- [Narrator] Analysts have called this BM-21 Rocket Launcher,
"The AK-47 of Artillery" because it's been used in
almost every armed conflict since 1969. And right now, both Ukraine and Russia are using the Soviet era weapon. Experts say, it was technologically
outdated in the 90s. So why is this 60-year-old
rocket launcher everywhere in this war? The BM-21 can fire up to 40
unguided rockets in 20 seconds. The rockets are nearly 10-feet-tall and are most commonly armed with high explosive
fragmentation warheads. When all 40 rain down, they can cover an area almost as large as 10 football fields. This heavy and indiscriminate bombardment is what gave the BM-21,
the nickname, Grad, Russian for hail. It's what makes the Grad
effective even today. The Grad is often used to suppress fire, a tactic to provide cover for forces and weaken the enemy
before another attack. Most of the 122-millimeter
rockets have a range of 12 miles, though some can reach up to 25. So Ukraine has used it
mostly along the front lines to hit Russian Artillery
batteries and infantry. While Russia has fired it
into cities like Kherson where a Grad rocket strike
killed five people, and Kharkiv. - [Man] Get in here, get in, get in. - [Narrator] Experts
say the Grad's main flaw is the defining part of its design, that it has no guidance system. After loading the rockets,
an operator calculates the coordinates of the target and gives them to the gunman
who adjusts the launcher. An operator sets the number
of rockets and fires them. The results are not precise. Here, you can see that
the chance a Grad rocket directly hits a human adult target is highest up to 32 feet away. By 328 feet, it's almost
guaranteed to miss. However, an explosive Grad
warhead has a lethal area radius of about 50 feet, and it can
still severely maim someone within a hundred feet. But this lack of accuracy is why it needs so many rockets to be truly effective. And that's a problem for
Ukraine because analysts believe the country's original
stockpile is already gone. (graphic blips) The US said it has supplied Ukraine with 60,000 Grad rockets. But on the ground in August, some brigades in Ukraine drove
around with empty launchers. And others said, they were conserving ammo by choosing targets more selectively. Some Ukrainian soldiers have
also taken the rocket launchers and fit them into the
back of pickup trucks, creating a mini Grad. These fire at a shorter distance and use just three rockets at a time. But analysts say, these
measures may not be worth it. Since the Grad rocket is unguided, soldiers risk missing
their target entirely, effectively wasting their
limited supply of ammunition. The weapon has multiplied across the globe and into the arsenals of
more than 50 countries, with variants like the Chinese
Type 81 and Czech RM-70. But according to Action on Armed Violence, a British human rights organization, Russia is still the largest producer of the Grads 122 millimeter rockets. Ukraine, on the other hand, is largely at the whim of other countries
to replenish its supply. And without missiles, the
trucks they're mounted on offer few other benefits,
especially considering that the original Ural-375D
truck has absolutely no armor. The windows aren't reinforced with any special type of glass. They're basically just truck
windows from the 60s and 70s. Even the newer vehicles
offer little protection, just enough to protect
from small arms like guns. And soldiers have said that
if the Grad were to run over an anti-tank mine, everyone
in the vehicle would die. Lacking protection means
that it's important to pack up and leave
immediately after firing, which can take up to three
minutes for the Grad. This tactic is called
the "Shoot-and-scoot," because once you've launched the rockets, the target can calculate where
they came from and fire back. The BM-21 is outdated and has been effectively
obsolete for decades. As a Ukrainian soldier said, "It is better to ask what has not broken." The vehicle is prone to breaking down, and soldiers aren't always able
to get the parts to fix it. Its successors like the
Russian BM-27 Uragan and Check RM-70 often have improved ranges or some armor to protect the vehicle, but they still lack the precision and range of modern
systems like US HIMARS. Even though it's a flawed weapon, Russia may still have an advantage because it has deeper reserves. Analysts say, ultimately, the reason Ukraine still deploys the Grad is just because it already
has the system in place. It's simple, but it works. That's why, despite all the problems, the BM-21 has stuck
around for another war. (gentle music)
