It had a 5 kg high explosive (HE) warhead.The Katyusha used an improved derivative of the aircraft launched 132 mm RS-132 rocket, the M-13. CAPABILITIES A Soviet Army soldier loads an M-13 rocket onto a BM-13 Katyusha launcher rail But as it entered mass production, the restrictions were lifted and the weapon was available to the regular Soviet army troops. The German soldiers thus nicknamed it as ‘ Stalin’s Organ‘ as it produced a wailing sound while being launched and it was widely feared by them. The weapon was so secretive that only special NKVD state police personnel and trusted party members were trained and permitted to operate it. It also made a loud howling sound when it was being fired and the layout of the rockets on the launcher resembled that of a church organ. The name Katyusha is the Russian equivalent of the name Katie and it stuck to the rocket launcher ever since. So the troops of the Red Army nicknamed it Katyusha which was in fact, a patriotic song composed by Mikhail Isakovsky. So during the war, it was marked with the letter K, after the factory were it was being manufactured and were named as Kostikov guns to hide their true identity. The existence of this weapon was a secret until after the war. You must be wondering about the name of the rocket launcher and why it was called Katyusha. They were then rectified, and in 1940, the Katyusha was authorized to be produced in limited numbers. Initial large-scale testing began by the end of 1938, where it failed to impress the Soviet artillery branch due to its many drawbacks. The development of the Katyusha began as early as 1938 itself, when the Jet Propulsion Research Institute (RNII) in Leningrad was authorized to develop an MLRS. This article deals with the origins, capabilities, performance in WWII and the role it’s successors play in today’s battlefield. The Soviets mastered the balance between firepower, mobility, accuracy and cost effectiveness while designing this system, which was instrumental in making it world-famous. Technically designated as Multiple Launch Rocket Systems ( MLRS), these were available at a fraction of the cost of an artillery gun and could literally rain hell down on the enemy in a few seconds. These rocket launchers were used extensively throughout the war and were known for the powerful punch they packed.
The word Katyusha brings to mind, images of the deadly rocket launcher used by the Soviets in World War II.
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