Main Agency of Missiles and Artillery of the Ministry of Defense of the Soviet Union

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GAU redirects here. For the IATA code see Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport

The Main Agency of Missiles and Artillery of the Ministry of Defense of the Soviet Union (GRAU) (Russian: Главное ракетно-артиллерийское управление МО РФ (ГРАУ)) is a department of the Soviet/Russian Ministry of Defense. It is subordinate to the Chief of Armament and Munition of the Armed Forces, a vice-minister of defense (Russian: начальник вооружения ВС РФ - заместитель Министра обороны РФ).

In particular, the GRAU is responsible for assigning GRAU indices to Russian and Soviet munitions and equipment.

[edit] GRAU indices

GRAU indices are of the form <number> <letter> <number>, with the optional suffix <letter> <number>. A specially assigned codename may follow the index.

For example: «2 S 19 Msta-S», the 2S19 Msta self-propelled howister.

[edit] Misconceptions

Several common misconceptions surround the scope and originating body of these indices. The GRAU designation is not an industrial designation, nor is it assigned by the design bureau. In addition to its GRAU designation, a given piece of equipment could have a design name, an industrial name and a service designation.

For example, some of the surface-to-air missiles in the S-25 Berkut air defense system had at least four domestic designations:

La-205 (design name).
Product 205 (Russian: izdeliye 205) (industry name)
5V7 (GRAU index)
V-300 (service designation)

Confusion also arises from the fact that some Soviet general-purpose bombs bore a similar-looking designation. For example, the FAB-250sch entered service in 1944 with the design drawing no. 3-01301 and the designation 7-F-334.

[edit] Designation scheme

The first part of a GRAU index is a number indicating which of the several main categories of equipment a given item belongs to. The second part, a Cyrillic character, indicates the subcategory. The third part, a number, indicates the specific model. The optional suffix can be used to differentiate variants of the same model.

[edit] 1 (Radio and electronics equipment)

1K - 1K1, the Buran space shuttle
1L - 1L14, the IFF detector for the 9K310 (SA-16 Gimlet) air defense system
1S - Radar (1S11, target detecting radar of 1S91 command and control vehicle of 3M12 air defense system)

[edit] 2 (Artillery systems)

2U - Training equipment
2S - Self-propelled artillery systems (2S19 Msta-S)

[edit] 3 (Army and naval missiles)

3M - Various missiles (3M80 Moskit)

[edit] 4 (Naval missiles and army equipment (munitions, reactive armour, etc.))

4G - Warheads (4G15, the high explosive/HEAT warhead for the P-15 Termit anti-ship missile)
4K - Naval missiles (4K10, the submarine-launched missile R-27 (RSM-25) for D-5 "Zyb" system)
4P - Launchers (4P140, the chassis of the BM-37 Uragan MLRS)
4S - Launchers (4S95, the launcher of "Kinzhal/Klinok" (SA-15 Gauntlet) air defense complex)
4#

46N6E (SA-10 Grumble), a SAM for the S-300 PMU-1 air defense system

[edit] 5 (Air defense equipment)

5B - SAM warheads (5B18, the warhead for the S-125's V-601 missile)
5P - SAM launchers (5P75, the four-missile launcher for the S-125 air defense system)
5V - SAM missiles (5V55, SAM for S-300 air defense system)
5Ae - Computers (5Ae26, a specialized multi-CPU computer with a performance of 1.5 MIPS)
5Ya - SAM's (5Ya23, a SAM for the S-75 air defense system)
5#

51T6 (SH-11/ABM-4 Gorgone), an exoatmospheric anti-ballistic missile interceptor for the A-135 air defense system
53T6 (SH-08/ABM-3 Gazelle), an endoatmospheric interceptor for A-135 air defense system

[edit] 6 (Firearms, air defense equipment)

6B - Body armor (6B1), helmets (6B6)
6V - Firearms (6V1, the Dragunov sniper rifle)
6G - Firearms (6G3, the RPG-7 man-portable, rocket propelled grenade launcher; 6G17, the VOG-25 40 mm grenade cartridge)
6Zh - Firearm equipment (6Zh1M, a 100-round magazine for the PKM machine gun)
6P - Firearms (6P1, the 7.62mm AKM)
6T - Firearm equipment (6T2, Samozhenkov's carriage for PKS machine gun)
6U - Firearm equipment (6U1, personnel carrier vehicle carriage for PKB/PKBM machine gun)
6Kh - Knives and bayonets (6Kh3, a sword-bayonet for the AKM)
6Ts - Sights (6Ts1, the PSO-1 sight for the Dragunov sniper rifle)
6Ch - Firearm equipment (6Ch12, the PBS-1 flash suppressor and silencer)
6Sh - Firearm equipment (6Sh5, an ammunition belt)

[edit] 7 (Firearm munitions)

7B - Ammunition (7B33, the 7.62 x 54 mm R armour-piercing/incendiary round)
7G - Grenades (7G1, the RKG-3 handheld HEAT grenade)
7Z - Ammunition (7Z1, the 14.5 x 115 mm incendiary round)
7N - Ammunition (7N1, the 7.62 x 54 mm round for sniper rifles)
7P - Rocket propelled grenades (7P1, a 40mm RPG-7 round)
7S - Misc. ammunition (7S1, a signal false-fire of orange smoke)
7T - Ammunition (7T2, the 7.62 x 54 mm R tracer round)
7U - Ammunition (7U1, the 7.62x54mm low speed (subsonic) US cartridge)
7Kh - Training ammunition (7Kh1, the 12.7 x 108 mm blank cartridge)

[edit] Exceptions

71Kh6, the US-KMO Prognoz-2 early warning system satellite
73N6 Baikal-1, an automated air defense command and control system
76N6, a low-altitude target detector radar
75E6 Parol-3, the IFF interrogator for the S-75M and S-125

[edit] 8 (Army missiles and rocketry)

8A - Ballistic missiles
8D - Rocket engines (mostly)
8K - Missiles (8K51, 8K63 Dvina, 8K64, 8K71, 8K81, 8K84)
8P - Expendable launch systems
8S - Missile propulsion stages
8F - Warheads

[edit] 9 (Army missiles)

9K - 9K310, the SA-16 Gimlet air defense system

[edit] 10 (Equipment)

10P - Sights (10P19, the PGO-7V sight for RPG-7V grenade launcher)
10R - Radios (10R30 Karat-2, a radio transmitter)

[edit] 11 (Rocketry and associated equipment)

11A - Rocketry (11A51, the Korolev N-1 heavy-lift launcher, 11A511, the Soyuz launcher)
11B - Nuclear thermal rocket engines (11B91 (RD0410); 11B97)
11G - Equipment (11G12, a refuelling station)
11D - Rocket engines (11D43, the RD-253 liquid fuel rocket engine (1-st stage of "Proton" space launcher))
11K - Rocketry (11K25 Energia, a heavy-lift rocket for the "Buran" space shuttle)
11M - Onboard equipment (11M243, solar array actuators for the 11F624 Yantar-2K satellite)
11P - Ground equipment (11P825, the launch complex for the 11K25)
11S - Rocket stages (11S59, the 1st and 2nd stages ("unit A") of the Soyuz launch vehicle)
11F - Satellites (11F67 Molnia-1, a telecom satellite; 11F35K1, the first production Buran)

[edit] 14 (Rocketry and associated equipment)

14D - Rocket engines (14D30, the "Briz" booster's S5.98M liquid fuel engine)
14I - Ground equipment (14I02, the ground equipment for the "Briz" booster's 8P882 system)
14P - Ground equipment (14P72, the service system for the "Briz" booster)
14S - Boosters (14S12, the "Briz" booster)
14T - Ground equipment (14T81, the storage equipment for the "Briz" booster)
14F - Satellites (14F10, the IS-MU Naryad anti-satellite weapon)

[edit] 15 (Strategic Missile Forces equipment)

15A - Intercontinental ballistic missiles (15A15, the UR-100MR (SS-17 Spanker) ICBM)
15B - Warheads
15D - Rocket engines (mostly)
15Zh - ICBM's and tactical ballistic missiles (15Zh45, the RT-21M Pioneer (SS-20 Saber) TBM)
15N - Command and control vehicles
15P - Silo-based launchers (mostly)
15U - ICBM ground equipment
15F - Warheads

[edit] 17 (Rocketry and associated equipment)

17D - Misc. rocket engines (17D58Ae, the stabilization and orientation engine of the "Briz-M" booster)
17K - Space-based systems (17K114, a space-based reconnaissance and targeting system)
17P - Ground equipment (17P31, the start system for 11K25)
17S - Rocket stages (17S40, Unit D of the Proton launcher)
17U - Ground equipment (17U551, the "Briz-M" booster testing system)
17F - Satellites (17F15 Raduga-1, a telecommunications satellite)