WP-8z

Also known as

WP-8Z
WP-8z wz. 1960
Wyrzutnia Pociskow Rakietowych WP-8z
Wyrzutnia rakietowa WP-8z
140 mm WP-8z

The WP-8z is a Polish light towed 140 mm multiple rocket launcher developed for airborne forces as an eight-tube counterpart within the M-14 rocket ecosystem. This is a relationship-only record because the cited sources support its identity, specifications, production, and launcher-to-rocket context, not a separate conflict-use row.

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

Image source: Wikimedia Commons WP-8z Image

Profile / Specs

Profile

Origin: Poland
Built by: Huta Stalowa Wola
Type: 140 mm eight-tube towed multiple rocket launcher
Service note: Cold War Polish airborne rocket-artillery launcher
Designer: Central Scientific Research Artillery Range team at Zielonka, in Polish-language source accounts
Designed: 1959-1960 design period; 1960-1962 prototype period in Polish reference data
Produced: 1964-1965 serial production in Polish reference and museum data
Number built: About 40 launchers in Opisy Broni reporting

Specifications

Caliber: 140 mm
Launch tubes: Eight tubes in two rows of four
Rocket type: Unguided spin-stabilized rockets
Maximum range: 9,800 m in Polish reference data; Defence24 describes the range as more than 9,800 m
Muzzle velocity: 400 m/s in Polish reference data
Barrel length: 1,110 mm in Polish reference data
Travel dimensions: 3.52 m long, 1.615 m wide, and 1.38 m high in Polish reference data
Weight: 750 kg empty and 1,070 kg loaded in Polish reference data
Elevation and traverse: 12 to 50 degrees elevation and 28 degrees horizontal traverse in Polish reference data
Crew: 4
Emplacement time: 2.5 minutes in Polish reference data
Road towing speed: 60 km/h in Polish reference data

Rockets Launched

Public sources place the WP-8z in the same 140 mm spin-stabilized rocket family represented in the catalog by the M-14 rocket record.

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 family

Polish WP-8z references describe an eight-tube 140 mm launcher for unguided, spin-stabilized rockets, while the cataloged M-14 record covers the corresponding 140 mm rocket family used by BM-14 and RPU-14 launchers.

Sources: Polish Wikipedia WP-8z, Opisy Broni WP-8z, FAS RPU-14 launcher

Related Weapon Systems

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

ArtilleryRPU-14140 mm 16-tube towed rocket launcherThe 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.

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

ArtilleryBM-14-17140 mm 17-tube multiple rocket launcherThe BM-14-17 is the 17-tube Soviet launch vehicle in the M-14 rocket artillery family. This relationship-only record links the launcher to the cataloged 140 mm M-14 rocket and to the existing Project 1204 Shmel boat record where the launcher appears as carried armament.

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

ArtilleryBM-14-16140 mm 16-tube multiple rocket launcherThe BM-14-16 is the 16-tube truck-mounted launcher in the Soviet M-14 140 mm rocket artillery family. It is included here as a relationship-only launch platform for the cataloged 140 mm M-14 rocket, without carrying conflict-use claims from the munition record onto the launcher page.

273 mm WM-80 multiple rocket launcher, Wheeled 273 mm multiple rocket launcher, Artillery

Artillery273 mm WM-80 multiple rocket launcherWheeled 273 mm multiple rocket launcherThe WM-80 is a Chinese 273 mm wheeled multiple rocket launcher developed by NORINCO from the Type 83 family with two four-round rocket pods. Open-source reporting ties Armenian service to a 1999 transfer, later public parade appearances in Yerevan, and documented 2020 losses to Azerbaijani loitering munitions.

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.

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

ArtillerySakr-6 multiple rocket launcherLight 122 mm multiple rocket launcherThe Sakr-6 is a light six-tube 122 mm multiple rocket launcher associated with Egypt's Sakr/Grad-compatible rocket-artillery family. Oryx lists the type in both pre-war Yemeni Army inventories and later Houthi-held Yemen Civil War equipment, while technical sources support only family-level details for compatible Sakr and Russian-pattern Grad rockets rather than a complete Sakr-6 datasheet or a verified Sakr-6 firing incident.

122 mm 9M22S Grad rocket, 122 mm incendiary rocket, Munitions

Munitions122 mm 9M22S Grad rocket122 mm incendiary rocketThe 122 mm 9M22S Grad rocket is a Soviet incendiary rocket for BM-21 family launchers, developed by Splav in 1971 and fitted with a 9N510 warhead carrying 180 ML-5 incendiary elements. Human Rights Watch documented 9M22S Grad use by Russia-backed separatist forces in eastern Ukraine in 2014, and ARES later documented 9M22S or 9M28S remnants and likely 9M22S functioning signatures in Ukraine in 2022.

Grad-P Light portable rocket system, Single-round man-portable 122 mm rocket launcher, Artillery

ArtilleryGrad-P Light portable rocket systemSingle-round man-portable 122 mm rocket launcherThe Grad-P Light portable rocket system, also known by the 9P132 launcher index, is a Soviet single-round man-portable 122 mm rocket launcher for 9M22M-class rockets. Missilery traces the system to a 1965 lightweight launcher program for special delivery abroad, while the Australian War Memorial documents DKZ-B/Grad-P use by North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces during the Vietnam War.

Sources

Polish Wikipedia WP-8zPublisher: Wikipedia | Note: Supports WP-8z identity, Polish origin, airborne-forces role, 1960-1962 prototype and 1964-1965 production periods, eight-tube layout, unguided spin-stabilized rocket description, and listed specifications. | Accessed: 2026-07-13 Opisy Broni WP-8zPublisher: Opisy Broni | Note: Supports Huta Stalowa Wola production attribution, approximate production quantity, airborne-unit context, and light towed launcher role. | Accessed: 2026-07-13 Kolobrzeg Museum WP-8zPublisher: Muzeum Oreza Polskiego w Kolobrzegu | Note: Supports Polish design, 1964-1965 production for airborne forces, and the launcher role as a light rocket-artillery system. | Accessed: 2026-07-13 Defence24 HSW WP-8z ContextPublisher: Defence24 | Note: Supports the WP-8z as a light towed 140 mm eight-rail launcher for airborne units and states that its range was more than 9,800 m. | Accessed: 2026-07-13 FAS RPU-14 launcherPublisher: Federation of American Scientists | Note: Supports the related M-14 rocket family context through RPU-14, including 140 mm high-explosive, smoke, and chemical rocket ammunition shared across BM-14-family launchers. | Accessed: 2026-07-13 Wikimedia Commons WP-8z ImagePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance and CC BY-SA 3.0 licensing for the WP-8z launcher photograph used as the primary image. | Accessed: 2026-07-13