Its predecessor was formed in May 1942 as the 72nd Guards Mortar Regiment. On 20 June 1942, the unit received its Guards battle flag. The regiment was armed with
BM-13 Katyusha 122 mm multiple rocket launcher systems. The 72nd Guards Mortar Regiment fought in the Great Patriotic War and the
Soviet-Japanese War. For participation in the
Rezhitsa-Dvinsk Offensive in 1944, the regiment was awarded the
Order of Alexander Nevsky and the
Dvinsk honorific. The 72nd Guards Mortar Regiment was part of the "Active Army" from July 7, 1942 to February 5, 1943, and from March 14, 1944 to May 9, 1945. During the
Soviet-Japanese war, the regiment operated from August 9 to September 3, 1945. After the end of the war, the regiment was reorganized as the 653rd Guards Rocket Artillery Regiment. It became the 338th Guards Rocket Artillery Brigade in the 1960s, and in the late 1980s was part of the 15th Guards Artillery Division. In 2011, the unit was presented with a new Russian battle flag and its old Soviet banner retired to the Historical Museum of the Eastern Military District. The brigade participated in the
Russo-Ukrainian War and was involved in the
Battle of Vuhledar. ==References==