Profile
- Type
- 122 mm multiple rocket launcher
- Origin
- Soviet Union
- Service note
- Cold War design in modern service
Artillery
BM-21 Grad
The BM-21 Grad is a Soviet 122 mm multiple rocket launcher built around a 40-tube launcher on a wheeled truck chassis. In the Russia-Ukraine War it remains a common area-fire system on both sides, valued for rapid salvos and mobility but dependent on shoot-and-scoot tactics because the launcher is carried on an unarmored truck.
- Built in
- Soviet UnionRussia
Service History
- In service
- 1963-present
- Used by
- Russian Armed Forces, Ukrainian Armed Forces, National Guard of Ukraine
- Wars
- Russia-Ukraine War, War in Donbas
Production History
- Designer
- NII-117 / NPO Splav; SKB-203 / NPP Start
- Designed
- 1959-1963
- Built in
- Soviet UnionRussia
- Produced
- 1960-1988 for original Soviet production; later license production and modernization programs
- Number built
- More than 8,500 launch vehicles reported by WeaponSystems.net; Forecast International estimated 14,362 systems including prime and license production through 2023
- Variants
- BM-21 on Ural-375D, BM-21-1 / 2B17 on Ural-4320, 9P138 Grad-1, BM-21V Grad-V, Ukrainian modernized BM-21 variants
Specifications
- Crew
- 3 on standard BM-21 according to Forecast International and WeaponSystems.net
- Caliber
- 122 mm Grad artillery rockets
- Launcher
- 40 launch tubes on a Ural 6x6 truck chassis
- Range
- About 20.4 km with standard 9M22 rockets; 30-40 km class rockets exist for some Grad-compatible families
- Salvo
- All 40 rockets can be ripple-fired in about 20 seconds
- Mobility
- Ural-375D 6x6 truck; 75 km/h road speed reported for the original vehicle
- Protection
- Soft-skin truck with no armor; survivability depends on mobility and rapid displacement
Conflict Usage
- Russia-Ukraine War
- Side: RussiaUkraine
Operated by both Russian and Ukrainian forces as 122 mm truck-mounted rocket artillery; Ukrainian National Guard units have modernized BM-21 launchers for current battlefield conditions, while open-source loss records document Russian BM-21 systems destroyed, damaged, abandoned, and captured during the full-scale invasion.
BM-21 Grad Images
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BM-21 GradPublisher: WeaponSystems.net | Note: Supports system background, origin, development, producer, variants, and technical specifications. | Accessed: 2026-06-19BM-21 122mm Multiple Launch Rocket SystemPublisher: Forecast International | Note: Supports production, contractor, application, crew, launch vehicle, and launcher configuration data. | Accessed: 2026-06-19Multiple Launch Rocket System BM-21 GRAD and RM-70 GRADPublisher: STV Group | Note: Supports BM-21 caliber, 40-round launcher, salvo time, dimensions, weight, speed, and mobility specifications. | Accessed: 2026-06-19Ukraine's National Guard receives upgrades BM-21 rocket launchersPublisher: Defence Blog | Note: Supports Russia-Ukraine War context for Ukrainian National Guard BM-21 operation and modernization during the ongoing war. | Accessed: 2026-06-19Attack On Europe: Documenting Russian Equipment Losses During The Russian Invasion Of UkrainePublisher: Oryx | Note: Supports Russia-Ukraine War context for Russian BM-21 Grad systems fielded and visually documented as losses during the invasion. | Accessed: 2026-06-19Rocket launcher BM-21 "Grad" on Ural-375D chassis.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports primary image provenance and licensing information for the BM-21 Grad photograph. | Accessed: 2026-06-19