Profile
- Type
- 300 mm multiple launch rocket system
- Conflict side
- Russia
- Origin
- Russia
- Service note
- 2010s-present
Artillery
Tornado-S
Tornado-S, also known as the 9K515 MLRS, is Russia's modernized 300 mm successor to the BM-30 Smerch, adding automated fire-control and GLONASS-aided guided rockets for longer-range precision fires. In the Russia-Ukraine War it has been documented through recovered 9M54-series guided munition remnants and reported launcher losses, making it one of Russia's higher-end rocket artillery systems in the conflict.
- Conflict side
- Russia
- Built by
- NPO SplavMotovilikha Plants
- Built in
- Russia
Service History
- In service
- Approved for Russian service in 2016; documented in the Russia-Ukraine War from 2022
- Used by
- Russian Ground Forces
- Wars
- Russia-Ukraine War
Production History
- Designer
- NPO Splav
- Designed
- 2000s-2010s modernization of BM-30 Smerch
- Built by
- NPO SplavMotovilikha Plants
- Built in
- Russia
- Produced
- Serial deliveries reported from the late 2010s
- Variants
- 9K515 Tornado-S, 9M544 guided rocket, 9M549 guided rocket, 9M55S thermobaric rocket
Specifications
- Caliber
- 300 mm
- Launcher
- 12 launch tubes on an 8x8 wheeled chassis
- Maximum range
- Up to 120 km with 9M544 and 9M549 guided missiles
- Crew
- 3
- Combat weight
- 43,700 kg with missiles and crew
- Mobility
- 60 km/h maximum road speed; 800 km cruising range
- Fire control
- Automated laying, topographic survey, launch calculations, mission input, and remote-control firing option
Conflict Usage
- Russia-Ukraine War
- Side: Russia
Russian forces have used Tornado-S 300 mm guided rockets in Ukraine; early documented remnants from Pokrovsk in March 2022 showed 9B706 guidance-module markings associated with 9M54-series Tornado-S munitions.
Related Weapon Systems
BM-30 Smerch300 mm heavy multiple launch rocket systemThe BM-30 Smerch, also designated 9K58, is a Soviet-designed heavy multiple launch rocket system built around a 12-tube 300 mm launcher on an 8x8 wheeled chassis. Its long-range rockets can carry high-explosive, cluster, and thermobaric warheads, making it a deep-fire artillery system rather than a front-line direct-fire weapon. In the Russia-Ukraine War, documented Russian use of 9M55K Smerch cluster rockets has tied the system to attacks on Ukrainian urban areas including Kharkiv and Mykolaiv.
M142 HIMARSWheeled multiple rocket launcher and tactical missile launcherThe M142 HIMARS is a U.S.-built wheeled launcher that gives field artillery units a rapidly deployable precision-strike system for GMLRS rockets, ATACMS, and newer PrSM missiles. Its single-pod launcher trades the heavier M270 MLRS loadout for C-130 transportability and road mobility, making it useful for dispersed long-range fires in Ukraine, Syria, and U.S. operations against Iran.
TOS-2 TosochkaWheeled 220 mm thermobaric multiple rocket launcherThe TOS-2 Tosochka is Russia's wheeled successor to the TOS-1A heavy flamethrower system, using 220 mm thermobaric and incendiary rockets from an 18-tube launcher on a Ural 6x6 truck. Its built-in crane, automated fire-control equipment, and wheeled chassis are intended to make the system more mobile and less dependent on a separate loading vehicle, while Russian forces have fielded it during the Russia-Ukraine War.
TRLG-230230 mm laser-guided artillery rocketThe TRLG-230 is Roketsan's 230 mm laser-guided artillery rocket for the company's multi-caliber launcher family, combining coordinate guidance with terminal laser designation for precision strikes out to about 70 km. In the Russia-Ukraine War, open-source reporting has identified the system as a Turkish-supplied Ukrainian precision-fires capability, distinct from standard GPS-guided rockets because its laser seeker can be used against designated point targets.
Vilkha300 mm guided multiple launch rocket systemVilkha is a Ukrainian 300 mm guided rocket artillery system derived from the BM-30 Smerch family and modernized around domestically produced precision rockets. Built by State Kyiv Design Bureau Luch and associated Ukrainian defense enterprises, it gives Ukrainian rocket artillery a heavier, longer-range precision-fire option than standard unguided Smerch ammunition, with Vilkha-M extending the family beyond the baseline rocket's range.
9K720 IskanderRoad-mobile tactical ballistic and cruise missile systemThe 9K720 Iskander is a Russian road-mobile tactical missile system that launches short-range ballistic missiles and, in Iskander-K configuration, ground-launched cruise missiles. In the Russia-Ukraine War it has served as one of Russia's principal precision-strike systems for attacks beyond the immediate front line.Sources
300mm 9K515 MLRSPublisher: Rosoboronexport | Note: Official export page supporting the 9K515 designation, Smerch lineage, 120 km guided-missile range, crew, weight, mobility, deployment timing, and automated fire-control features. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Tornado-S 9K515 MLRSPublisher: Army Recognition | Note: Reference profile supporting the Tornado-S modernization context, launcher configuration, guided and unguided rocket families, service timing, and Motovilikha manufacturer attribution. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Tornado-S: Dangerous counterpart to HIMARS and Vilkha MRLPublisher: Militarnyi | Note: Direct conflict-use source for Russia-Ukraine War documentation of Tornado-S munition use in Ukrainian cities from March 2022; also supports NPO Splav/Rostec production context. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Russian 9M54-series cargo missile documented in Ukraine (2022)Publisher: Armament Research Services | Note: Direct conflict-use source for the Russia-Ukraine War documenting 9M54-series guided munition remnants in Ukraine, fired from the modernized 9K515 Tornado-S MBRL, with 9B706 guidance markings. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Ukraine conflict: Russian forces employ guided rocketsPublisher: Janes | Note: Direct conflict-use source describing evidence of 9M544 and 9M549 guided rockets from Russia's Tornado-S system in Ukraine and their 120 km range. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Russian troops fired at Pokrovsk with Tornado-S cluster shellsPublisher: LB.ua | Note: Direct conflict-use source for the Russia-Ukraine War reporting the March 2022 Pokrovsk strike and citing 9B706 markings as evidence of Tornado-S rocket use. | Accessed: 2026-06-20File:Tornado-S - Army 2024-08-14 44.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Image provenance and licensing source; the file depicts a Tornado-S MLRS and is published under CC0 1.0. | Accessed: 2026-06-20