- Ukraine's use of HIMARS against Russia has earned the US-made rocket-artillery system high praise.
- Other European countries are pursuing their own rocket artillery, buying HIMARS or building new systems.
Impressed with the success of the US-made M142 HIMARS multiple rocket launcher in Ukraine, more European nations want to buy HIMARS — or develop their own version of it.
German defense contractor Rheinmetall and US defense firm Lockheed Martin have partnered to offer GMARS, a replacement for Germany's aging MARS 2 multiple launch rocket system, according to Defense News.
The acronym "GMARS" seems to reflect HIMARS as much as MARS 2, of which Germany has delivered several to Ukraine. MARS 2 is the European version of the US-made M270 multiple launch rocket system.
GMARS would be similar to HIMARS but bigger, with a larger chassis based on Rheinmetall's HX 8x8 truck, and would have 80% commonality with HIMARS munitions and logistics, a Lockheed Martin official told Defense News. The GMARS vehicle would be about 39 feet long vs. the 23-foot length of a HIMARS truck and carry two rocket pods instead of HIMARS' one.
Meanwhile, the US State Department approved a $10 billion sale of 18 HIMARS for Poland in February. Significantly, the sale includes 45 M57 Army Tactical Missile Systems — long-range guided rockets that Ukraine has repeatedly requested but which the US has declined to provide for fear of escalating the conflict.
HIMARS will help Poland "deter regional threats," the department said in an announcement. "The proposed sale of this equipment and support will not alter the basic military balance in the region."
HIMARS has a range of about 50 miles. An ATACMS projectile can reach up to 190 miles and can be fired from a HIMARS launcher, though that feature reportedly has been disabled in HIMARS systems supplied to Ukraine.
The Biden administration is now debating whether to send ATACMS to Ukraine after the UK gave Ukraine its Storm Shadow missile, which has a range of more than 150 miles. (France is also sending its version of the missile.)
Multiple launch rocket systems have been around since World War II, when the legendary Soviet Katyusha battered Nazi forces.
Until the 1980s, the US and its allies favored howitzers rather than MLRS, which were considered inaccurate weapons suited for firing over a large area. For the Soviets, who preferred massed firepower, and for dictators and warlords unconcerned about collateral damage, rockets were just fine.
But rocket artillery has changed. A new generation of GPS-guided rockets, such as HIMARS and Russia's Smerch and Tornado-S systems, combine the accuracy of a howitzer with the range of a rocket and have the ability to fire salvoes quickly. What was once a blunt-force weapon that pulverized city blocks and the civilians living there is now a smart weapon.
That "smartness" explains the buzz around modern MLRS at least as much as their actual military effectiveness, which is often overstated.
HIMARS initially proved devastating against Russian forces that placed their command posts and ammunitions dumps too close to the front line. But Russia adapted and moved its command and supply centers out of HIMARS range, though at the price of compromising some efficiency.
Russian GPS jammers have also hampered HIMARS and the Joint Direct Attack Munition glide bombs that the US has given Ukraine.
Rocket artillery can't replace howitzers, which offer some advantages, such as the ability to fire barrages continuously for hours. Still, rocket artillery is certain to join howitzers as the backbone of Western artillery.
Modern MLRS rockets have greater range than howitzer shells — although long-range rocket-propelled howitzer shells are being developed — and in an era when battlefield footage is spread wide, far, and fast, there will always be something impressive about the fiery trail of a rocket heading toward its target.
Michael Peck is a defense writer whose work has appeared in Forbes, Defense News, Foreign Policy magazine, and other publications. He holds a master's in political science. Follow him on Twitter and LinkedIn.