RPU-14

Also known as

RPU-14 8U38
8U38
RPU-14 towed rocket launcher
140-mm towed rocket launcher RPU-14

The RPU-14 is a towed 16-tube 140 mm launcher developed for Soviet airborne artillery units and M-14 family rockets. It is a relationship-only record because the cited sources support its launcher-to-rocket relationship and specifications, not a separate conflict-use row.

RPU-14, 140 mm 16-tube towed rocket launcher, Artillery

Image source: Wikimedia Commons RPU-14 launcher image

Profile / Specs

Profile

Origin: Soviet Union
Built by: Soviet ordnance production
Type: 140 mm 16-tube towed rocket launcher
Service note: Cold War Soviet airborne rocket artillery launcher
Designer: GSOCB-43
Designed: Mid-1950s development; 1956 factory testing and 1957 range testing in Missilery data
Produced: First produced in 1964 in FAS data

Specifications

Caliber: 140.3 mm in Missilery data
Launch tubes: 16 tubes arranged in four rows of four
Primary rockets: M-14-OF high-explosive fragmentation and M-14D smoke rounds
Other documented rockets: Chemical rounds in FAS description of shared BM-14-16, BM-14-17, and RPU-14 ammunition
Maximum range: 9,810 m
Minimum range: 2,000 m in Missilery data
Full salvo: 8-10 seconds
Crew: 5
Unloaded launcher weight: 925 kg in Missilery data
Charged launcher weight: 1,560 kg in Missilery data
Mobility: Towed by vehicles or tractors, manually moved over short distances, and described by FAS as air-transportable and air-droppable

Rockets Launched

Sources identify RPU-14 as a towed launch platform for the same 140 mm M-14 family rockets used by BM-14 launchers.

Launched item

Item type

Launch evidence

140 mm M-14 rocket, 140 mm unguided artillery rocket, Munitions

140 mm M-14 rocket

140 mm unguided artillery rocket

FAS says RPU-14 fires the same high-explosive fragmentation, chemical, and M-14D smoke rounds as BM-14-16 and BM-14-17; Missilery identifies RPU-14 as developed to launch M-14-OF and M-14D turbojet shells.

Sources: FAS RPU-14 launcher, Missilery RPU-14 launcher

Related Weapon Systems

140 mm M-14 rocket, 140 mm unguided artillery rocket, Munitions

Munitions140 mm M-14 rocket140 mm unguided artillery rocketThe 140 mm M-14 is a Soviet spin-stabilized artillery rocket family developed for BM-14 and RPU-14 multiple rocket launchers. Open references identify high-explosive fragmentation, smoke/incendiary, and chemical-warhead branches; conflict documentation places an M-14 rocket motor in the 2013 Western Ghouta attack during the Syrian Civil War, with attribution and payload evidence handled narrowly because public imagery and UN reporting identify the motor and attack context more clearly than a recovered intact M-14 warhead.

BM-14-16, 140 mm 16-tube multiple rocket launcher, Artillery

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WP-8z, 140 mm eight-tube towed multiple rocket launcher, Artillery

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BM-14-17, 140 mm 17-tube multiple rocket launcher, Artillery

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RAK-SA-12, 128 mm towed multiple launch rocket system, Artillery

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Air-to-ground rocket, Unguided aerial rocket class, Munitions

MunitionsAir-to-ground rocketUnguided aerial rocket classAir-to-ground rockets are unguided aircraft rockets fired from underwing blocks, launch rails, or multi-tube pods by helicopters and fixed-wing attack aircraft. Representative families include Soviet 57 mm S-5 rockets, Soviet-origin 80 mm S-8 rockets, and U.S. 2.75-inch/70 mm Hydra-70 rockets, with conflict rows limited to sources that directly identify a specific representative family in use or transfer.

Sakr-6 multiple rocket launcher, Light 122 mm multiple rocket launcher, Artillery

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ZPU-1 anti-aircraft gun, Single-barrel 14.5 mm towed anti-aircraft gun, Air Defense

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Sources

Missilery RPU-14 launcherPublisher: Missilery.info | Note: Supports RPU-14 / 8U38 identity, GSOCB-43 development attribution, airborne artillery role, M-14-OF and M-14D launcher relationship, tube layout, specifications, and mobility context. | Accessed: 2026-07-13 FAS RPU-14 launcherPublisher: Federation of American Scientists | Note: Supports first-production and adoption context, 16-round towed construction, D-44 carriage context, GAZ-66 towing, shared ammunition with BM-14-16 and BM-14-17, spin-stabilized rockets, maximum range, five-man crew movement, and air-transportability. | Accessed: 2026-07-13 Wikimedia Commons RPU-14 launcher imagePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance and CC BY 4.0 licensing for the RPU-14 page image from the Wikimedia Commons RPU-14 media category. | Accessed: 2026-07-13