H40G1B6 Taepung
| JHB-40/8 | |
|---|---|
| File:RB 40 8.png JHB-40/8 launch vehicle | |
| Type | Multiple Rocket Launcher |
| Place of origin |  Menghe |
| Service history | |
| In service | 2007-present |
| Used by | Menghe |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Taekchŏn Rocketry |
| Designed | 2003-2007 |
| Manufacturer | Taekchŏn Rocketry Plant, Hwaju |
| Unit cost | $850,000 |
| Produced | 2006-present |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 46.5 tonnes |
| Length | 11.3 m |
| Width | 3.2 m |
| Height | 3.45 m |
| Crew | 4 |
Main armament | 8x 400mm R-40 artillery rocket |
| Engine | Taekchŏn-400 diesel 410 kW (550 hp) |
| Power/weight | 8.8 kW/tonne |
| Suspension | wheeled 8x8 |
Operational range | 1000 km |
| Speed | 65 km/h (road) |
The JHB-40/8 (Menghean: "Self-Propelled Rocket Launcher, 40cm x 8") is a heavy, self-propelled multiple rocket launcher carrying eight 400mm rocket tubes. It is a multi-purpose weapon designed to defeat important targets in the enemy's strategic depth or deliver supporting fire against units on the battlefield. The system was designed in the Socialist Republic of Menghe in the mid-2000s and entered service in 2007.
Development
The Democratic People's Republic of Menghe had experimented with high-caliber rocket artillery in the early 1980s, including a 400mm system launched from cage-like frames, but none of these systems entered service. After the Decembrist Revolution in 1987, the Socialist government decided that the reduced likelihood of a border conflict had rendered a heavy multiple rocket launcher unnecessary. This situation continued until 2005, when Innominada and Menghe intervened on opposite sides of the Ummayan Civil War. Concerned over the possibility of a border conflict, the Menghean government called for the development of several new military systems, including a 400mm multiple rocket launcher capable of delivering strikes against valuable targets in the enemy's depth. Work on the new launcher began shortly, incorporating experience from the abandoned projects in the 1980s, and the first operational deliveries were made in 2007.
Description
The JHB-40/8 is carried on the Taekchŏn T212 8x8 chassis, which is powered by a 410-kilowatt (550-horsepower) diesel engine. The vehicle has good off-road mobility, allowing it greater flexibility in deployment, and can reach a road speed of 65 kilometers per hour. Both the cab and the control room are sealed and fitted with overpressure air filters, protecting the crew from chemical, biological, and radiological weapons.
The launcher itself consists of eight 400mm rocket tubes, mounted in two rows of four. This eight-tube assembly can be elevated from 0 to 55 degrees, and can traverse 60 degrees left or right. Aiming of the launcher is carried out automatically by a powered platform, and trajectory is calculated automatically by the firing computer. When the vehicle is traveling, the launch tubes are fitted with protective caps on the front and rear to prevent debris from entering the tubes; the crew can eject these caps automatically from inside the vehicle, but they must be replaced manually.
Export organizations associated with the Menghean Army claim that the JHB-40/8 can be prepared for firing in less than 7 minutes, though operational trials have suggested that the average time is closer to 15. Before firing, the vehicle must be propped up on hydraulic jacks, which are located on the sides of the vehicle between the front and rear pairs of road wheels. The process of firing a full barrage takes about 22 seconds, with rockets fired at 3-second intervals, though the launcher can also fire at longer intervals while adjusting the trajectory in between launches. Once a barrage is finished, the vehicle can be displaced in 3 minutes.
List of Rocket Types
Five main rocket types, each weighing 300 kilograms, are available for the JHB-40/8, reflecting the need for a multi-purpose barrage launcher:
- H-40GT: High-explosive warhead with reinforced nose section for collapsing underground bunkers and fortifications.
- H-40JMDI: Mine dispenser carrying 208 1.2-kilogram anti-personnel mines.
- H-40JMDCh: Mine dispenser carrying 20 6-kg anti-tank mines.
- H-40J: High-volume dual-purpose cluster munition dispenser.
- H-40DCh: Anti-tank area effect warhead with seven smart anti-tank submunitions.
Each rocket type comes with a "Y" variant, which is fitted with a satellite guidance system in addition to the cascade-inertial-guidance used in the basic type. There are also "S" variants, introduced in 2015, which feature a more advanced fuel mixture and are capable of reaching a range of 350 kilometers. Circular Error Probable for basic rockets is 400 meters at maximum range, and 25 meters for GPS-guided "S" and "YS" rockets.
Service
In Menghean service, the JHB-40/8 is assigned as an Army-level asset. After the system's approval for service, the Menghean Army placed an order for 48 launchers, which would be assigned to the 4th Army along the border with Innominada. Subsequently, this order was expanded to supply the 7th, 6th, and 9th Armies on the border with Maverica, followed by the 5th and 8th Armies held in reserve. When production ended in 2014, a total of 216 launchers existed in Menghean service, as part of a Heavy Multiple Rocket Launcher Regiment in each Army's Artillery Division. The Heavy MRL Regiment is organized as follows:
Heavy Multiple Rocket Launcher Regiment (36x RB-40/8)
- Headquarters Company
- 3x Heavy MRL Battalion (12 launchers in 3x 4-launcher Batteries)
- Targeting Battalion
- MANPADS Company
- Engineer Platoon
- Logistics Company
- Maintenance Company
- Medical Platoon
During the Innominadan Crisis, the RB-40/8 saw extensive use under the command of the 4th, 7th, and 8th Armies of Menghe. All three launcher brigades were employed in the first day of the war, fired against airfields, headquarters, staging grounds, and military bases used by the remaining Innominadan government forces. According to reports from battery commanders, the launchers have proven accurate and reliable, though emplacement and displacement times were found to be significantly longer in practice than official papers had claimed.