The PHL-81 is a truck-mounted self-propelled 122 mm

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 ...

(SPMRL) produced by the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

for the

People's Liberation Army Ground Force The People's Liberation Army Ground Force (PLAGF; ) is the land-based service branch of the People's Liberation Army and the largest and oldest branch of the entire Chinese armed forces. The PLAGF can trace its lineage from 1927 as the Chine ...

. The PHL-81 is being replaced by the modernised version

PHL-11 The PHL-11 is a truck-mounted self-propelled 122 mm multiple rocket launcher (SPMRL) produced by Norinco for the People's Liberation Army Ground Force. It is a modernised replacement for the older PHL-81. Development The PHL-11 is derived ...

Design and development

It is a variant of the Soviet

BM-21 Grad The BM-21 "Grad" (russian: БМ-21 "Град", lit= hail) is a self-propelled 122 mm multiple rocket launcher designed in the Soviet Union. The system and the M-21OF rocket were first developed in the early 1960s, and saw their first com ...

. The Type 81 was the first in a family of Chinese self-propelled 122 mm rocket launchers. The system forms the backbone of People's Liberation Army Ground Force's combined arms brigade. Type 81 went through different iterations of modernization to improve the combat effectiveness. The spin-stabilized rocket fired by the Type 81 may be armed with a

high explosive An explosive (or explosive material) is a reactive substance that contains a great amount of potential energy that can produce an explosion if released suddenly, usually accompanied by the production of light, heat, sound, and pressure. An ...

warhead or a steel fragmentation warhead.

Variants

;Type 81: Designation: PHL-81. The Type 81 mounts a 40-round launcher on an Hongyan CQ261 6X6 truck chassis. The truck was later changed to a Shaanxi SX250 in 1975. ;Type 83: Improved variant of Type 81. The Type 83 mounts a 24-round launcher on a 6x6 truck chassis. ;Type 89: Designation PHZ-89. This is an improved variant of the original Type 81 MRL system. It was adopted by the PLA in 1989. The Type 89 mounts a new type of 40-round box launcher on the armored tracked chassis of the Type 83 self-propelled gun. The rockets may be fired in 20 seconds. The launcher is mounted at the rear with a reload pack in front. ;Type 90: Designation PHL-90. The Type 90 shares the 40-round launcher with PHZ-89, but the rockets are mounted on a Tiema SC2030 6X6 truck. The truck also carries a reload pack of 40 additional rockets; the launcher to be reloaded within 3 minutes. ;Type 90A: Designation PHL-90A. The Type 90A is an upgrade of the Type 90. The 40-round launcher is mounted on a Tiema XC2200 6×6 truck, has improved fire control, and a battery may be remotely controlled by a command vehicle. It is manufactured by Norinco. ;Type 90B: The Type 90B is an upgrade of the Type 90A. The 40-round launchers are mounted on a Beifang Benchi 2629 6×6 trucks. The system adds

WZ551 The WZ-551 is a Chinese wheeled infantry fighting vehicle family. The name WZ-551 actually covers two families of vehicles with the official designations in the People's Liberation Army (PLA) of Type 90 and Type 92. Over 3,000 WZ-551s are in se ...

reconnaissance vehicles, and the command vehicle has improved command and fire control systems.

Operators

; * Chadian Ground Forces - 5 units in service as of 2021 ; *

- 550 units of PHL-81/PHL-90; 350 unit of PHL-11; 375 units of PHZ-89; 700 units of PHL-81 in storage. ; *

Gabonese Army The Armed Forces of Gabon (french: Forces armées gabonaises) or the Gabonese Defense and Security Forces (french: forces de défense et de sécurité gabonaises) is the national professional military of the Republic of Gabon, divided into the Army ...

- 4 units of Type 90 were delivered in 2004 ; *

Ghana Army The Ghana Army (GA) is the main ground warfare organizational military branch of the Ghanaian Armed Forces (GAF). In 1959, two years after the Gold Coast obtained independence as Ghana, the Gold Coast Regiment was withdrawn from the Royal Wes ...

- 3 units in service as of 2021 ; *

Indonesian Marine Corps '' ("Glorious on the Land and Sea") , colors = , colors_label = Beret color , march = Mars Korps Marinir , mascot = , equipment = ...

- At least 4 units of Type 90b purchased in 2015 ; *

Myanmar Army The Myanmar Army ( my, တပ်မတော်(ကြည်း), ) is the largest branch of the Tatmadaw, Armed Forces (''Tatmadaw'') of Myanmar (Burma) and has the primary responsibility of conducting land-based military operations. The My ...

- 20 units of Type-81 and 20 units of Type-90 ; *

Namibian Army The Namibian Army is the ground warfare branch of the Namibian Defence Force. History Development of Namibia's army was fastest of the three arms of Service. The first units of the Army were deployed as early as 1990. The Army was formed when ...

- at least 2 Units have been observed in public appearances. ; *

Peruvian Army The Peruvian Army ( es, Ejército del Perú, abbreviated EP) is the branch of the Peruvian Armed Forces tasked with safeguarding the independence, sovereignty and integrity of national territory on land through military force. Additional missi ...

- 24 units of Type 90B purchased in January 2014

References

External links

Technical data of the Type 81 SPRL
{{PRCAFVs Self-propelled artillery of the People's Republic of China 122 mm artillery Self-propelled rocket launchers Multiple rocket launchers Military vehicles introduced in the 1980s

Design and development

Variants

Operators

See also

References

External links