOROTEEV A. S., GAFAROV A. A. and others. Weapon of Victory - “Katyusha” // Research Center named after M. V. Keldysh. 
7. 1933-2003: 70 years at the cutting edge of rocket and space technology. - Mechanical engineering. - M, 2003. - P. 92-101. - 439 p. Pervushin A. I.
8. "Red space. Starships of the Soviet Empire." 2007. Moscow. "Yauza", "Eksmo". ISBN 5-699-19622-6.
9. MILITARY LITERATURE - [Military History]- Fugate B., Operation Barbarossa Andronikov N. G., Galitsan A. S., Kiryan M. M. et al.
10. The Great Patriotic War, 1941-1945: Dictionary-reference book / Under. ed. M. M. Kiryana. - M.: Politizdat, 1985. - P. 204. - 527 p. - 200,000 copies. "K-22" - Battle cruiser / [under general ed. N. V. Ogarkova
11. ]. - M.: Military Publishing House of the Ministry of Defense of the USSR, 1979. - P. 124. - (Soviet Military Encyclopedia: [in 8 volumes]; 1976-1980, vol. 4). Alexander Borisovich Shirokorad. “Luka” and “Katyusha” against “Vanyusha”. Multiple launch rocket systems in the Great Patriotic War (undefined)
12. . Independent Military Review (March 5, 2010). Retrieved November 29, 2011. Archived February 8, 2012. Warbot J. J.
13. "Etymology // Russian language. Encyclopedia. - 2nd ed., revised and supplemented. - M.: Great Russian Encyclopedia; Bustard, 1997. - P. 643-647. Lazarev L. L. The legend of the first "Katyusha"// Touching the sky. - M.: Profizdat, 1984.

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

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

He was born in 1885 in St. Petersburg in the family of a military man, graduated from the St. Petersburg gymnasium and volunteered for Russo-Japanese War. For courage and courage he was promoted to junior non-commissioned officer and awarded the St. George Cross, then graduated from the Alekseevsky Junker School. At the beginning of 1920, Artemyev met N.I. Tikhomirov and became his closest assistant, but in 1922, in the wake of general suspicion towards former officers tsarist army was imprisoned in a concentration camp. Returning from Solovki, he continued to improve rockets, work on which he began back in the twenties and was interrupted due to his arrest. During the Great Patriotic War, he made many valuable inventions in the field of military equipment.

After the war, V. A. Artemyev, being the chief designer of a number of research and design institutes, created new models of missile shells, was awarded the Order of the Red Banner of Labor and the Red Star, and was a laureate Stalin Prizes. Died on September 11, 1962 in Moscow. His name is on the map of the Moon: one of the craters on its surface is named in memory of the creator of the Katyusha.

“Katyusha” is the unofficial collective name for the BM-8 (82 mm), BM-13 (132 mm) and BM-31 (310 mm) rocket artillery combat vehicles. Such installations were actively used by the USSR during the Second World War.

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

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

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

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

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

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

The BM-13 "Katyusha" includes the following combat weapons:

Combat vehicle (BM) MU-2 (MU-1);
Missiles.

M-13 rocket:

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

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, the M-13-UK projectile has 12 tangentially located holes 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.

MLRS "Katyusha" launcher:

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

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

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

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

A significant factor increasing the tactical mobility of rocket artillery units armed with BM-13N installations was the fact that the powerful American Studebaker US 6x6 truck, supplied to the USSR under Lend-Lease, was used as a base for the launcher. This car had increased cross-country ability, provided by a powerful engine, three drive axles (6x6 wheel arrangement), a range multiplier, a winch for self-pulling, and a high location of all parts and mechanisms sensitive to water. The development of the BM-13 serial combat vehicle was finally completed with the creation of this launcher. In this form she fought until the end of the war.

Testing and operation

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

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

The famous phrase: “I don’t know with what weapons the third world war will be fought, but the fourth will be fought with sticks and stones” 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 injury to one's own personnel in the 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. rockets RS-82 and RS-132 were developed and adopted 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, new projectile M-13 was sent to mass production. Accordingly, BM-13 launchers, the Katyusha weapon of victory, also began to be produced.

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 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.

IN staffing table each regiment had 1414 personnel. 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 the results achieved, the combat missions: achieve an increase in firing range, increase the power of the missile warhead, 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.

Characteristics of rockets

The Germans were terribly afraid of this our lethal weapons, 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 inactive for a long time in 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. Others have also been used vehicles: 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 artillery installation“Katyusha” received exactly this name:

1. The name of the rocket launcher is associated with the popular song “Katyusha” by M. Isakovsky and M. Blanter. 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, famous 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 specialists tried to obtain a description, characteristics, diagrams, technical details associated with the formidable Soviet weapons. Was dedicated to one of the episodes of the war associated with the increased secrecy surrounding the BM-13 Feature Film"Special forces team".

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.

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

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;
• small compared to barrel artillery, combat range;
• 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 to another firing positions. 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."