RPG-2 anti-tank grenade launcher with PG-2 grenade.
The RPG-2 was the first man-portable recoilless rifle designed and mass-produced in the Soviet Union.
Development[]
The RPG-2 is a man-portable, shoulder-launched anti-armor weapon. The chief attributes of the RPG-2 were robustness, simplicity, and low cost. However, its short range and inaccuracy led to its eventual replacement by the more effective RPG-7. Widely distributed to allies of the Soviet Union, it was also produced under license by other countries, including China and North Vietnam. Widely used against the US military in the Vietnam War, its Vietnamese variants were called the B-40 and B-50.
North Vietnamese troops with RPG-2, 1968.
Derived partly from the German Panzerfaust 250 and developed in 1947 and first issued to the Soviet Army in 1949, the RPG-2 was deployed at infantry squad level. Although the RPG-2 could be operated by one man, standard military practice called for a two-man crew; a grenadier carrying the launcher and a purpose-built backpack containing three grenades and assistant armed with a rifle and carrying another three-grenade backpack.
The grenade for the RPG-2 is known as the PG-2. When ignited by the percussion type primer the charge burns at a very high rate throwing the grenade approximately 200 meters. The explosion of the propellant occurs completely within the launching tube. The solid fuel booster was not used until the development of the RPG-7 and placed into service as the PG-7 grenade.
Description[]
The RPG-2 anti-tank grenade launcher is a simple 40 mm steel tube which the PG-2 grenade is fitted. The tailboom of the grenade inserts into the launcher. The diameter of the PG-2 warhead is 80 mm. The center section of the tube has a thin wooded covering to protect the user from the heat generated by a rocket launch. The wooden covering also makes using the weapon in extreme cold conditions easier.
The total length of the weapon with the grenade fitted was 120 cm and it weighted 4.48 kg. Only a simple iron sight was provided for aiming.
PG-2 HEAT projectile.
Only one type of grenade, the PG-2 HEAT (High Explosive Anti-Tank), was used in the RPG-2. The propellant, consisting of granulated powder in a rolled cardboard case treated with wax, had to be attached to the grenade before loading. Once attached to the propellant charge, the grenade was inserted into the smooth-bore launcher from the front. A tab on the body of the grenade indexes in a notch cut in the tube so that the primer in the propelling charge aligns with the firing pin and hammer mechanism.
To fire the RPG-2 the grenadier cocked an external hammer with his thumb, aimed, and pulled the trigger to fire. Upon launch, six stabilizer fins unfolded from the grenade.
The weapon was accurate against stationary targets up to 150 meters and against moving targets at ranges less than 100 m. It has a muzzle velocity of 84 m/s and could penetrate armor of up to 180 mm in thickness.