The Firos (FIROS) is an Italian

multiple rocket launcher A multiple rocket launcher (MRL) or multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) is a type of rocket artillery system that contains multiple launchers which are fixed to a single platform, and shoots its rocket ordnance in a fashion similar to a volle ...

system developed during the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

. The system consisted of forty 122 mm long-range rockets mounted on an armoured

6×6 Six-wheel drive (6WD or 6×6) is an all-wheel drive drivetrain configuration of three axles with at least two wheels on each axle capable of being driven simultaneously by the vehicle's engine. Unlike four-wheel drive drivetrains, the configurat ...

truck (lorry) for mobility. The first version developed was the Firos-25, 48 of which were exported to the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

in the 1980s. The more powerful Firos-30, with a range of over 30 km, was built in the late 1980s, and a single experimental battery entered service with the Italian Army in 1987. There were plans to buy about 60 launchers in the 1990s as a light complement for the costly M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System system, but the program was terminated and the Army retained only the M270 as its sole rocket artillery system.Rivista Italiana Difesa, jan 1992, 'I programmi delle FF.AA. nella Finanziaria, p 61-62, Chiavari, Italy The Firos is similar to the Russian BM-21 Grad in that they both use 122 mm rockets in groups of forty, although they differ considerably in command and control systems and their base vehicles. Firos rockets are compatible with BM-21 launchers and may have been sold to some customers like Syria. About 160 systems were built, including sixteen FIROS 6 systems with 51 mm rockets.

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External links

* {{Cite web, title=FIROS-25/30, Multiple launch rocket system, publisher=Military Today, url=https://www.militarytoday.com/artillery/firos.htm include
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Wheeled self-propelled rocket launchers Self-propelled artillery of Italy Rocket artillery Multiple rocket launchers