BM-13 Katyusha

The BM-13 Katyusha, along with the legendary T-34 tank, is the most recognizable Soviet combat vehicle of World War II.

Incredibly, the Katyusha rails were one-size-fits-all and could be mounted on any vehicle, from T-70 tanks to motor boats and handcars.

The 1943 BM-13N variant was the best known. It had slightly longer rails and could only be mounted on a Studebaker US6 frame. Every vehicle had a self-destruct charge to prevent even the slightest chance of the combat unit being captured by the enemy.

Many legends circulate about the Katyushas. One of the most famous is that not a single one of them fell into the enemy’s hands; another is that they used thermite missiles. Such missiles were indeed tested in Leningrad in 1942, but, as witnesses recalled later, everything already burned after a salvo from the Katyushas anyway.