U.S.-supplied HIMARS rocket systems apparently have fired their first shots at Russian forces.
The Chief of Ukraine’s General Staff Valeriy Zaluzhnyi has confirmed that American-made rocket launchers are already working and hitting targets in Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine.
“Artillerymen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine skillfully hit certain targets – military targets of the enemy on our, Ukrainian, territory,” Chief of Ukraine’s General Staff Valeriy Zaluzhnyi wrote on the Telegram app.
Truck-mounted M142 High-Mobility Artillery Rocket System, better known as HIMARS, reportedly has blasted the Russian command post near the eastern city of Izyum.
Reportedly the first footage of the aftermath of a Ukrainian HIMARS MLRS strike in the Izyum area. The Russian Starshe Eddy channel said one of their salvos killed two and wounded several. https://t.co/9Zs3UNJ8w1https://t.co/c6bpGkvYcf pic.twitter.com/zy9bDpmIR9
— Rob Lee (@RALee85) June 26, 2022
The M142 HIMARS system allows for the launching of multiple, precision-guided rockets. It is uses the same controls, communications and crew as the old M270 launcher, while speeding preparation time to an impressive 15 minutes for mission-readiness from the moment it lands.
It is worth noting that HIMARS can fire Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) rockets, Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) missiles, the next-generation Precision Strike Missile (PrSM) and Extended-Range GMLRS rockets.