The Grom (meaning "thunder" in
Polish
Polish may refer to:
* Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe
* Polish language
* Poles
Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...
) is a
man-portable air-defense system produced in Poland and based on the Soviet man-portable infrared homing surface-to-air missile (SAM)
9K38 Igla. It consists of a 72 mm
anti-aircraft missile Anti-aircraft missiles are guided missiles designed to destroy or damage aircraft
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dy ...
set with a flight speed of 650
m/s, as well as a single-use launcher, re-usable
gripstock and thermal battery coolant assembly electric unit. The full name of the system is PZR Grom, PZR standing for ''Przeciwlotniczy Zestaw Rakietowy'' (literally anti-air rocket-propelled set).
It is designed to target low-flying helicopters and aeroplanes. As such, the Grom missile is used by other surface-to-air defence systems of Polish design, including
ZSU-23-4MP Biała
The ZSU-23-4MP "Biała" ( pl. ''White'', also the name of more than one small Polish river) is a Polish modification of the ZSU-23-4 Shilka self-propelled anti-aircraft gun. The ZSU-23-4MP "Biała" includes a new digital optical targeting system a ...
,
ZUR-23-2 kg and
Poprad
Poprad (; hu, Poprád; german: Deutschendorf) is a city in northern Slovakia at the foot of the High Tatra Mountains, famous for its picturesque historic centre and as a holiday resort. It is the biggest town of the Spiš region and the t ...
self-propelled artillery system. It should not to be confused with versions of the Zvezda
Kh-23 air-to-surface missile built under licence in Yugoslavia/Serbia as the Grom-A and Grom-B.
History
Initially at least since the 1970s the MESKO metal works in
Skarżysko-Kamienna
Skarżysko-Kamienna is a city in northern Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship in south-central Poland by Kamienna river, to the north of Świętokrzyskie Mountains; one of the voivodship's major cities. Prior to 1928, it bore the name of ''Kamienna''; i ...
mass-produced license-built Soviet
Strela-2M (SA-7 Grail)
surface-to-air missile
A surface-to-air missile (SAM), also known as a ground-to-air missile (GTAM) or surface-to-air guided weapon (SAGW), is a missile designed to be launched from the ground to destroy aircraft or other missiles. It is one type of anti-aircraft syst ...
s, designated in Poland as Strzała-2M. However, when these became outdated in the late 1980s the lead designers prepared the works to produce a more modern Soviet design, the
9K38 Igla (SA-18 Grouse). However, Poland left the Soviet bloc in 1990 and the license was declined, thus leaving Poland with no modern
MANPADS at hand.
Because of that, in late 1992 various Polish works and design bureaus (among them the
Zielonka
Zielonka is a town in Wołomin County, Masovian Voivodeship, Poland, with 17,398 inhabitants (2013). It is located about 13 km to the north-east of the centre of Warsaw.
Zielonka borders Warsaw and several other towns of the Warsaw metrop ...
-based
Military Institute of Armament Technology Military Institute of Armament Technology ( pl, Wojskowy Instytut Techniczny Uzbrojenia; WITU) is a Polish scientific institution responsible for the research and development of new technologies for use by the military. It is based in Zielonka at th ...
, the WAT
Military University of Technology and the Skarżysko Rocket Design Bureau) started working on a new Igla-like design. These were allegedly helped by the
Polish intelligence
This article covers the history of Polish Intelligence services dating back to the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.
Commonwealth
Though the first official Polish government service entrusted with espionage, intelligence and counter-intelligence ...
services able to buy the design plans of the original
9K38 Igla missile system in the LOMO works in
Leningrad
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
(modern
St. Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
) during the turmoil following the
dissolution of the Soviet Union
The dissolution of the Soviet Union, also negatively connoted as rus, Разва́л Сове́тского Сою́за, r=Razvál Sovétskogo Soyúza, ''Ruining of the Soviet Union''. was the process of internal disintegration within the Sov ...
.
By 1995 the first batch (marked as GROM-1) entered service. It included a number of imported Russian components. By the late 1990s these were replaced with entirely Poland-designed elements.
On January 1, 2013, Bumar Amunicja manufactured their 2,000th Grom missile set.
Grom was later improved into what became known as the
Piorun, with a new seeker and rocket motor.
Design
The system is designed to be operated by one soldier. It consists of a single-stage projectile, a single-use tubular launcher, a starting mechanism, and an on-ground power supply. The rocket projectile uses solid propellant. The infrared aiming sensor is cooled with liquid nitrogen. There are options for
identification friend or foe and thermovision.
Operational history
The 'Grom' has been used by
Polish Land Forces since 1995.
It is also exported to other countries, including
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
which bought 30 launchers and 100 missiles in 2007.
According to press releases during the
Russo-Georgian War
The 2008 Russo-Georgian WarThe war is known by a variety of other names, including Five-Day War, August War and Russian invasion of Georgia. was a war between Georgia, on one side, and Russia and the Russian-backed self-proclaimed republics of Sou ...
, Polish-made GROM missiles targeted Russian planes and helicopters 20 times, 12 missiles were fired out of which 9 hit their targets, and most likely shot down a
Su-25.
Indonesian Army
The Indonesian Army ( id, Tentara Nasional Indonesia Angkatan Darat (TNI-AD), ) is the land branch of the Indonesian National Armed Forces. It has an estimated strength of 300,000 active personnel. The history of the Indonesian Army has its ...
bought around 152 Grom missiles as part of Kobra (Aster)
V-SHORAD system, including four
Poprad
Poprad (; hu, Poprád; german: Deutschendorf) is a city in northern Slovakia at the foot of the High Tatra Mountains, famous for its picturesque historic centre and as a holiday resort. It is the biggest town of the Spiš region and the t ...
mobile launchers, 12
ZUR-23-2 kg-I launchers and 76 missiles delivered in 2007 and the second such system ordered in 2006.
[
In March 2012, Peru chose the winners of a $140 million competition meant to upgrade its air defence systems, choosing among others 50 Grom launchers and six ]Poprad
Poprad (; hu, Poprád; german: Deutschendorf) is a city in northern Slovakia at the foot of the High Tatra Mountains, famous for its picturesque historic centre and as a holiday resort. It is the biggest town of the Spiš region and the t ...
mobile launchers. However, there have been no reports of the deal being finalized.
Political relevance
In late 2008 Russian press claimed that Russian Army personnel had found Polish GROM missiles in Chechnya. Polish press immediately reacted accusing Russia of fabricating evidence which links Poland to that conflict, claiming that missiles were moved by Russians from Georgia to Chechnya.
Operators
Current operators
* - 30 launchers and 100+ missiles, were used in Russo-Georgian war
The 2008 Russo-Georgian WarThe war is known by a variety of other names, including Five-Day War, August War and Russian invasion of Georgia. was a war between Georgia, on one side, and Russia and the Russian-backed self-proclaimed republics of Sou ...
.
* - in use as a part of Aster system.
* - acquired in 2014.[*]
* - Around 400 launchers and 2000 missiles of Grom version, 400 missiles of Piorun version, 420 launchers and 1300 missiles of Piorun version on order.
Evaluation only
* - 1 launcher and 5 missiles, bought in 2010 for testing.
* - Captured unknown quantity of launchers in Georgia (One launcher was sent to the separatists in Ukraine).
* - purchased 120 missiles.
See also
* Anza (missile)
The Anza (عنزہ ''Anza'') is a series of shoulder-fired, man-portable surface-to-air missiles produced by Pakistan. Guided by an infrared homing seeker, the Anza is used for short range air defence.
The Anza is produced by Kahuta Research L ...
* Misagh-2
The Misagh-2 (Also known as Mithaq-2) is an Iranian man-portable infrared-guided surface-to-air missile
A surface-to-air missile (SAM), also known as a ground-to-air missile (GTAM) or surface-to-air guided weapon (SAGW), is a missile designed ...
* Qaem The Qaem (or Ghaem; ) refers to two completely separate Iranian weapons: an air-to-ground glide bomb and a surface-to-air missile. These two weapons are similarly sized and identically named, and are both developed from the Toophan missile, but a ...
* FIM-92 Stinger
The FIM-92 Stinger is an American man-portable air-defense system (MANPADS) that operates as an infrared homing surface-to-air missile (SAM). It can be adapted to fire from a wide variety of ground vehicles, and from helicopters as the Air-t ...
* Mistral (missile)
The Missile Transportable Anti-aérien Léger (English: Transportable lightweight anti-air missile), commonly called Mistral, is a French infrared homing short range air defense system manufactured by MBDA France (formerly by Matra Defence and ...
* Starstreak missile
* 9K38 Igla
* RBS 70
RBS 70 (Robotsystem 70) is a man-portable air-defense system (MANPADS) designed for anti-aircraft warfare in all climate zones and with little to no support from other forces. Originally designed and manufactured by the Swedish defence firm of ...
* QW-3
References
External links
MESKO—Ammunition, Fuses, Primers and Missile Components—Producer site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grom (Missile)
Guided missiles of Poland
20th-century surface-to-air missiles
21st-century surface-to-air missiles
Science and technology in Poland
Polish inventions
Military equipment introduced in the 1990s