- Side
- Syria
During the 1973 Yom Kippur War, Syrian forces launched FROG-7 missiles at Israeli airbases during the October war, according to the Wisconsin Project missile chronology.
Artillery
9K52 Luna-M artillery rocket system
Also known as
- 9K52 Luna-M
- Luna-M
- FROG-7
- FROG-7A
- FROG-7B
- 9P113
- 9M21
- R-65
- R-70
The 9K52 Luna-M, known to NATO as FROG-7, is a Soviet wheeled short-range artillery rocket system built around unguided 9M21 rockets. Its long post-export service record includes Syrian, Iraqi, Libyan, and Houthi-aligned use or fielding in conflicts from the 1973 Yom Kippur War through the Yemen war.
Role in Conflicts
- Side
- Iraq
CSIS's Iran-Iraq War study says Iraq began the war with FROG missiles and fired FROG-7 rockets in the first weeks of the conflict, including launches toward Iranian Army staging areas near Dezful and Ahwaz.
- Side
- Iraq
During the 1990 Gulf War, Middle East Watch reported that Iraq used Soviet-made FROG missiles and that a February 1991 Saudi Press Agency report described two Iraqi FROGs, one landing near Senegalese coalition troops.
Role details- Side
- Yugoslav and Serb forces
During the September 1993 Medak escalation, a UNIDIR study says Serb forces fired rockets and heavy missiles at Croatian population centers and that a ground-to-ground rocket, probably a FROG-7, hit a Zagreb suburb.
During Operation Iraqi Freedom, a U.S. Marine Corps history documented captured Iraqi FROG-7 surface-to-surface artillery rockets on Republican Guard launch trucks along Highway 8 near ad-Diwaniyah.
Role details
In May 2011, RAF imagery analysts identified FROG-7 launchers south of Sirte and RAF Tornado aircraft struck the launchers and nearby Scud canisters during Operation Unified Protector.
The Washington Institute reported that the Syrian regime employed FROG-7 artillery rockets during its surface-to-surface missile campaign, giving government forces a 70 km payload option against large targets such as military bases or urban areas.
Role details
In the 2014 Yemen Civil War, Houthi-aligned forces used at least 18 FROG-7 artillery rockets for close-range strikes in Yemen and against Saudi Arabia's Jizan and Najran border provinces.
Role detailsProfile / Specs
Profile
- Origin
- Soviet Union
- Type
- Artillery rocket system
- Service note
- Cold War era; exported widely and still seen in limited service
- Designer
- NII-1 MITT and OKB-329 GKAT
- Designed
- 1960-1964
- Unit cost
- Not publicly standardized
- Produced
- 1964-1970s
- Number built
- 500-750 launch vehicles
Specifications
- Crew
- 7
- Weight
- 17.6 t combat load
- Length
- 10.69 m
- Range
- 12 to 68 km
- Speed
- 65 km/h on road
- Guidance
- Unguided, spin-stabilized ballistic flight
- Launcher
- BAZ-135 8x8 truck chassis with a single launch rail
Designation Map
The Luna-M family uses separate indexes for the complete system, launch vehicle, transporter, and rockets. The NATO FROG-7A/B names describe rocket and designation branches rather than separate launcher vehicles.
| Designation | Type | Source-backed meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 9K52 Luna-M | System | GRAU system index for the Soviet Luna-M tactical rocket complex, known to NATO as FROG-7. |
| 9P113 | Launcher | Single-rail wheeled launcher on a ZIL/BAZ-135LM-type 8x8 chassis, carrying one 9M21-series rocket and an onboard reload crane. |
| 9T29 | Transporter | Reload vehicle on the same chassis family, documented as carrying three 9M21 rockets and not serving as a launcher. |
 | Rocket family | Unguided solid-propellant artillery rocket family fired by the Luna-M launcher. |
| FROG-7A / FROG-7B | NATO branches | Open sources separate early FROG-7A/R-65 and later FROG-7B/R-70 designation branches, with FROG-7B using a longer warhead section. |
Variants
Luna-M designations mix the 9K52 system index, NATO FROG-7 reporting names, launcher and transporter component indexes, and 9M21 rocket branches. Variants here focus on designation branches and closely related projects; the fired 9M21 rocket remains a linked munition relationship.
| Variant | Configuration | Designation notes |
|---|---|---|
| FROG-7A / R-65 | Early NATO-reported rocket branch | GlobalSecurity identifies FROG-7A with the 3R-11, 9K21, 9M21, and R-65 designations and dates its introduction to 1965. |
| FROG-7B / R-70 | Longer warhead-section branch | GlobalSecurity identifies FROG-7B with 9K52, 9M52, R-70, and Luna-M, and says the 1968 branch used a longer warhead section. |
| 9K52TS Luna-TS | High-explosive export configuration | GlobalSecurity describes 9K52TS as a 1968 configuration for high-explosive-warhead firing that was widely exported to Warsaw Pact and non-Warsaw Pact customers. |
| 9K53 Luna-MV | Helicopter-transportable prototype project | Missilery.info says the Luna-MV effort used a 9P114 launcher intended for Mi-6 or Mi-10 helicopter transport, reached prototype testing, and was stopped in 1965. Sources: Tactical missile system 9K52 Luna-M - Missilery.info |
| Luna-3 | Accuracy-improvement rocket project | Missilery.info says Luna-3 development began in 1966 to improve accuracy at 70 km, but 1968-1969 tests were unsatisfactory and the work was discontinued. Sources: Tactical missile system 9K52 Luna-M - Missilery.info |
Launched Munition
The 9P113 launch vehicle carries one 9M21-family artillery rocket on its single launch rail.
| Launched item | Item type | Launch evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Unguided artillery rocket family | WeaponSystems.net identifies the 9P113 as the Luna-M launch vehicle carrying a single 9M21-series rocket, while Missilery.info lists the 9M21 missile as part of the 9K52 complex. Sources: 9K52 Luna-M, Tactical missile system 9K52 Luna-M - Missilery.info |
Timeline
9K52 Luna-M artillery rocket system Key Events
Luna-M development begins
Missilery.info says work on the upgraded Luna-M began under a USSR Council of Ministers decree dated February 17, 1961.
Sources: Tactical missile system 9K52 Luna-M - Missilery.info
First 9M21 launch
Missilery.info places the first 9M21 launch on December 27, 1961.
Sources: Tactical missile system 9K52 Luna-M - Missilery.info
Serial production and service entry
WeaponSystems.net and Missilery.info place Luna-M service entry and serial production in 1964.
Sources: 9K52 Luna-M, Tactical missile system 9K52 Luna-M - Missilery.info
Luna-MV project stopped
Missilery.info says the helicopter-transportable 9K53 Luna-MV prototype effort was stopped in 1965.
Sources: Tactical missile system 9K52 Luna-M - Missilery.info
FROG-7B and 9K52TS branches appear
GlobalSecurity dates FROG-7B introduction to 1968 and describes 9K52TS as a 1968 high-explosive-warhead export configuration.
Sources: GlobalSecurity: FROG-7A / FROG-7B Luna-M
Luna-3 correction work fails
Missilery.info says Luna-3 flight tests in 1968-1969 produced unsatisfactory accuracy and the work was deemed impractical.
Sources: Tactical missile system 9K52 Luna-M - Missilery.info
Media
9K52 Luna-M artillery rocket system Videos
9K52 Luna-M artillery rocket system Images
Related Weapon Systems
Sources
9K52 Luna-MPublisher: WeaponSystems.net | Note: Supports 9K52 Luna-M background, development, producer, launcher design, mobility, and general specifications. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Tactical Ballistic Missile System FROG-7B (9K52, 9M52, R-70), Luna-MPublisher: Gurevich Publications | Note: Supports 9K52 Luna-M range, warhead, launch vehicle, and historical deployment context. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Tactical missile system 9K52 Luna-M - Missilery.infoPublisher: Missilery.info | Note: Supports 9K52 Luna-M background and the launcher relationship to the 9M21 rocket. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Yemen's “Southern Hezbollah”: Implications of Houthi Missile and Drone ImprovementsPublisher: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy | Note: Supports 2014 Yemen Civil War direct conflict-use; FROG-7 artillery rockets were used by Houthi forces for close-range strikes in Yemen and the Jizan and Najran border provinces of Saudi Arabia. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Syria Missile Milestones 1972-2005Publisher: Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control | Note: Supports 1973 Yom Kippur War direct conflict-use; Syria launched FROG-7 missiles at Israeli airbases during the October war. | Accessed: 2026-07-01The Lessons of Modern War - Iran-Iraq War Chapter XIIIPublisher: Center for Strategic and International Studies | Note: Supports 1980 Iran-Iraq War direct conflict-use; Iraq fired FROG-7 rockets during the first weeks of the conflict, including launches toward Iranian Army staging areas near Dezful and Ahwaz. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Needless Deaths in the Gulf WarPublisher: Middle East Watch / Human Rights Watch | Note: Supports 1990 Gulf War direct conflict-use; Iraq used Soviet-made FROG missiles, including two reported Iraqi FROG launches on February 21, 1991. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Managing Arms in Peace Processes: Croatia and Bosnia-HerzegovinaPublisher: United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research | Note: Supports 1991 Croatian War of Independence direct conflict-use; during the Medak escalation, Serb forces fired rockets and heavy missiles at Croatian population centers and a ground-to-ground rocket, probably a FROG-7, hit a Zagreb suburb. | Accessed: 2026-07-0123 Days to BaghdadPublisher: U.S. Marine Corps University Press | Note: Supports 2003 Iraq War direct conflict-use; captured Iraqi FROG-7 surface-to-surface artillery rockets were documented on Republican Guard launch trucks along Highway 8 near ad-Diwaniyah. | Accessed: 2026-07-01RAF Destroys Gaddafi Rocket LaunchersPublisher: UK Ministry of Defence | Note: Supports 2011 First Libyan Civil War direct conflict-use; RAF imagery analysts identified FROG-7 launchers fielded by Gaddafi forces south of Sirte and RAF aircraft struck them during Operation Unified Protector. | Accessed: 2026-07-01The Syrian Regime's Use of Surface-to-Surface MissilesPublisher: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy | Note: Supports 2011 Syrian Civil War direct conflict-use; the Syrian regime employed FROG-7 artillery rockets during its surface-to-surface missile campaign. | Accessed: 2026-07-01GlobalSecurity: FROG-7A / FROG-7B Luna-MPublisher: GlobalSecurity.org | Note: Supports Luna-M designation branches, FROG-7A and FROG-7B introduction dates, launcher and transporter details, and 9K52TS export-configuration context. | Accessed: 2026-07-019P113 Luna-M.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance for a public-domain photograph of a 9P113 transporter-erector-launcher with a 9M21 rocket. | Accessed: 2026-07-01FROG-7.JPEGPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance for a public-domain U.S. Marine Corps photo of an Iraqi FROG-7 TEL. | Accessed: 2026-07-01FROG-7 Rocket.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance for a public-domain U.S. Army photo of an Iraqi FROG-7 rocket being loaded. | Accessed: 2026-07-01FROG-7 left side view.JPEGPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance for a public-domain U.S. military photograph showing the left side of a captured Iraqi FROG-7 transporter-erector-launcher. | Accessed: 2026-07-019K52 Luna-M FROG-7 Gunfire Museum Brasschaat pic1.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance for a public-domain museum photograph of a 9K52 Luna-M / FROG-7 system at the Gunfire Museum in Brasschaat. | Accessed: 2026-07-01