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Old 09-16-2009, 12:55 PM
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Default BM-13-16 "Katyusha"

BM-13-16 "Katyusha"




The BM-13-16 was more commonly known as the "Katyusha" and to the Germans it was nick-named "Stalin's Organ" because of the distinctive sound made when the rockets were launched. The launch system, named M-13, could carry sixteen 132mm rockets on eight I-section steel rails arranged eight on top and eight underneath held on studs fixed to the rocket bodies. The rockets were fired electrically two at a time, or in "ripple" where all rockets would be fired in 7 seconds. An armored roof protected the truck's cab.
The 132mm M-13 rocket launcher was mass-produced by the Soviet Union and appeared on a number of chassis throughout the war, including tanks and ships. The designation BM-13-16 breaks down to "combat vehicle for M-13 launcher with 16 rails". Only 40 units had been produced before war broke out with Germany, and they were such a closely guarded secret that the initial units equiped were under NKVD direction.
The first battery went into action near Orsha railway station on 7th July 1941 and proved an immediate success. The GAU was duly impressed, and ordered production to begin on a crash basis. The rocket launchers were still so highly classified that they received a variety of bogus names such as Kostikov guns, etc. Eventually they were officially designated Guards Mortars, but the name which stuck was the popular nickname, Katyusha, the diminutive form of the name Katerina, after the Isakovskiy tune of the same name. The scream of the rockets led the Germans to call them Stalin's Organs. The main attraction of the Katyusha launcher was that it was cheap to manufacture and could be turned out by small factories without the elaborate machine tools needed for conventional tubed artillery. A BM-13 salvo dropped 4.35 tons of rocket and high explosive into a 10-acre area in a terrifying 7-10 second strike. Although not so accurate as conventional artillery, the Katyusha was much more feared by German soldiers than conventional artillery. By the end of the war, about 10,000 Katyusha launchers had been manufactured, mostly for the Army, but some for the Navy's river flotillas as well. The majority of launchers were self-propelled.



Country :Russia
Role :Self-Propelled Artillery
In-Service Date :May 1941
Manufacturer :State Industries
Number Produced :
Crew :3
Rado :None
Road Speed :50 Kilometers per Hour
Rough Speed :19 Kilometers per Hour
Road Range:180 Kilometers
Off-Road Range:75 Kilometers
Engine Name:ZiS 5
Coolant :
Cylinders:
Capacity:Liters
Horsepower :
Power / Weight Ratio :hp per tonne
Transmission :Unknown
Gears :4 Forward / 2 Reverse
Suspenion :Leaf Springs
Fuel Type :Gasoline
Fuel Capacity:73 Liters
Road Consumption:0.41 Liters per Kilometer
Off-Road Consumption:0.97 Liters per Kilometer
Length :6.06 meters
Height :2.16 meters
Width :2.235 meters
Weight :5730 kilograms
Ground Clearance :25 centimeters
Ground Pressure :Unknown kg/cm²
Track Links :None per track
Track Width :None centimeters
Track Ground Contact :None centimeters
Gradiant :45°
Vertical Obsticle :0.23 meters
Fording Depth :1.016 meters
Trench Crossing :1.24 meters
Turning Radius :10.4 meters
Main Gun :132mm M-13 "Katyusha"
Gunsight :MP-41
Traverse :20°
Elevation :+45° / +35°
Main Gun Ammo :16
Secondary Weapons :None
Hull Front (Upper) :None
Hull Front (Lower) :None
Hull Sides (Upper) :None
Hull Sides (Lower) :None
Hull Rear :None
Hull Top :45mm
Hull Bottom :None
Turret Front :None
Turret Mantlet :None
Turret Sides :None
Turret Rear :None
Turret Top :None
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