ARES Report Improvised Employment of S-5 Air-to-Surface Rockets in Land Warfare

[John Kettler]

Somewhere on this Forum, and not locatable by me last night in my all-nighter fog, there is a discussion of improvised MRLs using the S-5 capable rocket pods in Ukraine and elsewhere in a surface-to-surface role. This is a full-blown report about the most commonly used rocket, the S-5. There are some real surprises here, but this whole thing must be blamed on the Russians, for it was they who first bashed up these things during the Afghanistan War.

http://www.armamentresearch.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/ARES-Research-Report-No.-1-S-5-Rockets-in-Land-Warfare.pdf

Regards,

John Kettler

[HUSKER2142]

John Kettler , I've seen dual S-5 MRLS on the basis of ZIL-131 saw 5-6 years ago in the South Ossetia army. It looked ridiculous to be honest.

^{Я видел сдвоенную С-5 РСЗО на базе ЗИЛ-131 видел 5-6 лет назад в армии Южной Осетии . Выглядело нелепо если честно .}

Edited February 3, 2017 by HUSKER2142

[John Kettler]

 

HUSKER2142,

Ridiculous looking? Perhaps. Nevertheless, it's still deadly and would be devastating on the receiving end. Not as bad as Grad, obviously, but still quite painful. Imagine the fun if the HEAT rockets were used and fired into some sort of AFV grouping, say, a stalled convoy. Even HE would cause all sorts of misery, especially among all the unarmored vehicles of the Combat Services and Support (POL, ammo, maintenance, ordnance repair, etc.). But then, I have a wicked mind. Something like these mobile S-5 systems would be great for raids, too. 

The ARES report mentioned a handheld version. Here's one from Libya.
 

And here's another field expedient launcher of super simple construction, this time in Syria. It's quite useful in that it shows how tiny the launch signature is. The burn is extremely short. Doesn't look like a volcanic eruption!
 

 

The last was included because it was visually superb as an aviation experience, almost a travelogue. It does have S-5 rockets, though.

Regards,

John Kettler