BM-8, BM-13 and BM-31 rocket artillery combat vehicles, better known as the Katyushas, are one of the most successful developments of Soviet engineers during the Great Patriotic War.
The first rockets in the USSR were developed by designers Vladimir Artemiev and Nikolai Tikhomirov, employees of the laboratory of gas dynamics. Work on the project, which included the use of smokeless gelatin powder, began in 1921.
From 1929 to 1939, the first prototypes of various calibers were tested, which were launched from single-shot ground and multiply-charged air installations. The tests were led by the pioneers of Soviet rocket technology - B. Petropavlovsky, E. Petrov, G. Langemak, I. Kleimenov.
The last stages of the design and development of shells were carried out at the Reactive Research Institute. The group of specialists, which included T.Kleimenov, V.Artemiev, L.Shvarts and Yu.Pobedonostsev, was headed by G.Langemak. In 1938, these shells were put into service by the Soviet Air Force.
I-15, I-153, I-16 fighters and Il-2 attack aircraft were equipped with unguided rockets of the RS-82 model of 82 mm caliber. SB bombers and later modifications of the Il-2 were equipped with RS-132 shells of 132 mm caliber. For the first time, a new weapon installed on the I-153 and I-16 was used during the Khalkhin-Gol conflict of 1939.
In 1938-1941, the Jet Research Institute was developing a multiply charged launcher on a truck chassis. The tests were carried out in the spring of 1941. Their results were more than successful, and in June, on the eve of the war, an order was signed to launch a series of BM-13 combat vehicles equipped with launchers for high-explosive fragmentation M-13 132-mm caliber projectiles. On June 21, 1941, the gun was officially put into service with the artillery troops.
Serial assembly of the BM-13 was carried out by the Voronezh plant named after the Comintern. The first two launchers mounted on the ZIS-6 chassis left the assembly line on June 26, 1941. The build quality was immediately evaluated by the staff of the Main Artillery Directorate; having received the approval of customers, the cars went to Moscow. Field tests were carried out there, after which, from two Voronezh samples and five BM-13s assembled at the Reactive Research Institute, the first rocket artillery battery was created, commanded by Captain Ivan Flerov. 
The battery received its baptism of fire on July 14 in the Smolensk region, the city of Rudnya, occupied by the enemy, was chosen as the target of the missile attack. A day later, on July 16, BM-13s fired at the Orsha railway junction and the crossing on the Orshitsa River.
By August 8, 1941, 8 regiments were equipped with rocket launchers, each of which had 36 combat vehicles.
In addition to the factory Comintern in Voronezh, the production of BM-13 was launched at the capital's enterprise "Compressor". Rockets were produced at several factories, but the Ilyich plant in Moscow became their main manufacturer.
The original design of both shells and installations has been repeatedly changed and modernized. The BM-13-SN variant was produced, which was equipped with spiral guides that provide more accurate shooting, as well as modifications of the BM-31-12, BM-8-48 and many others. The most numerous was the BM-13N model of 1943, in total, by the end of the Great Patriotic War, about 1.8 thousand of these machines were assembled.
In 1942, they launched the production of 310 mm M-31 shells, which were initially launched using ground systems. In the spring of 1944, a BM-31-12 self-propelled gun with 12 guides was developed for these shells.
It was installed on the chassis of trucks.
In the period from July 1941 to December 1944, the total number of Katyushas produced was more than 30 thousand units, and about 12 million rockets of various calibers. In the first samples, a domestic-made chassis was used, about six hundred of these machines were made, and all of them, except for a few, were destroyed during the hostilities. After the conclusion of the lend-lease agreement, the BM-13 was mounted on American Studebakers. 
BM-13 on the American "Studebaker"
Rocket launchers BM-8 and BM-13 were mainly in service with the guards mortar units, which were part of the artillery reserve of the armed forces. Therefore, the name "Guards mortars" was unofficially assigned to the Katyushas.
The glory of the legendary machines could not be shared by their talented developers. The struggle for leadership in the Jet Research Institute provoked a "war of denunciations", as a result of which in the fall of 1937 the NKVD arrested the chief engineer of the research institute G. Langemak and director T. Kleimenov. Two months later, both were sentenced to death. The designers were rehabilitated only under Khrushchev. In the summer of 1991 President Soviet Union M. Gorbachev signed a decree conferring posthumous titles of Heroes of Socialist Labor on a number of scientists who participated in the development of the Katyusha.
origin of name
Now it is difficult to say for sure who, when and why called the BM-13 rocket launcher "Katyusha".
There are several main versions:
The first is the connection with the song of the same name, which was extremely popular in the pre-war period. During the first combat use"Katyusha" in July 1941, shooting was carried out at the German garrison, located in the city of Rudnya near Smolensk. The fire was fired directly from the top of a steep hill, so the version seems to be very convincing - the soldiers could certainly have an association with the song, because there is a line “to the high, to the steep bank”. Yes, and Andrei Sapronov, who served as a signalman in the 20th Army, is still alive, who, according to him, gave the nickname to the rocket mortar. On July 14, 1941, right after the shelling of the occupied Rudnya, Sergeant Sapronov, together with the Red Army soldier Kashirin, arrived at the location of the battery. Amazed by the power of the BM-13, Kashirin enthusiastically exclaimed: “No song for yourself!” To which A. Sapronov calmly replied: “Katyusha!” Then, broadcasting information about the successful completion of the operation, the headquarters radio operator called the miracle installation "Katyusha" - since then, such a formidable weapon has had a tender girl's name.
Another version considers the origin of the name from the abbreviation "KAT" - allegedly, the testers called the system "Kostikovskaya automatic thermal" (A. Kostikov was the project manager). However, the plausibility of such an assumption is highly doubtful, since the project was classified, and it is unlikely that the rangers and front-line soldiers could exchange any information with each other.
According to another version, the nickname came from the “K” index, which marked the systems assembled at the Comintern plant. It was customary for soldiers to give original names to weapons. So, the M-30 howitzer was affectionately called "Mother", the ML-20 gun was nicknamed "Emelka". By the way, at first the BM-13 was called very respectfully, by name and patronymic: "Raisa Sergeevna." RS - rockets used in installations.
According to the fourth version, the girls who assembled them at the Kompressor plant in Moscow were the first to call Katyusha rocket launchers.
The next version, although it may seem exotic, also has the right to exist. The shells were mounted on special rails called ramps. The weight of the projectile was 42 kilograms, and three people were required to install it on the slope: two, harnessed to the straps, dragged the ammunition onto the holder, and the third pushed it from behind, controlling the accuracy of fixing the projectile in the guides. So, some sources claim that it was this last fighter who was called "Katyusha". The fact is that here, unlike armored units, there was no clear division of roles: any of the members of the calculation could roll or hold shells.
At the initial stages of the installation, they were tested and operated in strict secrecy. So, the crew commander, when launching shells, did not have the right to give the generally accepted commands “fire” and “fire”, they were replaced by “play” or “sing” (the launch was carried out by quickly rotating the handle of the electric coil). What can I say, for any front-line soldier, Katyusha volleys were the most desired song.
There is a version according to which at first the bomber was called "Katyusha", equipped with rockets similar to the BM-13 missiles. It was these ammunition that transferred the nickname from the aircraft to the rocket launcher.
The Nazis called the installations nothing more than "Stalin's organ." Indeed, the guides had a certain resemblance to the pipes of a musical instrument, and the roar emitted by the shells upon launch was somewhat reminiscent of the formidable sound of an organ.
During the victorious march of our army across Europe, systems that launched single M-30 and M-31 projectiles were widely used. The Germans called these installations "Russian faustpatrons", although they were used not only as a means of destroying armored vehicles. At a distance of up to 200 m, the projectile could penetrate a wall of almost any thickness, up to bunker fortifications. 
Device
BM-13 was distinguished by comparative simplicity. The design of the installation included rail guides and a guidance system consisting of an artillery sight and a swivel-lift device. Additional stability when launching missiles was provided by two jacks located at the rear of the chassis.
The rocket had the shape of a cylinder, divided into three compartments - the fuel and combat compartments and the nozzle. The number of guides was different depending on the modification of the installation - from 14 to 48. The length of the RS-132 projectile used in the BM-13 was 1.8 m, diameter - 13.2 cm, weight - 42.5 kg. The inner part of the rocket under the plumage was reinforced with solid nitrocellulose. The warhead weighed 22 kg, of which 4.9 kg were explosives (for comparison, an anti-tank grenade weighed about 1.5 kg).
The range of missiles is 8.5 km. The BM-31 used M-31 shells of 310 mm caliber, having a mass of about 92.4 kg, almost a third of which (29 kg) was explosive. Range - 13 km. The volley was fired in a matter of seconds: the BM-13 fired all 16 missiles in less than 10 seconds, the same time was required to launch the BM-31-12 with 12 guides and the BM-8, equipped with 24-48 missiles.
Ammunition loading took place in 5-10 minutes for BM-13 and BM-8, BM-31, due to the greater mass of shells, was loaded a little longer - 10-15 minutes. To start, it was necessary to rotate the handle of the electric coil, which was connected to the batteries and contacts on the slopes - by turning the handle, the operator closed the contacts and activated the missile launch systems in turn.
The tactics of using Katyushas fundamentally distinguished them from the Nebelwerfer rocket systems that were in service with the enemy. If the German development was used for delivering high-precision strikes, then the Soviet machines had low accuracy, but covered a large area. The explosive mass of the Katyusha rockets was half that of the Nebelwerfer shells, however, the damage inflicted on manpower and lightly armored vehicles was significantly superior to the German counterpart. The explosives were detonated by triggering fuses on opposite sides of the compartment, after the meeting of two detonation waves, the gas pressure at the point of their contact increased sharply, which gave the fragments additional acceleration and increased their temperature to 800 degrees.
The power of the explosion also increased due to the rupture of the fuel compartment, which became hot under the influence of the combustion of gunpowder - as a result, the effectiveness of fragmentation destruction was twice as high as artillery shells of the same caliber. At one time, there were even rumors that a “thermite charge” was used in rocket mortars, the tests of which took place in 1942 in Leningrad. However, its use turned out to be impractical, since the incendiary effect was already sufficient.
The simultaneous rupture of several shells created an interference effect of explosive waves, which also contributed to an increase in the damaging effect.
The crew of "Katyusha" numbered from 5 to 7 people and consisted of the crew commander, driver, gunner and several loaders.
Application
Rocket artillery from the very beginning of its existence was subordinate to the Supreme High Command.
The divisions of the Republic of Armenia completed the infantry divisions located at the forefront. The Katyushas had exceptional firepower, so their support in both offensive and defensive operations hard to overestimate. A special directive was issued setting out the requirements for the use of the machine. It specifically stated that the strikes of the Katyushas should be sudden and massive.
During the war years, Katyushas fell into the hands of the enemy more than once. So, on the basis of the captured BM-8-24 captured near Leningrad, the German Raketen-Vielfachwerfer rocket system was developed. 
During the defense of Moscow, a very difficult situation developed at the front, and the use of rocket launchers was carried out in divisions. However, in December 1941, due to a significant increase in the number of Katyushas (in each of the armies that held back the main attack of the enemy, there were up to 10 divisions of rocket mortars, which made it difficult to supply them and the effectiveness of maneuvering and striking), it was decided to create twenty guards mortar regiments.
The Guards Mortar Artillery Regiment of the Reserve of the Supreme High Command included three divisions of three batteries each. The battery, in turn, consisted of four machines. The fire efficiency of such units was enormous - one division, consisting of 12 BM-13-16s, could deliver a blow comparable in power to a volley of 12 artillery regiments equipped with 48 152 mm howitzers or 18 artillery brigades equipped with 32 howitzers of the same caliber.
It is also worth taking into account the emotional impact: thanks to the almost simultaneous launch of shells, in a matter of seconds, the ground in the target area literally reared up. A retaliatory strike by rocket artillery units was easily avoided, as mobile Katyushas quickly changed their location.
In July 1942, not far from the village of Nalyuchi, the Katyusha brother, the Andryusha rocket launcher of 300 mm caliber, equipped with 144 guides, was first tested in combat conditions.
In the summer of 1942, the Mobile Mechanized Group of the Southern Front held back the onslaught of the enemy's first armored army south of Rostov for several days. The basis of this unit was a separate division and 3 regiments of rocket artillery.
In August of the same year, military engineer A. Alferov developed a portable model of the system for M-8 shells. Front-line soldiers began to call the novelty "Mountain Katyusha". The first to use this weapon was the 20th Mountain Rifle Division, the installation proved to be excellent in the battles for the Goit Pass. At the end of the winter of 1943, the Mountain Katyusha unit, consisting of two divisions, participated in the defense of the famous bridgehead on Malaya Zemlya near Novorossiysk. In the Sochi railway depot, rocket systems were mounted on railcars - these installations were used for defense coastline cities. 8 rocket launchers were installed on the minesweeper "Mackerel", covering landing operation on Little Earth.
In the autumn of 1943, during the battles near Bryansk, thanks to the quick transfer of combat vehicles from one flank of the front to the other, a sudden blow was carried out that broke the enemy defenses in a 250 km long section. On that day, the enemy fortifications hit more than 6,000 Soviet missiles fired by the legendary Katyushas.
——
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katyusha_(weapon)
ww2total.com/WW2/Weapons/Artillery/Gun-Motor-Carriages/Russian/Katyusha/
4.bp.blogspot.com/_MXu96taKq-Y/S1cyFgKUuXI/AAAAAAAAAFoM/JCdyYOyD6ME/s400/1.jpg
The barrelless system of field rocket artillery, which received affection in the Red Army woman's name"Katyusha", without exaggeration, became, probably, one of the most popular types of military equipment of the Second World War. In any case, neither our enemies nor our allies had anything of the kind.
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 showed themselves well when firing at groups of enemy aircraft.
In the same year, employees of the Rocket Research Institute began work on a mobile ground launcher that could fire rockets at ground targets. At the same time, the caliber of rockets was increased to 132 mm.
In March 1941, they successfully conducted field tests new system weapons, and the decision to mass-produce combat vehicles with RS-132 rockets, called BM-13, was made the day before the start of the war - June 21, 1941.
How was it organized?
The BM-13 combat vehicle was a chassis of a three-axle ZIS-6 vehicle, on which a rotary truss was installed with a package of guides and a guidance mechanism. For aiming, a swivel and lifting mechanism and an artillery sight were provided. At the rear of the combat vehicle were two jacks, which ensured its greater stability when firing.
The launch of rockets was carried out by a handle electric coil connected to the battery and contacts on the rails. When the handle was turned, the contacts closed in turn, and in the next of the shells the starting squib was fired.
Undermining the explosive of the warhead of the projectile was carried out from two sides (the length of the detonator was only slightly less than the length of the cavity for explosives). And when two waves of detonation met, the gas pressure of the explosion at the meeting point increased sharply. As a result, the fragments of the body had a much greater acceleration, heated up to 600-800 ° C and had a good igniting effect. In addition to the hull, a part of the rocket chamber was also torn apart, heated from the gunpowder burning inside, this increased the fragmentation effect by 1.5-2 times compared to artillery shells of a similar caliber. That is why the legend arose that Katyusha rockets were equipped with a “thermite charge”. The "termite" charge, indeed, was tested in the weighty 1942 of the year in the besieged Leningrad, but it turned out to be redundant - after the volley of "Katyushas" and so everything was burning around. And the joint use of dozens of missiles at the same time also created the interference of explosive waves, which further enhanced the damaging effect.
Baptism of fire near Orsha
The first volley was fired by a battery of Soviet rocket launchers (as they began to call a new type of military equipment for greater secrecy) consisting of seven BM-13 combat installations in mid-July 1941. It happened near Orsha. An experienced battery under the command of Captain Flerov launched a fire attack on the Orsha railway station, where an accumulation of enemy military equipment and manpower was noticed.
At 15:15 on July 14, 1941, heavy fire was opened on enemy echelons. The entire station turned into a huge fiery cloud in the blink of an eye. On the same day, in his diary, the chief of the German General Staff, General Halder, wrote: “On July 14, near Orsha, the Russians used weapons unknown until that time. A fiery flurry of shells burned down the Orsha railway station, all trains with personnel and military equipment of the arrived military units. The metal melted, the earth burned.
The morale effect of the use of rocket-propelled mortars was overwhelming. The enemy lost more than an infantry battalion and a huge amount of military equipment and weapons at the Orsha station. And the battery of Captain Flerov dealt another blow on the same day - this time at an enemy crossing across the Orshitsa River.
The command of the Wehrmacht, having studied the information received from eyewitnesses to the use of new Russian weapons, was forced to issue a special instruction to its troops, which stated: “ There are reports from the front about the use by the Russians of a new type of weapon that fires rockets. A large number of shots can be fired from one installation within 3-5 seconds. Every appearance of these guns must be reported on the same day to the general, commander of the chemical troops, under the supreme command". A real hunt began for Captain Flerov's battery. In October 1941, she ended up in the Spas-Demensky "cauldron" and was ambushed. Of the 160 people, only 46 managed to get out to their own. The battery commander himself died, after making sure that everyone combat vehicles blown up and will not fall into the hands of the enemy intact.
On land and sea...
In addition to the BM-13, in the Special Design Bureau of the Voronezh Plant named after. Comintern, which produced these combat installations, new options for placing rockets were developed. For example, given the extremely low cross-country ability of the ZIS-6 vehicle, a variant was developed for installing rocket guides on the chassis of the STZ-5 NATI caterpillar tractor. In addition, an 82 mm caliber rocket was also used. For him, guides were developed and manufactured, which were later installed on the chassis of a ZIS-6 car (36 guides) and on the chassis of light tanks T-40 and T-60 (24 guides).
A 16-round mount for RS-132 shells and a 48-round mount for RS-82 shells for armored trains were developed. In the autumn of 1942, during the hostilities in the Caucasus, 8-round mountain pack launchers of RS-82 shells were manufactured for use in mountainous conditions.
Later, they were installed on the American Willis all-terrain vehicles, which arrived in the USSR under Lend-Lease.
Special launchers for 82 mm and 132 mm caliber rockets were made for their subsequent installation on warships - torpedo boats and armored boats.
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 of this. 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. 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 designs were developed and produced during the war. launchers.
And the Wehrmacht soldiers nicknamed the BM-13 "Stalin's organs." Apparently, the roar of rockets reminded the Germans of the sounds of a church organ. From this "music" they were clearly uncomfortable.
And since the spring of 1942, guides with rockets began to be installed on British and American all-wheel drive chassis imported into the USSR under Lend-Lease. Nevertheless, 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 the 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 period of the Great Patriotic War, Soviet industry produced more than ten thousand rocket artillery combat vehicles.
Relatives of "Katyusha"
For all their merits, the high-explosive fragmentation rockets RS-82 and RS-132 had one drawback - large dispersion and low efficiency when exposed to enemy manpower located in field shelters and trenches. To correct this shortcoming, special 300 mm caliber rockets were made.
Among the people they received the nickname "Andryusha". They were launched from a launching machine (“frame”) made of wood. The launch was carried out using a sapper blasting machine.
For the first time, "andryushas" were used in Stalingrad. The new weapons were easy to make, but they took a long time to set up and aim at. In addition, the short range of M-30 rockets made them dangerous for their own calculations.
Therefore, in 1943, an improved rocket projectile began to enter the troops, which, with the same power, had a greater firing range. The M-31 projectile could hit manpower on an area of 2 thousand square meters or form a funnel 2-2.5 m deep and 7-8 m in diameter. But the time to prepare a salvo with new projectiles 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 of an M-31 rocket projectile was enough to destroy an enemy bunker or firing point equipped in a residential building.
Fiery sword "god of war"
By May 1945, the rocket artillery units had about three thousand combat vehicles of various types and many “frames” with M-31 shells. Not a single Soviet offensive, starting with the Battle of Stalingrad, began without artillery preparation using Katyushas. Volleys of combat installations became the very “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 of the combat vehicle drove onto some kind of elevation so that its guides would take a horizontal position. Of course, the accuracy of such firing was rather low, but a direct hit by a 132-mm rocket projectile blew any enemy tank to pieces, a close explosion knocked over the enemy’s military equipment, and heavy hot fragments reliably disabled it.
After the war, Soviet designers of combat vehicles continued to work on the "Katyusha" and "Andryusha". Only now they began to be called not guards mortars, but volley fire systems. In the USSR, such powerful SZOs as Grad, Uragan and Smerch were designed and built. At the same time, the losses of the enemy, who fell under the volley of the Hurricanes or Tornadoes battery, are comparable to the losses from the use of tactical nuclear weapons with a capacity of up to 20 kilotons, that is, with the explosion of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima.
Fighting vehicle BM-13 on the chassis of a three-axle vehicle
Projectile caliber - 132 mm.
Projectile weight - 42.5 kg.
The mass of the warhead is 21.3 kg.
The maximum speed of the projectile is 355 m/s.
The number of guides is 16.
The maximum firing range is 8470 m.
The loading time of the installation is 3-5 minutes.
The duration of a full salvo is 7-10 seconds.
Guards mortar BM-13 Katyusha
1. Launcher
2. Rockets
3. Car on which the unit was mounted
Guide package
Armored shields of the cabin
marching support
lifting frame
Launcher Battery
scope bracket
swing frame
Lifting handle
The launchers were mounted on the chassis of the ZIS-6, Ford Marmon, Jimmy International, Austin vehicles and on the STZ-5 tracked tractors. The largest number of Katyushas were mounted on all-wheel drive three-axle Studebaker vehicles.
Projectile M-13
01. Fuse retaining ring
02. Fuse GVMZ
03. Checker detonator
04. Bursting charge
05. Head part
06. Igniter
07. Chamber bottom
08. Guide pin
09. Powder rocket charge
10. Missile part
11. Grate
12. Critical section of the nozzle
13. Nozzle
14. Stabilizer
Few survived
The effectiveness of the combat use of "Katyushas" during an attack on a fortified enemy center can serve as an example of the defeat of the Tolkachev defensive center 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 a large number of dugouts and bunkers in 5-12 runs, with a developed network of trenches and communications. The approaches to the village were heavily mined and covered with barbed wire.
A significant part of the bunkers was destroyed by volleys of rocket artillery, the trenches, together with the enemy infantry in them, were filled up, the fire system was completely suppressed. Of the entire garrison of the knot, which numbered 450-500 people, only 28 survived. The Tolkachev knot was taken by our units without any resistance.
Supreme Command Reserve
By decision of the Headquarters, in January 1945, the formation of twenty guards mortar regiments was begun - this is how the units that were armed with the BM-13 began to be called.
The Guards Mortar Regiment (Gv.MP) of the Artillery Reserve of the Supreme High Command (RVGK) in the state consisted of a command and three divisions of a three-battery composition. Each battery had four combat vehicles. Thus, a volley of only one battalion of 12 BM-13-16 PIP vehicles (Stavka directive No. 002490 prohibited the use of rocket artillery in an amount less than a battalion) could be compared in strength with a volley of 12 heavy howitzer regiments of the RVGK (48 howitzers of 152 mm caliber per regiment ) or 18 RVGK heavy howitzer brigades (32 152 mm howitzers per brigade).
Viktor Sergeev
It is well known that on September 18, 1941, by order of the People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR No. 308, four rifle divisions Western front(100th, 127th, 153rd and 161st) for the battles near Yelnya - "for military exploits, for organization, discipline and exemplary order" - the honorary titles "Guards" were awarded. They were renamed the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Guards, respectively. In the future, many units and formations of the Red Army that distinguished themselves and hardened during the war were transformed into guards.
But Moscow researchers Alexander Osokin and Alexander Kornyakov discovered documents from which it follows that the question of creating guards units discussed in the circles of the leadership of the USSR back in August. And the first guards regiment was to be a heavy mortar regiment armed with rocket artillery combat vehicles.
When did the guard appear?
In the course of getting acquainted with the documents on weapons of the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, we found a letter from the People's Commissar of General Engineering of the USSR P.I. Parshina No. 7529ss dated August 4, 1941 addressed to the Chairman of the State Defense Committee I.V. Stalin with a request to allow the production of 72 M-13 vehicles (later called “Katyushas” by us) with ammunition to form one heavy guards mortar regiment in excess of the plan.
We decided that a typo was made, since it is known that the guards rank was first awarded by order of the People's Commissar of Defense No. 308 of September 18, 1941 to four rifle divisions.
The main points of the GKO resolution, unknown to historians, read:
"one. Agree with the proposal of Comrade Parshin, People's Commissar for General Engineering of the USSR, to form one guards mortar regiment armed with M-13 installations.
2. Assign the name of the People's Commissariat of General Engineering to the newly formed Guards Regiment.
3. To take into account that NCOM manufactures equipment for the regiment with systems and ammunition in excess of the established task for M-13 for August.
It follows from the text of the resolution that not only was consent given to manufacture the over-plan M-13 installations, but it was also decided to form a guards regiment on their basis.
The study of other documents confirmed our guess: on August 4, 1941, the concept of "guards" was first applied (and without any decision on this matter by the Politburo of the Central Committee, the Presidium of the Supreme Council or the Council of People's Commissars) in relation to one specific regiment with a new type of weapon - rocket launchers M-13, encrypting them with the word "mortar" (inscribed personally by Stalin).
It is amazing that the word “guard” for the first time during the years of Soviet power (except for the detachments of the Red Guard of 1917) was put into circulation by People's Commissar Parshin, a man who was not very close to Stalin and had never even visited his Kremlin office during the war years.
Most likely, his letter, printed on August 2, was handed over to Stalin on the same day by military engineer 1st rank V.V. Aborenkov, deputy head of the GAU for rocket launchers, who was in the leader’s office together with the head of the GAU, Colonel-General of Artillery N.D. Yakovlev for 1 hour 15 minutes. Created according to the decision taken that day, the regiment became the first regiment of M-13 mobile rocket launchers (from RS-132) in the Red Army - before that, only batteries of these launchers were formed (from 3 to 9 vehicles).
It is noteworthy that on the same day, on the memorandum of the chief of artillery of the Red Army, Colonel-General of Artillery N.N. Voronov about the work of 5 rocket artillery installations, Stalin wrote: “Beria, Malenkov, Voznesensky. Turn this thing around. Raise the production of shells fourfold, fivefold, sixfold.
What gave impetus to the decision to create the M-13 Guards Regiment? Let's express our hypothesis. In June-July 1941, by decision of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks, the system of strategic leadership was restructured armed forces. On June 30, 1941, the State Defense Committee (GKO) was created under the chairmanship of Stalin, to whom all power in the country was transferred for the duration of the war. On July 10, the GKO transformed the Headquarters of the High Command into the Headquarters of the High Command. The Headquarters included I.V. Stalin (chairman), V.M. Molotov, marshals S.K. Timoshenko, S.M. Budyonny, K.E. Voroshilov, B.M. Shaposhnikov, Army General G.K. Zhukov.
July 19 Stalin becomes People's Commissar defense, and on August 8, 1941, by decision of the Politburo No. P. 34/319 - "Supreme Commander of all troops of the Workers 'and Peasants' Red Army and Navy." On the same day, August 8, the states of "one guards mortar regiment" were approved.
We take the liberty of suggesting that initially it was, perhaps, about the formation of a unit intended to ensure the protection of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command. Indeed, in the staff of the field Headquarters of the Supreme Commander of the Imperial Army during the First World War, which was quite likely taken by Stalin and Shaposhnikov as a prototype, there were heavy weapons, in particular, the Headquarters' aviation defense division.
But in 1941, things did not come to the creation of such a field Headquarters - the Germans were approaching Moscow too quickly, and Stalin preferred to control the army from Moscow. Therefore, the regiment of M-13 guards mortars never received the task of interceding to guard the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command.
On July 19, 1941, Stalin, setting the task of Timoshenko to create shock groups for offensive operations in the battle of Smolensk and the participation of rocket artillery in them, said: "I think it's time to move from petty to action large groups- shelves ... ".
On August 8, 1941, the states of the regiments of the M-8 and M-13 installations were approved. They were supposed to consist of three or four divisions, three batteries in each division and four installations in each battery (since September 11, all regiments were transferred to a three-division composition). The formation of the first eight regiments immediately began. They were equipped with combat vehicles manufactured using the pre-war backlog of components and parts created by the People's Commissariat of General Engineering (since November 26, 1941, it was transformed into the People's Commissariat of Mortar Weapons).
In full force - with regiments of "Katyushas" - the Red Army first hit the enemy in late August - early September 1941.
As for the M-13 Guards Regiment, conceived for use in the defense of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command, its formation was completed only in September. Launchers for it were produced in excess of the established task. It is known as the 9th Guards Regiment, which operated near Mtsensk.
It was disbanded on December 12, 1941. There is evidence that all of its installations had to be blown up under the threat of encirclement by the Germans. The second formation of the regiment was completed on September 4, 1943, after which the 9th Guards Regiment fought successfully until the end of the war.
The feat of Captain Flerov
The first volley of a rocket launcher in the Patriotic War was fired on July 14, 1941 at 15.15 by a battery of seven (according to other sources, four) M-13 launchers at the accumulation of echelons of military equipment at the railway junction of the city of Orsha. The commander of this battery (called differently in different sources and reports: experimental, experimental, first, or even all these names at the same time) is indicated by artillery captain I.A. Flerov, who died in 1941 (according to TsAMO documents, he was missing). For courage and heroism, he was posthumously awarded only in 1963 with the Order of the Patriotic War of the 1st degree, and in 1995 he was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of Russia.
According to the directive of the Moscow Military District of June 28, 1941, No. 10864, the first six batteries were formed. In our opinion, the most reliable source is the military memoirs of Lieutenant General A.I. Nesterenko (“Katyushas are firing.” - Moscow: Voenizdat, 1975) it is written: “On June 28, 1941, the formation of the first battery of field rocket artillery began. It was created in four days at the 1st Moscow Red Banner Artillery School named after L.B. Krasin. It was now the world famous battery of Captain I.A. Flerov, who fired the first salvo at the concentration of fascist troops at the Orsha station ... Stalin personally approved the distribution of guards mortar units along the fronts, plans for the production of military vehicles and ammunition ... ".
The names of the commanders of all six first batteries and the places where their first salvos were fired are known.
Battery No. 1: 7 installations M-13. Battery commander captain I.A. Flerov. The first salvo on July 14, 1941 at the freight railway station of the city of Orsha.
Battery No. 2: 9 installations M-13. Battery commander Lieutenant A.M. Kuhn. The first salvo on July 25, 1941 at the crossing near the village of Kapyrevshchina (north of Yartsevo).
Battery No. 3: 3 installations M-13. Battery commander Lieutenant N.I. Denisenko. The first salvo was fired on July 25, 1941, 4 km north of Yartsevo.
Battery No. 4: 6 installations M-13. Battery commander Senior Lieutenant P. Degtyarev. First salvo on August 3, 1941 near Leningrad.
Battery No. 5: 4 M-13 installations. Battery commander senior lieutenant A. Denisov. The place and date of the first salvo are unknown.
Battery No. 6: 4 M-13 installations. Battery commander senior lieutenant N.F. Diatchenko. The first salvo was on August 3, 1941 in the lane 12sp 53sd 43A.
Five of the first six batteries were sent to the troops of the Western Direction, where the main blow of the German troops was inflicted on Smolensk. It is also known that, in addition to the M-13, other types of rocket launchers were sent to the Western direction.
In the book of A.I. Yeremenko “At the beginning of the war” it says: “... A telephone message was received from the Stavka with the following content: “It is supposed to widely use “eres” in the fight against the Nazis and, in connection with this, try them in battle. You are allocated one M-8 division. Test it and report your conclusion...
We experienced something new near Rudnya... On July 15, 1941, in the afternoon, an unusual roar of rocket-propelled mines shook the air. Like red-tailed comets, mines rushed up. Frequent and powerful explosions struck hearing and vision with a strong roar and dazzling brilliance ... The effect of a simultaneous explosion of 320 minutes for 10 seconds exceeded all expectations ... This was one of the first combat tests of the "eres".
In the report of Marshals Timoshenko and Shaposhnikov for July 24, 1941, Stalin is informed about the defeat of the German 5th Infantry Division near Rudnya on July 15, 1941, in which three volleys of the M-8 division played a special role.
It is quite obvious that a sudden volley of one M-13 battery (16 RS-132 launches in 5-8 seconds) with maximum range 8.5 km was capable of inflicting serious damage on the enemy. But the battery was not intended to hit a single target. This weapon is effective when working across areas with dispersed enemy manpower and equipment while firing several batteries at the same time. A separate battery could fire a barrage, stun the enemy, cause panic in his ranks and stop his advance for some time.
In our opinion, the purpose of sending the first multiple rocket launchers to the front by battery was, most likely, the desire to cover the headquarters of the front and armies in the direction threatening Moscow.
This is not just a guess. A study of the routes of the first Katyusha batteries shows that, first of all, they ended up in the areas where the headquarters of the Western Front and the headquarters of its armies were based: the 20th, 16th, 19th and 22nd. It is no coincidence that in their memoirs Marshals Eremenko, Rokossovsky, Kazakov, General Plaskov describe precisely the battery-by-battery combat work of the first rocket launchers, which they observed from their command posts.
They point to the increased secrecy of the use of new weapons. IN AND. Kazakov said: “Only army commanders and members of military councils were allowed access to these “hard-to-reach” people. Even the chief of artillery of the army was not allowed to see them.”
However, the very first salvo of the M-13 rocket launchers, fired on July 14, 1941 at 15:15 at the Orsha railway commodity hub, was carried out while performing a completely different combat mission - the destruction of several trains with secret weapons, which under no circumstances should have fallen into the hands of the Germans.
A study of the route of the first separate experimental battery M-13 ("Flerov's battery") shows that at first it, apparently, was intended to guard the headquarters of the 20th Army.
Then she was given a new task. On the night of July 6, in the Orsha region, a battery with guards moved west across the territory that had actually been abandoned Soviet troops. She moved along the railway line Orsha - Borisov - Minsk, loaded with trains going east. On July 9, the battery and its guards were already in the area of \u200b\u200bthe city of Borisov (135 km from Orsha).
On that day, GKO order No. 67ss “On the redirection of vehicles with weapons and ammunition at the disposal of the newly formed divisions of the NKVD and reserve armies” was issued. It demanded, in particular, to urgently search for some very important cargo among the trains departing to the east, which in no case should fall into the hands of the Germans.
On the night of July 13-14, Flerov's battery received an order to urgently move to Orsha and launch a missile attack on the station. On July 14, at 15:15, Flerov's battery fired a salvo at echelons from military equipment located at the railway junction of Orsha.
What was in these trains is not known for certain. But there is information that after the volley, no one approached the affected area for some time, and the Germans allegedly even left the station for seven days, which suggests that some poisonous substances got into the air as a result of a missile strike.
On July 22, in an evening radio broadcast, the Soviet announcer Levitan announced the defeat of the German 52nd chemical mortar regiment on July 15. And on July 27, Pravda published information about German secret documents allegedly seized during the defeat of this regiment, from which it followed that the Germans were preparing a chemical attack on Turkey.
Raid of battalion commander Kaduchenko
In the book of A.V. Glushko “Pioneers of Rocket Engineering” there is a photograph of NII-3 employees headed by Deputy Director A.G. Kostikov after receiving awards in the Kremlin in August 1941. It is indicated that a lieutenant general is standing with them in the photo. tank troops V.A. Mishulin, who was awarded the Golden Star of the Hero that day.
We decided to find out why he was awarded the highest award of the country and what relation his award may have to the creation of M-13 rocket launchers at NII-3. It turned out that the commander of the 57th Panzer Division, Colonel V.A. Mishulin was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union on July 24, 1941 "for the exemplary performance of the combat missions of the command ... and the courage and heroism shown at the same time." The most striking thing is that at the same time he was also awarded the rank of general - and not major general, but immediately lieutenant general.
He became the third lieutenant general of tank troops in the Red Army. General Eremenko, in his memoirs, explains this by the mistake of the cryptographer, who attributed the title of the signer of the ciphertext to the Headquarters of Eremenko with the idea of conferring the title of Hero and General on Mishulin.
It is quite possible that this was the case: Stalin did not cancel the erroneously signed decree on the award. But just why did he also appoint Mishulin as deputy head of the Main Armored Directorate. Aren't there too many rewards for one officer at once? It is known that after some time, General Mishulin, as a representative of the Stavka, was sent to the Southern Front. Usually marshals and members of the Central Committee acted in this capacity.
Did the courage and heroism shown by Mishulin have anything to do with the first salvo of the Katyusha on July 14, 1941, for which Kostikov and the workers of NII-3 were awarded on July 28?
The study of materials about Mishulin and his 57th Panzer Division showed that this division was transferred to the Western Front from the South-Western. Unloaded at the Orsha station on June 28 and became part of the 19th Army. The command of the division with one motorized rifle security regiment was concentrated in the area of Gusino station, 50 kilometers from Orsha, where the headquarters of the 20th Army was located at that moment.
In early July, a tank battalion consisting of 15 tanks, including 7 T-34 tanks, and armored vehicles arrived from the Oryol Tank School to replenish Mishulin's division.
After the death in battle on July 13, the commander, Major S.I. Razdobudko battalion was headed by his deputy captain I.A. Kaduchenko. And it was Captain Kaduchenko who became the first Soviet tanker, who was awarded the title of Hero during the Patriotic War on July 22, 1941. He received this high rank even two days earlier than his divisional commander Mishulin for "heading 2 tank companies that defeated the enemy tank column." In addition, immediately after the award, he became a major.
It seems that the awarding of divisional commander Mishulin and battalion commander Kaduchenko could take place if they completed some very important task for Stalin. And most likely, it was the provision of the first volley of "Katyushas" on the echelons with weapons that should not have fallen into the hands of the Germans.
Mishulin skillfully organized the escort of the most secret Katyusha battery behind enemy lines, including the group attached to it with T-34 tanks and armored vehicles under the command of Kaduchenko, and then its breakthrough from the encirclement.
On July 26, 1941, the Pravda newspaper published an article entitled Lieutenant General Mishulin, which described Mishulin's exploits. About how he, wounded and shell-shocked, made his way in an armored car through the rear of the enemy to his division, which at that time was fighting fierce battles in the Krasnoye area and the Gusino railway station. It follows from this that commander Mishulin for some reason left his division for a short time (most likely, together with the Kaduchenko tank group) and returned wounded to the division only on July 17, 1941.
It is likely that they carried out Stalin's instructions to organize the provision of the "first salvo of the Flerov battery" on July 14, 1941 at the Orsha station along echelons with military equipment.
On the day of the salvo of Flerov's battery, July 14, GKO decree No. 140ss was issued on the appointment of L.M. Gaidukov, an ordinary employee of the Central Committee, who oversaw the manufacture of multiple launch rocket launchers, authorized by the State Defense Committee for the production of RS-132 rocket shells.
On July 28, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR issued two decrees on rewarding the creators of the Katyusha. The first - "for outstanding services in the invention and design of one of the types of weapons that raise the power of the Red Army" A.G. Kostikov was awarded the title of Hero of Socialist Labor.
The second - 12 engineers, designers and technicians were awarded orders and medals. The Order of Lenin was awarded to V. Aborenkov, a former military representative who became deputy head of the Main Artillery Directorate for rocket technology, designers I. Gvai and V. Galkovsky. The Order of the Red Banner of Labor was received by N. Davydov, A. Pavlenko and L. Schwartz. The Order of the Red Star was awarded to the designers of NII-3 D. Shitov, A. Popov and the workers of Plant No. 70 M. Malova and G. Glazko. Both of these decrees were published in Pravda on July 29, and on July 30, 1941, in an article published in Pravda, the new weapon was called formidable without specification.
Yes, it was cheap and easy to manufacture and easy to use firearms. It could be quickly produced in many factories and quickly installed on everything that moves - on cars, tanks, tractors, even on sleds (as it was used in the Dovator cavalry corps). And also "eres" were installed on airplanes, boats and railway platforms.
Launchers began to be called "guards mortars", and their combat crews - the first guardsmen.
Pictured: Guards rocket mortar M-31-12 in Berlin in May 1945.
This is a modification of "Katyusha" (by analogy it was called "Andryusha").
Fired unguided rockets of 310 mm caliber
(unlike 132-mm Katyusha shells),
launched from 12 guides (2 tiers with 6 cells each).
The installation is placed on the chassis of the American Studebaker truck,
which was supplied to the USSR under Lend-Lease.
What the Russian "Katyusha" is, the German - "hell flames." The nickname that the Wehrmacht soldiers gave to the Soviet rocket artillery combat vehicle was fully justified. In just 8 seconds, a regiment of 36 mobile installations BM-13 fired 576 shells at the enemy. A feature of salvo fire was that one blast wave was superimposed on another, the law of addition of impulses came into force, which greatly increased the destructive effect. Fragments of hundreds of mines, heated to 800 degrees, destroyed everything around. As a result, an area of 100 hectares turned into a scorched field, riddled with craters from shells. It was possible to escape only to those Nazis who, at the time of the salvo, were lucky enough to be in a securely fortified dugout. The Nazis called this pastime a "concert." The fact is that the Katyusha volleys were accompanied by a terrible roar, for this sound the Wehrmacht soldiers awarded rocket mortars with another nickname - "Stalin's organs".
See in the AiF.ru infographic what the BM-13 rocket artillery system looked like.
The birth of "Katyusha"
In the USSR, it was customary to say that the “Katyusha” was created not by any individual designer, but by the Soviet people. The best minds of the country really worked on the development of combat vehicles. The creation of rockets on smokeless powder in 1921 began employees of the Leningrad Gas Dynamics Laboratory N. Tikhomirov and V. Artemiev. In 1922, Artemiev was accused of espionage and next year sent to serve his term in Solovki, in 1925 he returned back to the laboratory.
In 1937, the RS-82 rockets, which were developed by Artemiev, Tikhomirov and who joined them G. Langemak, were adopted by the Workers 'and Peasants' Red Air Fleet. In the same year, in connection with the Tukhachevsky case, all those who worked on new types of weapons were subjected to a “cleansing” by the NKVD. Langemak was arrested as a German spy and shot in 1938. In the summer of 1939, aircraft rockets developed with his participation were successfully used in battles with Japanese troops on the Khalkhin Gol River.
From 1939 to 1941 employees of the Moscow Jet Research Institute I. Gvai,N. Galkovsky,A. Pavlenko,A. Popov worked on the creation of a self-propelled multiply charged rocket launcher. On June 17, 1941, she took part in a demonstration of the latest types of artillery weapons. The tests were attended People's Commissar of Defense Semyon Timoshenko, his Deputy Grigory Kulik and Chief of the General Staff Georgy Zhukov.
Self-propelled rocket launchers were shown last, and at first, trucks with iron guides fixed on top did not make any impression on the tired representatives of the commission. But the volley itself was remembered by them for a long time: according to eyewitnesses, the commanders, seeing the rising column of flame, fell into a stupor for a while. Timoshenko was the first to come to his senses, he sharply turned to his deputy: “Why were they silent and did not report about the presence of such weapons?” Kulik tried to justify himself by saying that this artillery system had simply not been fully developed until recently. On June 21, 1941, just a few hours before the start of the war, after inspecting rocket launchers, he decided to deploy their mass production.
The feat of Captain Flerov
The first commander of the first Katyusha battery was Captain Ivan Andreevich Flerov. The country's leadership chose Flerov to test top-secret weapons, among other things, because he showed himself well during the Soviet-Finnish war. At that time, he commanded a battery of the 94th howitzer artillery regiment, whose fire managed to break through. For his heroism in the battles near Lake Saunajärvi, Flerov was awarded the Order of the Red Star.
A full-fledged baptism of fire "Katyusha" took place on July 14, 1941. Rocket artillery vehicles under the leadership of Flerov fired volleys at the Orsha railway station, where a large number of enemy manpower, equipment and provisions were concentrated. Here is what he wrote about these volleys in his diary Chief of the General Staff of the Wehrmacht Franz Halder: “On July 14, near Orsha, the Russians used a hitherto unknown weapon. A fiery flurry of shells burned down the Orsha railway station, all trains with personnel and military equipment of the arrived military units. The metal melted, the earth burned.
Adolf Gitler I met the news about the appearance of a new Russian miracle weapon very painfully. chief Wilhelm Franz Canaris received a thrashing from the Fuhrer for the fact that his department had not yet stolen the drawings of rocket launchers. As a result, a real hunt was announced for the Katyushas, to which chief saboteur of the Third Reich Otto Skorzeny.
Flerov's battery, meanwhile, continued to smash the enemy. After Orsha, successful operations near Yelnya and Roslavl followed. On October 7, Flerov and his Katyushas were surrounded in the Vyazma cauldron. The commander did everything to save the battery and break through to his own, but in the end he was ambushed near the village of Bogatyr. Caught in a hopeless situation, and his fighters took an unequal battle. The Katyushas fired all the shells at the enemy, after which Flerov self-detonated the rocket launcher, the rest of the batteries followed the example of the commander. To take prisoners, as well as to receive an "iron cross" for the capture of top-secret equipment, the Nazis failed in that battle.
Flerov was posthumously awarded the Order of the Patriotic War, 1st class. On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Victory, the commander of the first Katyusha battery was awarded the title of Hero of Russia.
"Katyusha" against "donkey"
Along the front lines of the Great Patriotic War, the Katyusha often had to exchange salvos with a Nebelwerfer (German Nebelwerfer - “fog thrower”) - a German rocket launcher. For the characteristic sound that this six-barreled 150-mm mortar made when firing, Soviet soldiers nicknamed it "donkey". However, when the soldiers of the Red Army fought off enemy equipment, the contemptuous nickname was forgotten - in the service of our artillery, the trophy immediately turned into a “vanyusha”. True, the Soviet soldiers did not have tender feelings for this weapon. The fact is that the installation was not self-propelled, the 540-kilogram jet mortar had to be towed. When fired, his shells left a thick plume of smoke in the sky, which unmasked the positions of the artillerymen, who could immediately be covered by the fire of enemy howitzers.
Nebelwerfer. German rocket launcher. Photo: commons.wikimedia.org
The best designers of the Third Reich did not manage to design their analogue of the Katyusha until the end of the war. German developments either exploded during tests at the training ground, or did not differ in firing accuracy.
Why was the volley fire system nicknamed "Katyusha"?
Soldiers at the front liked to give names to weapons. For example, the M-30 howitzer was called "Mother", the ML-20 howitzer gun - "Emelka". BM-13, at first, was sometimes called "Raisa Sergeevna", as the front-line soldiers deciphered the abbreviation RS (rocket). Who and why was the first to call the rocket launcher "Katyusha" is not known for certain. The most common versions link the appearance of the nickname:
- with a song popular during the war years M. Blanter into words M. Isakovsky"Katyusha";
- with the letter "K" embossed on the installation frame. Thus, the plant named after the Comintern marked its products;
- with the name of the beloved of one of the fighters, which he wrote on his BM-13.
*Mannerheim line- a complex of defensive structures 135 km long on the Karelian Isthmus.
**Abwehr- (German Abwehr - "defense", "reflection") - organ military intelligence and counterintelligence of Germany in 1919-1944. He was a member of the High Command of the Wehrmacht.
*** The last combat report of Captain Flerov: "7 Oct. 1941 9 p.m. We were surrounded by the village of Bogatyr - 50 km from Vyazma. We will hold on to the end. No exit. Getting ready to explode. Farewell, comrades."
"Katyusha" - vernacular name combat vehicles of rocket artillery BM-8 (with 82 mm shells), BM-13 (132 mm) and BM-31 (310 mm) during the Great Patriotic War. There are several versions of the origin of this name, the most likely of them is associated with the factory mark "K" of the manufacturer of the first combat vehicles BM-13 (Voronezh Plant named after the Comintern), as well as with the popular song of the same name at that time (music by Matvey Blanter, lyrics by Mikhail Isakovsky).
(Military Encyclopedia. Chairman of the Main Editorial Commission S.B. Ivanov. Military Publishing. Moscow. In 8 volumes -2004. ISBN 5 - 203 01875 - 8)
The BM-13 received its baptism of fire on July 14, 1941, when the battery fired the first salvo from all installations at the Orsha railway station, where a large amount of enemy manpower and military equipment was concentrated. As a result of a powerful fire strike simultaneously by 112 rockets, a fire glow rose over the station: enemy echelons were burning, ammunition was exploding. An hour and a half later, Flerov's battery fired a second salvo, this time at the crossing of the Orshitsa River, on the approaches to which a lot of German equipment and manpower had accumulated. As a result, the enemy's crossing was disrupted, and he failed to develop success in this direction.
First experience with new missile weapons showed him high combat effectiveness, which was one of the reasons for its fastest commissioning and equipping the Ground Forces with it.
The restructuring of the industry associated with the production of rocket weapons was carried out in a short time, a large number of enterprises were involved in its production (already in July-August 1941 - 214 factories), which ensured the supply of this military equipment to the troops. In August-September 1941, mass production of BM-8 combat mounts with 82-mm rockets was launched.
Simultaneously with the deployment of production, work continued on the creation of new and improvement of existing samples of rockets and launchers.
On July 30, 1941, a special design bureau (SKB) at the Moscow Kompressor plant began to work - the head design bureau for launchers, and the plant itself became the lead enterprise for their production. This Special Design Bureau, under the leadership of the head and chief designer Vladimir Barmin, during the war years developed 78 samples of various types of launchers mounted on cars, tractors, tanks, railway platforms, river and sea ships. Thirty-six of them were put into service, mastered by industry and used in combat.
Much attention was paid to the production of rockets, the creation of new and the improvement of existing samples. The 82-mm M-8 rocket projectile underwent modernization, powerful high-explosive rocket projectiles were created: 132-mm M-20, 300-mm M-30 and M-31; extended range - M-13 DD and improved accuracy - M-13 UK and M-31 UK.
With the beginning of the war, special troops were created as part of the Armed Forces of the USSR for the combat use of missile weapons. These were rocket troops, but during the war they were called guards mortar units (GMCH), and later - rocket artillery. The first organizational form of the HMC was separate batteries and divisions.
By the end of the war rocket artillery had 40 separate divisions (38 M-13 and 2 M-8), 115 regiments (96 M-13 and 19 M-8), 40 separate brigades(27 M-31 and 13 M-31-12) and 7 divisions - a total of 519 divisions in which there were over 3000 combat vehicles.
The legendary Katyushas took part in all major operations during the war.
The fate of the first separate experimental battery was cut short in early October 1941. After the baptism of fire near Orsha, the battery successfully operated in battles near Rudnya, Smolensk, Yelnya, Roslavl and Spas-Demensk. During the three months of hostilities, Flerov's battery not only inflicted considerable material damage on the Germans, it also contributed to raising the morale of our soldiers and officers, exhausted by continuous retreats.
The Nazis staged a real hunt for new weapons. But the battery did not stay long in one place - having fired a volley, it immediately changed its position. A tactical technique - a volley - a change of position - was widely used by Katyusha units during the war.
In early October 1941, as part of the grouping of troops on the Western Front, the battery ended up in the rear of the Nazi troops. When moving to the front line from the rear on the night of October 7, she was ambushed by the enemy near the village of Bogatyr, Smolensk region. Most of the battery personnel and Ivan Flerov died, having shot all the ammunition and blowing up the combat vehicles. Only 46 soldiers managed to get out of the encirclement. The legendary battalion commander and the rest of the fighters, who fulfilled their duty with honor to the end, were considered "missing." And only when it was possible to find documents from one of the army headquarters of the Wehrmacht, which reported what actually happened on the night of October 6-7, 1941 near the Smolensk village of Bogatyr, Captain Flerov was excluded from the list of missing persons.
For heroism, Ivan Flerov was posthumously awarded the Order of the Patriotic War of the 1st degree in 1963, and in 1995 he was awarded the title of Hero Russian Federation posthumously.
In honor of the feat of the battery, a monument was erected in the city of Orsha and an obelisk near the city of Rudnya.
