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From Grid Exterminator to Precision Blaster: Journey of the M270 MLRS (Multiple Launch Rocket System)
The 1st Battalion, 39th Field Artillery fired a four target MLRS prep just before the 2nd Brigade Combat Team’s famed ‘heavy metal’ run into the heart of Baghdad’s Palace District on 7 April. The rocket preparation obliterated enemy defensive positions around a key intersection. The FSO (fire support officer) described the MLRS damage: “There’s nothing left but burning trucks and body parts.”
- Observations from Iraq: The 3rd Div Arty in OIF, Field Artillery Magazine July — August 2003
When gunpowder was created in China in the 13th century, it was quickly realized the concoction had more applications than heralding New Year celebrations. Adapted into volley fired arrows and wooden rocket tubes, their erratic flight and potential for friendly fire would see them fade from memory until metal casings and fin stabilization brought on the first generation of rocket artillery from the end of the 18th century onwards. Modern multiple rocket launchers (MRLs) offer superior range and a greater target blanketing effect than cannon artillery, especially against exposed personnel unaware of their impending doom. Nicknamed the ‘Grid Exterminator’ owing to its reputation for killing any living being in a square kilometre, the Vought M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System — Self Propelled Loader Launcher (MLRS — SPLL) has evolved from a volume fire saturator to a surgical dispenser of satellite guided rockets and surface to surface missiles (SSMs).
The US military’s relationship with ground based MRLs has been historically inconsistent. In World War 2, the US Army and Marine Corps employed the eight round T27 Xylophone and 60 round T34 Calliope; both fired the M8 barrage rocket with a range of 4.2 km. Mounted on the back of a 2/1/2 ton truck and atop adapted M4 Sherman medium tanks respectively, they made up for mediocre accuracy with sheer volume of fire and the shock effect of their incoming shriek. In 1945 they were complemented by the T66 ‘Honeycomb’ and other towed launchers built for the 4.5 inch M16 rocket. Offering a modestly improved 4.8 km…
