Amerikansky Rocket-Propelled Grenade Launcher

www.defensereview.com...

Pic:
www.combatreform.org...

My good friend and professional contact, prolific infantry small arms/machine gun designer Jim Sullivan (a.k.a. L James Sullivan), has complained to me quite a bit about U.S. military infantry warfighters not having an American version of the Russian RPG-7 / RPG-7V shoulder-launched, anti-tank rocket-propelled grenade weapon system (recoilless rifle) at their disposal to match our current and potential future enemies’ RPG-7s / RPG-7Vs. The advantages of the RPG-7 anti-tank weapon system are several.

First, the size of the RPG-7’s warhead/projectile is not limited to the size of the launcher tube, so you can use variable-size warheads that carry more payload and greater penetrative capability than an M72 LAW (Light Anti-Tank Weapon a.k.a. Light Anti-Armor Weapon) 66mm HEAT warhead. Second, the RPG-7’s reloadable/reusable aspect allows the user to carry a quiver of different types of RPG rounds (i.e. rocket-propelled grenades) on his back and quickly choose the best one for the job, load it, fire it at the target, and then reach back and grab the next one in the quiver (or have his buddy grab it for him), load it, and fire it again, which may offer some tactical advantages over carrying multiple disposable rocket launchers on his back. And third, both the the RPG-7 and enhanced-armor-penetration-capable RPG-29 Vampir (Vampire) recoilless rifles‘ respective launcher tubes, ammunition (grenade rounds), and training requirements are significantly less expensive than the West’s closest equivalents, the M3 Carl-Gustaf 84mm Recoilless Rifle / Multi-Role Man-Portable Anti-Tank Weapon a.k.a. M3 Carl-Gustav Recoilless Anti-Tank Rifle made by Saab AB a.k.a. Saab Bofors Dynamics and the Shoulder-launched Multipurpose Assault Weapon (SMAW) MK153 Mod 0, which is an 83mm multi-purpose recoilless rifle.

The M3 Carl-Gustaf is, no doubt, an excellent weapon system, but it is cost-prohibitive (i.e. too expensive) for many armies to procure it in large numbers. The M3 Carl-Gustaf’s relatively high cost (launcher, ammo, and training) has even contributed to its relatively limited numbers in the U.S. military inventory. The U.S. version is designated as the M3 MAAWS (Multi-role Anti-Armor Anti-personnel Weapon System), and is primarily in use with U.S. military Special Operations Forces (SOF) under USSOCOM a.k.a. SOCOM.

I believe its going to be an awesome weapon for the Army and Marines. Its been so long where we don't have something so similar. Sure theres the LAW but its a one shot weapon. Cheap, mass production, easy to carry, etc.

How much do these projectiles weigh? The LAW is great because it is lightweight and can be discarded after it is used. All you have to do is snap off a couple of things and you can throw it on the side of the road and leave it.

We already have to carry so much weight that we should continue to improve on what we have to make it as light as possible. We shouldn't be adding weight.

en.wikipedia.org...

In the US, Airtronics is currently making a version with picatinny rails, for obvious reasons.

It's 15 lbs, without projectile. I can see the reforming of "grenadiers" with platoons... Kind of like the poor clowns that lug the SAW's (and they are total crap- another subject).

Not too hard to imagine... I saw plenty of "liberated" RPG's being used by friendlies over the years.

S+F

[edit on 22/4/09 by cbianchi513]

reply to post by cbianchi513


Similar weight to the Russian version without the rocket propelled grenade as well.

That combatforum post said

The M3 Carl-Gustaf is, no doubt, an excellent weapon system, but it is cost-prohibitive (i.e. too expensive) for many armies to procure it in large numbers.

Does anyone have any rough idea how expensive they are? like $2K or 30? I would imagine the ammo and the amount needed for good training is where the brunt of the cost is.

From article:

Originally posted by deltaboy
.... the West’s closest equivalents, the M3 Carl-Gustaf 84mm Recoilless Rifle / Multi-Role Man-Portable Anti-Tank Weapon a.k.a. M3 Carl-Gustav Recoilless Anti-Tank Rifle made by Saab AB a.k.a. Saab Bofors Dynamics and the Shoulder-launched Multipurpose Assault Weapon (SMAW) MK153 Mod 0, which is an 83mm multi-purpose recoilless rifle. ...

The "West´s" closest equivalent to the RPG-7 is the german Panzerfaust 3 and its derivatives, which is by the way vastly superior to anything the RPG-7 can offer (minus thermobaric rounds) at the cost of only 10% more weight. By the way, the Panzerfaust also did replace the Carl Gustav rifle in german use, which is a system that really hasnt aged that well.

Link to manufacturer

Anyway, I cannot believe that this Airtronic RPG-7 version is anything but a mockup - I have not seen a less ergonomic design in quite a while. For a start I wonder how you are supposed to proerly use the Holotech sight mounted right on top of the weapon; it needs to be offset to the side. and the M16-style handgrip is absolutely useless because it changes the grip angle from the original weapon in a way that makes it really hard to pull the trigger.

This concept, my friends, is a pure joke.

[edit on 23/4/2009 by Lonestar24]

20 years ago there was a system being tested for the marine corp, that was close to an rpg.
I wish I could remember the name of the company, it might have been AAI, and the name of the system.

It was a shoulder launched single man portable rocket powered launch device.
There were several different types of warheads, an anti armor shaped charge, a couple of different breaching rounds, an overhead exploding AP round and my favorite the "bowling ball".
The bowling ball was a large round rocket propelled munition that was filled with a compound called LPF, or liquid plastic fire.

The LPF has the consitency of mollases and would stick to anything and burned at 1500 degrees.
It was very very effective, and it was supposed to go into production trials, then poof its gone, along with the AAI caseless rifle.