The Vietnamese army still uses Soviet BM-14 Multiple Launch Rocket Systems to hit coastal targets, Defense Studies reports.
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Vietnamese BM-14 rocket launchers are used for coastal defense (Picture source : Baodatviet, KienThuc)
The Vietnamese rehearsal department was reported by the Russian RG site as admitting that, although the BM-14 does not have the range and precision needed to hit enemy ships at medium and long ranges, the BM-14 MLRS still successfully copes with light armored amphibian vehicles approaching the shore. RG commented that this MLRS system has 16 launch tubes to fire a 140mm jet fragment rockets. Each rocket weighs 39 kg and flies at over 400m/s. The minimum firing range for this kind of rocket is 1,000 meters and while the maximum combat range is up to 9,800 meters. The 4.20 kg warhead of a BM-14 rocket is powerful enough to neutralize a floating armored vehicle. A full salvo takes about 10 seconds. The launcher is fitted on the chassis of a ZIL-131 6x6 chassis. The vehicle's cabin is protected with an armored curtain that can recline.
In addition to the BM-14 series launch jet artillery system, RG said that many other aging weapons (some dzting back to World War 2) such as the T-34/85 tank, the SU-100 self-propelled gun, and various types of artillery systems are also used for coastal defense.
RG added that the Vietnamese Army also has a series of more modern anti-ship missile systems, for instance an MLRS model based on a KamAZ truck chassis, designed to use the Russian version of the Kh-35 missile produced in Vietnam, Defense Studies concludes.
Vietnamese BM-14 rocket launcher on ZIL-131 chassis (Picture source : Baodatviet, KienThuc)
The 4.20 kg warhead of a BM-14 rocket is powerful enough to neutralize a floating armored vehicle (Picture source : Baodatviet, KienThuc)
BM-14 rocket launcher on ZIL-131 (Picture source : Baodatviet, KienThuc)
