ISWAP/Boko Haram-side forces used captured 122 mm 9M22U Grad rockets and improvised launch methods for indirect-fire attacks in northeast Nigeria, including the February 2019 Maiduguri election-period attack; later reporting assessed suspected ISWAP attacks near Maiduguri airport as likely 9M22U rockets from Nigerian Army stocks.
Munitions
9M22U / M-21OF Grad rocket
Also known as
- 9M22U
- 9M22
- M-21OF
- M-21-OF
- M-21OF 9M22U
- M-21OF DB-1B
- M-21-OF DB-1B
- 122 mm 9M22U
- 122 mm M-21OF
The 9M22U / M-21OF is the standard Soviet 122 mm high-explosive fragmentation rocket associated with the BM-21 Grad family. Missilery identifies it as the M-21OF unguided rocket and traces licensed production to Bulgaria, Romania, and Czechoslovakia, while direct conflict sources document 9M22U use in Libya, Mali, and northeast Nigeria.
Role in Conflicts
Amnesty International documented LNA use of ground-launched 122 mm 9M22U Grad rockets in Tripoli-area attacks in 2019, including a six-rocket salvo launched from LNA-controlled areas into Abu Salim on 2019-04-16.
- Side
- Rebel and jihadist armed groups
Small Arms Survey reports that 122 mm rockets encountered in extremist use in Mali in 2014 and later included former Soviet 9M22U rockets produced in 1973-1974, used with improvised launch methods for indirect-fire attacks on military camps in northern Mali.
Profile / Specs
Profile
- Origin
- Soviet Union
- Type
- 122 mm high-explosive fragmentation rocket
- Service note
- Cold War-era Grad-family rocket in continued licensed production
- Designed
- 1960-1963 Grad system development period
- Produced
- 1964-present in Soviet, licensed, and later production lines
Specifications
- Caliber
- 122 mm
- Diameter
- 122.4 mm in Forecast International data
- Length
- 2.87 m with fuse
- Weight
- 66-66.6 kg depending on source and fuse configuration
- Warhead
- High-explosive fragmentation
- Warhead weight
- 18.4 kg
- Explosive filler
- 6.4 kg
- Fragments
- 1,640 pre-fragmented and 2,280 semi-ready fragments in Deagel's 9M22U description
- Range
- 20.4 km maximum
- Range with braking rings
- Up to 12 km with the large braking ring; 12-16 km with the small braking ring
- Velocity
- 690 m/s maximum
- Propellant charge
- 20.45 kg
- Guidance
- Unguided
- Temperature range
- -40 C to +50 C in Missilery; Deagel lists -50 C to +50 C
Variants
The M-21OF / 9M22U is the standard high-explosive fragmentation branch of the early Grad rocket family. Public sources also identify fuse and adjacent payload branches such as 9M22U-1, 9M22S, and the shorter 9M28 family.
| Variant | Configuration | Designation notes |
|---|---|---|
| 9M22U-1 | M-21OF fuse and charge branch | Missilery lists 9M22U-1 alongside 9M22U and 9M22 in the M-21OF projectile set, with MRV-U fuze use and a closely related projectile weight. |
 | Incendiary 9M22-family rocket | Missilery describes the MZ-21 / 9M22S as a 1971 addition to BM-21 ammunition, replacing the standard HE-fragmentation head with an incendiary warhead. |
 | Shorter HE-fragmentation Grad-family rocket | Forecast International separates the standard M-21-OF DB-1B (9M22U) long rocket from the shorter DZK-B / 9M28 family used with Grad-1, Grad-V, and portable or towed launcher contexts. |
Launch Platforms
Missilery describes the M-21OF / 9M22U as a standard rocket in the Grad field rocket system, while Forecast International lists it as the standard long rocket compatible with BM-21 versions.
| Launcher | Launcher type | Launch evidence |
|---|---|---|
 | 122 mm multiple rocket launcher | Missilery identifies the M-21OF (9M22U) as a standard rocket for the Grad field rocket system, and Forecast International lists the M-21-OF DB-1B (9M22U) as the BM-21's long rocket. Sources: M-21 Field rocket system - Missilery.info, BM-21 122mm Multiple Launch Rocket System |
 | 122 mm multiple rocket launcher | Army Recognition describes Tornado-G as an improved 122 mm Grad-family launcher with 40 launch tubes and upgraded Grad HE-fragmentation rockets; this supports launcher-family compatibility context, not a separate 9M22U conflict-use claim. Sources: Tornado-G - Army Recognition |
Standard Grad Rocket Context
The 9M22U / M-21OF is useful as a separate munition page because it is the standard HE-fragmentation rocket behind many BM-21 Grad references, while some conflict reports identify only the launcher or the generic Grad rocket family.
Designation
Missilery identifies M-21OF as the unguided rocket indexed as 9M22U. Forecast International uses the M-21-OF DB-1B (9M22U) designation for the BM-21 long rocket.
Fragmentation payload
Deagel describes an 18.4 kg HE-fragmentation warhead with 1,640 pre-fragmented and 2,280 semi-ready fragments; Missilery lists 6.4 kg of explosive filler in the warhead.
Launcher family
The core documented launch relationship is the BM-21 Grad family. Tornado-G is included only as modern 122 mm Grad-family launcher context because public launcher sources describe it as a Grad successor using 122 mm Grad rockets.
RM-70 context
Missilery describes the Czechoslovak RM-70 as using a BM-21 artillery unit and firing M-21OF rockets, but this page does not link the separate RM-70 Vampire record without Vampire-specific support.
Reference dimensions
Missilery lists 2.87 m and about 66 kg for M-21OF / 9M22U, while Forecast and Milzo use longer DB-1B figures around 3.23 m and 77.5 kg. The primary specs keep the Missilery/Deagel line and preserve the discrepancy here.
Production spread
Missilery reports Soviet production from 1964 and licensed production in Bulgaria, Romania, and Czechoslovakia, which explains why standard Grad rockets appear across many national stocks.
Sources: M-21 Field rocket system - Missilery.info; M-21OF rocket - Missilery.info; BM-21 122mm Multiple Launch Rocket System; RFAS 122 mm BM-21 Grad series rockets; Deagel 9M22; Fighting vehicle RM-70 - Missilery.info; Tornado-G - Army Recognition.
Timeline
9M22U / M-21OF Grad rocket Key Events
Grad development ordered
Missilery cites the Soviet Council of Ministers decision that began research and development for the Grad field rocket system.
Sources: M-21 Field rocket system - Missilery.info
M-21 / Grad system accepted
Missilery links the March 1963 adoption decision to the M-21 field rocket system, including the BM-21 launch vehicle and M-21OF rocket.
Sources: M-21 Field rocket system - Missilery.info
9M22 rocket production begins
Missilery reports series production of the 9M22 rocket for the Grad multiple rocket system beginning in 1964.
Sources: M-21 Field rocket system - Missilery.info
9M22U filling line commissioned
Missilery describes 9M22U warhead filling and automated assembly-line work at the Bryansk Chemical Plant, with a line commissioned in 1968.
Sources: M-21 Field rocket system - Missilery.info
RM-70 production begins
Missilery describes the Czechoslovak RM-70 as a BM-21-derived launcher produced from 1970 with an artillery unit able to fire M-21OF rockets.
Sources: Fighting vehicle RM-70 - Missilery.info
Incendiary branch added
Missilery says the BM-21 ammunition set was supplemented in 1971 by the MZ-21 / 9M22S incendiary rocket.
Sources: M-21 Field rocket system - Missilery.info
Media
Related Weapon Systems
Sources
M-21 Field rocket system - Missilery.infoPublisher: Missilery.info | Note: Supports the 9M22U / M-21OF designation, Grad development and adoption chronology, rocket dimensions, warhead class, range, velocity, propellant charge, licensed production context, and 9M22U-1 / 9M22S family context. | Accessed: 2026-07-01M-21OF rocket - Missilery.infoPublisher: Missilery.info | Note: Supports the M-21OF / 9M22U rocket purpose, dimensions, warhead class, explosive filler, propellant charge, velocity, range, and temperature range. | Accessed: 2026-07-01BM-21 122mm Multiple Launch Rocket SystemPublisher: Forecast International | Note: Supports the M-21-OF DB-1B (9M22U) long rocket designation, BM-21 compatibility, range data, and distinction from the shorter DZK-B / 9M28 family. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Deagel 9M22Publisher: Deagel | Note: Supports the 9M22U / M-21OF designation, Splav contractor attribution, IOC year, warhead weight, fragment counts, total weight, range, operating temperature, and target set. | Accessed: 2026-07-01CAT-UXO 122mm 9M22U Grad RocketPublisher: Collective Awareness to UXO | Note: Supports identification of the 122 mm 9M22U / M-21-OF Grad rocket as a high-explosive fragmentation, electrically initiated, fin- and spin-stabilized rocket. | Accessed: 2026-07-01RFAS 122 mm BM-21 Grad series rocketsPublisher: Milzo | Note: Supports the BM-21 Grad rocket series producer as State Research and Production Association Splav at Tula, identifies the 9M22U / M-21OF rocket within the series, and provides additional 9M22-series technical context. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Fighting vehicle RM-70 - Missilery.infoPublisher: Missilery.info | Note: Supports RM-70 as a Czechoslovak BM-21-derived launcher with a BM-21 artillery unit that fires M-21OF rockets; used only for unlinked launcher-family context. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Tornado-G - Army RecognitionPublisher: Army Recognition | Note: Supports Tornado-G as an improved 122 mm Grad-family launcher with 40 tubes and Grad HE-fragmentation rocket context; used here only for launcher-family compatibility. | Accessed: 2026-07-01GICS Insurgent Activities Around Nigeria's 2019 ElectionsPublisher: Global Initiative For Civil Stabilisation | Note: Supports 2009 Boko Haram Insurgency direct use: the report says ISWAP fired multiple 9M22U Grad rockets with an improvised launch system at Maiduguri on 2019-02-22/23. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Military Africa Maiduguri Grad Rocket AttacksPublisher: Military Africa | Note: Supports 2009 Boko Haram Insurgency direct use and capture context: the article says suspected ISWAP attacks near Maiduguri were likely carried out with 122 mm 9M22U Grad rockets captured from Nigerian forces. | Accessed: 2026-07-01HumAngle ISWAP Light Weight Multiple Rocket LauncherPublisher: HumAngle | Note: Supports 2009 Boko Haram Insurgency direct use: HumAngle describes ISWAP Grad rocket incidents at Maiduguri and Diffa using crude launch methods and Nigerian Army-stock 122 mm Grad rockets. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Amnesty Libya's Relentless Militia WarPublisher: Amnesty International | Note: Supports 2014 Second Libyan Civil War direct use: Amnesty documented six ground-launched 122 mm 9M22U Grad rockets launched from LNA-controlled areas into Abu Salim on 2019-04-16. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Small Arms Survey Extremist-used Arms in MaliPublisher: Small Arms Survey | Note: Supports 2012 Mali War direct use: the briefing reports former Soviet 9M22U rockets in extremist use in Mali in 2014 and beyond, including indirect-fire attacks on northern military camps with improvised launch systems. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Unexploded 122 mm MRL Projectile ImagePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance for a CC BY-SA 4.0 photograph of an unexploded 122 mm BM-21 Grad projectile in Sri Lanka. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Soviet 122 mm BM-21 Grad Rocket ImagePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance for a public-domain photograph of a Soviet 122 mm artillery rocket used in BM-21 Grad launchers at the Hameenlinna artillery museum. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Soviet 122 mm BM-21 Grad Rocket Tail-Fin ImagePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance for a public-domain tail-fin detail photograph of a Soviet 122 mm artillery rocket used in BM-21 Grad launchers. | Accessed: 2026-07-01122 mm M-21 Grad Rocket ImagePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance for a CC BY-SA 3.0 photograph described as a 122 mm M-21 rocket for the BM-21 Grad launcher. | Accessed: 2026-07-01