Grenades Web Article

7/25/2019 Grenades Web Article

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GRENADE LAUNCHERS AND THEIR AMMUNITION:INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENTS

Anthony G Williams

This article is based on various presentations given in 2013-15 and on

articles published in Jane's International Defence Review (November2013) and in Small Arms Defense Journal (Vol.7 No.1)

Grenade launchers and their ammunition are currently experiencing thefastest and most dramatic period of development of any small arms. Thisarticle will provide a summary of shoulder-fired and crew-servedgrenade launchers, concentrating on developments in ammunition types.

NATO 40mm Systems

NATO is currently focused on the 40mm calibre for under-barrel orstand-alone shoulder-fired launchers and also for crew-served automaticlaunchers. However, while the calibre is standard, there are now fourdifferent performance levels to choose from. Two are long-established,dating back to the Vietnam War: the 40mm Low Velocity (or LV) whichuses 40 x 46SR (Semi-Rimmed) ammunition in shoulder-fired orunderbarrel launchers, and the 40mm High Velocity (or HV), which fires40 x 53SR rounds from crew-served automatic launchers.

40mm LV ammunition is currently made by about 25 different companiesin 18 countries, in a wide range of lethal, less-lethal and other natures.Apart from conventional HE and HEDP these include thermobaric HE,

HE Jump (a low-cost airburst, in which a small nose charge fires onimpact, kicking the grenade a couple of metres into the air before itexplodes), and HE anti-diver, designed to explode underwater. Non-explosive loadings include shot loads, smoke, illuminating and signalflares, a huge range of less-lethal ammunition matching that available in37mm riot guns and including both impact and chemical types (the latterfor non-military use), and even reconnaissance projectiles theSPARCS from STK has a parachute-borne camera.

The universality of the ammunition means that there are numerous

stand-alone and underbarrel launchers made to fire it. The M79 was theclassic single-barrel stand-alone type but this has largely been replaced


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by underbarrel launchers such as the M203, which is itself beingreplaced in the US and other armies by more modern underbarrellaunchers like the L123A1 and M320 from Heckler & Koch, which canfire a wider range of munitions and can be fitted with a stock and sights

for the stand-alone role. When more firepower is required, six-shotrevolvers such as the USMC's M32 are also available from severalcompanies, at the cost of significant bulk and weight.

40mm HV ammunition is made by some 15 companies in a dozencountries. It fires grenades which are typically 30 percent heavier thanthe LV at three times the muzzle velocity, increasing the maximum

ballistic range from 400 to over 2000 metres (although the effectivemaximum is significantly less in both cases). Recoil is several timesgreater, which means that attempts to design shoulder-fired weapons forthis cartridge have so far been unsuccessful, although NORINCO ofChina recently announced one. The ammunition is therefore used increw-served, tripod-mounted, belt-fed launchers generally known asautomatic grenade launchers or AGLs. The original launcher was theMK19 which is still very much in use, although more recently a widerange of competitors has emerged, most notably the GMG (Grenade

Machine Gun) from Heckler & Koch, in service with fifteen countries.There is much less variety than with LV in the types of ammunition


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available, owing to the requirement to fit into the ammunition feed and todevelop a certain level of recoil to operate the launcher, soHE/fragmentation or HEDP are the standard natures.

In recent years two new performance levels have been introduced forshoulder-fired launchers. The first of these is the Medium Velocity or MVammunition, intended to provide a greater effective range than LV plus alarger and more destructive grenade. Cartridge case lengths vary from46 to 51mm. The first of these were from Martin Electronics (now part ofthe Chemring Group), with Rheinmetall also developing MV rounds. Theheavier grenades fired at a higher muzzle velocity result in a maximumballistic range in the region of 700-800 metres, and when fired at shorter

ranges have a much flatter trajectory and shorter flight time than LVrounds, considerably improving their hit probability. However, theadditional recoil can be considerable, especially in lighter weapons, sothis ammunition is currently best suited to the solid and heavy six-barrelrevolver type launchers; in fact, the Rheinmetall rounds have a modifiedcase rim to prevent their use in unmodified LV launchers.

As a result of the recoil problem, some manufacturers, namely Arcus ofBulgaria, STK of Singapore and Rheinmetall again, have introducedwhat is now usually called Low Velocity Extended Range ammunition

(LV-ER), which sits in between the low and medium velocity types and is


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specifically intended for under-barrel or single-barrel launchers. Thesetypically have maximum ballistic ranges of 600+ metres.

While the performance of HV and to some extent LV rounds isstandardised, that's not the case with MV and LV-ER ammunition, to

which different manufacturers have different approaches. The first MVrounds used new grenade designs but Rheinmetall has adopted asimpler solution with their Velan range, which fires their standard HVgrenades from a lower-powered cartridge. In contrast, all of the LV-ERmakers combine their standard LV grenades with higher-poweredcartridges, but the muzzle velocity and range vary.

The table above summarises some typical characteristics of 40mmammunition, but it should be borne in mind that the characteristics of MVand LV-ER ammunition do vary. It should be noted that the weightsquoted here are for the grenades only, not the complete rounds, and thatranges are maximum ballistic figures; the effective ranges against areatargets would be around two-thirds of these figures, against point targetsless than half. The two columns on the right indicate the relative recoilimpulse of the four types, and their free recoil energy if the ammunitionwas fired in guns of the same type and weight.

So far, there seems to have been much interest but few contracts for MV

and LV-ER ammunition, but that may change in the future.


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Other Grenade Systems

Beyond NATO, the main supplier of grenade launchers is Russia,although China is catching up. The Russian equivalent to the NATO low-velocity round is the VOG-25 series, another 40mm of similar

performance, but differing technically in being caseless - the propellantis contained within a small element attached to the back of the grenadethat travels with it. As with the NATO LV, a very wide range of munitionsis available for it. The muzzle-loading GP-25 and GP-30 are thestandard launchers, but there are also six-shot revolvers and aninteresting three shot Arcus repeater with the tubular magazine in theshoulder stock.

The Russian equivalent to the high-velocity round is the VOG-17 serieswhich uses a conventional cartridge but differs in being of only 30mmcalibre. However, the projectile is unusually long and similar in weight tothe NATO 40mm HV. The maximum ballistic range was originally a fewhundred metres less than the NATO HV, but recent ammunitiondevelopments have seen this increase to more than 2,000 metres. Apartfrom the automatic belt-fed AGS-17 and AGS-30 launchers from Russia,Slovakia offers a shoulder-fired magazine-fed bipod-mounted weapon

using this 30 x 29B (Belted) round, the RAG-30, which offers aninteresting level of portable firepower as it weighs only 12 kg (26!lbs).


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Russia also produces some oddities, including two different 30mmcaptive-piston under-barrel systems for special forces which are virtuallysilent when fired. The BS-1 uses a conventional blank cartridge to drivea captive piston forwards in the launcher (the trapped gases need to be

bled off before the launcher can be reloaded). The BMYa-31 uses aspecial blank round that incorporates its own captive piston (the blankcontaining the sealed-in gases can be ejected and the launcher reloadedimmediately). Maximum ranges are 300-400 metres.

Also in use in Russia is the 43mm GM-94 stand-alone launcher thatresembles an oversized pump-action shotgun and fires VGM-93ammunition at ranges of up to 600 metres. The ammunition is mostlyless-lethal but includes a thermobaric HE round, presumably for themore emphatic dispersal of rioting crowds.

Russia has reportedly introduced into service, apparently for specialforces, the 40mm Balkan AGL that fires unique caseless grenades,much bigger and heavier than the VOG-25 series. These rounds weigh450 g and contain 90g HE which, in conjunction with the 2,500mmaximum range, amounts to a better on-paper performance than theNATO AGLs.


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China initially adopted Russian equipment but has now developed itsown in 35mm calibre. There are three different, incompatible series of35mm grenades and associated launchers. Two of them are low-velocitytypes for underbarrel grenade launchers: the caseless low-velocity

35mm DFS10 round for the army's QLG10 launcher, which is like aslimmed down VOG-25 and has a similar performance, and the Type 91UBGL firing plastic-cased ammunition, which is mainly used with less-lethal grenades for riot control.

The best-known Chinese grenade is the conventional 35 x 32SR high-velocity DF87 series ammunition which has a ballistic range of 1,750

metres. The HEDP grenade, which is slightly heavier than NATO's40mm HV, is claimed to penetrate 80mm armour plate as well as havinga lethal radius of 11 metres. It is used in a pair of automatic launchers,the belt-fed, tripod mounted QLZ04 which weighs 55 lbs including tripod(about half that of the MK19) and the even lighter, magazine-fed QLZ87which is available bipod or tripod mounted and weighs only 44 lbs with atripod, 26!lbs on a bipod.


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The most interesting weapon using the 35 x 32SR round is thelightweight semi-automatic QLZ87B (now known as QLB06), which hasa 1,000m range against area targets and 600m against point targets.

This offers a combination of firepower, range and light weight (only 9.1kg - 20 lbs empty) not approached by anything except the RAG-30.Much is said about achieving "overmatch" over potential opponents, andthis weapon provides an example of what that means in portablegrenade launchers. The QLZ87 and QLB06 seem to have been widelydistributed to third-world countries since they have been spotted in Africa(in Sudan, Chad and Uganda) and the Middle East (in the hands ofSyrian insurgents) as well as South America, so NATO troops may wellbe on the receiving end of their fire in future conflicts.

The table above provides the basic data for the Russian 40mm low-velocity caseless VOG-25, the high-velocity 30mm VOG-17, the Chinese35mm low-velocity DFS10 and their 35mm high-velocity DF87 series.The recoil figures quoted are calculated on the same basis as for theNATO grenades in the table shown earlier, in which you may recall thatthe 40mm HV round developed a recoil energy figure of 17.6,significantly greater than either the Russian or Chinese high-velocity

rounds, which makes it much more difficult for shoulder-fired launchers


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to be designed around the NATO HV ammunition, although the Chinesehave done it, as we shall see.

Finally, it is worth mentioning a different approach that is not strictly agrenade launcher but doesn't really fit in anywhere else: the South

African Neopup PAW 20 (Personal Assault Weapon). This semi-automatic gun fires standard 20mm cannon shells at subsonic velocityfrom a small cartridge case and, given its compact dimensions andweight of 5.7 kg (12! lbs), is claimed to be usable as a personalweapon when firing inert steel slugs, as well as for supporting fire withHEI shells. Effective range is 1,000 metres for area fire, 600m againstpoint targets; at a range of 300m the mid-range trajectory height is 1.2 m(4 feet) compared with 26m (85 feet) for the 40mm LV.

The Future

The future of 40mm grenade rounds has been under threat for severalyears due to the rather protracted development in the USA of twodifferent rounds in 25mm calibre: the 25 x 40B for use in the XM25 self-loading shoulder-fired launcher that has been tested in combat andwhich the Army plans to introduce into service, plus the 25 x 59B roundwhich was originally conceived for the now-cancelled GD XM307 crew-served belt-fed launcher, but is still being offered as a private venture forthe externally powered ATK LW25 Chain Gun. Both of these roundswere designed around a new concept in small arms: a time-fuzed


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airburst HE fragmentation grenade designed to strike at personnel hidingbehind walls or in trenches. The fuze is in the middle of the grenademeaning that equal quantities of fragments are hurled to the rear of theburst point as to the front. The launcher requires a sophisticated

sighting, fire control and fuze-setting system.

The XM25 has a maximum effective range of 700 metres against areatargets or 500m against point targets. The ATK LW25 fires a heaviergrenade at a much higher velocity for an effective range of 2,000m (atwhich distance the mid-range trajectory height is about 100 metres (330feet, compared with 400m/1,300 feet for the 40mm HV). The LW25

ammunition has also been offered in the XM109 Barrett Payload Rifle, amodified version of their self-loading .50 calibre rifle, but without theairburst facility.

Two other shoulder-fired launchers using precision airburst fuzing comefrom South Korea and China. The Korean K11, which is in service,combines a 20mm grenade launcher with a 5.56mm rifle, so is similar inconcept to the abandoned US XM29, although the launcher uses amanually-operated bolt action. It weighs 6.1 kg (13! lbs) and has amaximum effective range of 500 metres. Little information has been

released about the Chinese ZH-05 which has largely featured on internetforums, but it also combines a 20mm grenade launcher with a rifle in


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their standard 5.8mm calibre and looks very similar to the Korean gun.Rather surprisingly the launcher is a single-shot type with no magazine;this does help to keep the empty weight down to a reported 4.26 kg (9.4lbs: 5.0 kg/11 lbs loaded with a full 5.8mm magazine and a grenade).

Effective range is claimed to be 800 metres, achieved at an angle ofelevation of 7 degrees, but the grenade is relatively light.

The unique selling point for these new systems precisely-timedairburst is already spreading. A similar capability first appeared in fourdifferent 40mm high-velocity systems from three different manufacturers:STK, with a fuze-setter fixed to the muzzle (a system based on theOerlikon AHEAD cannon system); Nammo, with two systems: an

inductive fuze setter in the chamber for closed-bolt launchers like theStriker MK47, and a radio-frequency setter, independent of the gun, foropen-bolt guns like the HK; and Rheinmetall with an infra-red fuze setterwhich is also independent of the gun. More recently, 40mm low-velocitysystems have also appeared, from IMI of Israel using inductive fuzesetting in a modified launcher as part of their MPRS (Multi-Purpose RifleSystem), and another from STK using remote fuze setting. Rheinmetallhas also announced precision airburst rounds for their Velan medium-velocity system, using the same infra-red fuze setting and grenades as

their HV ammunition.


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There do not seem to have been any reports that precision airburstsystems are being applied to the Russian 30mm or the Chinese 35mmsystems, yet it is surely only a matter of time before they appear. The

capabilities of such systems in a portable weapon like the 35mm QLB06would potentially be impressive. Furthermore, the addition ofrangefinding sights would considerably enhance the effectiveness ofconventional ammunition.

Clearly, the 40mm systems have an advantage over the 25mm of beingable to use low-cost ammunition from a wide variety of manufacturers aswell as the costly precision airburst grenades. Most low-velocity systemsare more flexible than the self-loading XM25 because they can fire awide range of munitions of different lengths, weights and pressure

characteristics. On the other hand, the 25mm systems offer a muchbetter hit probability because their higher muzzle velocity gives them aflatter trajectory and shorter flight time, providing some compensation fortheir smaller grenades.

Perhaps the most interesting Western launcher project is fromRheinmetall, who have developed a recoil buffering system that enablestheir powerful 40mm medium velocity Velan ammunition to be fired fromlightweight guns. This is being applied to two launchers; the single-shotCerberus in either under-barrel or stand-alone form, and the magazine-fed self-loading Hydra which is expected to weigh around 4 kg (9 lbs)


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and is intended to fire both LV and MV ammunition including precisionairburst rounds.

In 2014 NORINCO advertised two new weapons for the export market,both designated LG5s, which appear to be versions of the QLZ87 andQLB06 modified to fire 40mm HV NATO ammunition and reportedlyfitted with muzzle-mounted fuze setters for timed airburst. Chinesecompanies often make products in western calibres for export only, forexample the NORINCO LG6, which offers some unique capabilities notavailable in western systems. It is a multi-shot 40mm LV launcherweighing less than 5 kg (11 lbs), but has a gas-operated selective-firemechanism capable of emptying the standard five-round magazine inone second.

Finally, Metal Storm. Their system of stacking several rounds in onebarrel to be fired in sequence is particularly well-suited to the relativelyshort, wide and low-pressure grenade rounds. It achieves multi-shotcapability with far less bulk and weight than either a self-loading orrevolver mechanism. Development costs were reduced by reaching anagreement with STK to use their 40mm LV grenades as the basis for the

ammunition, which could also provide access to precision airbursttechnology. However, this company is no longer operating.


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This slide shows a line-up of grenade rounds; most of these are replicasbut they give you an idea of how they compare.

The implications

Assuming that the current enthusiasm for precision airburst grenadesystems continues, what will be the implications of their general use?They necessarily require automatically-adjusting sights linked to a laserrangefinder, a ballistic computer and a fuze setter, and preferably shouldalso have thermal imaging and/or image intensifying capability for 24-hour use. Such sights also provide far greater precision in firing ordinarygrenades, so will see increasing use in some form anyway.

But while simple rangefinder sights are already in use, the sophisticatedsystems are currently large, heavy, complex and very expensive. Forshoulder-fired launchers, it therefore makes sense to fit these sights to astand-alone bipod-mounted weapon rather than an underbarrel type toachieve the necessary accuracy (implying a specialist grenadier as apart of the squad); to give it some rapid-fire capability; and to fire long-range ammunition to extract the maximum effectiveness from the costly

system.


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In terms of current western projects, that means the XM25 or medium-velocity 40mm ammunition fired from a six-shot revolver or somethinglike the Rheinmetall Hydra. Further up the performance and weightscale, the Chinese have a big performance advantage in starting with

the portable QLZ87 and QLB06, at some cost in weight.Afterthought

If there is a specialist grenadier in the infantry section/squad, will otherriflemen still use UBGLs? Possibly not: there is already resistance tocarrying the weight of around 1.5 kg (3.3 lbs) of launcher permanentlyattached to the rifle, with many US soldiers reportedly preferring to carryit as an additional stand-alone weapon, complete with shoulder stock.

This suggests that there might be a case for considering the use of rifle

grenades instead. These are less accurate, but typically carry twice theHE load and avoid the need to carry a separate launcher. The Frenchare dedicated users of rifle grenades; shown here is their APAV40 DP incomparison with the M433 HEDP LV grenade.

(image from Rama, Wikimedia Commons, Cc-by-sa-2.0-fr)

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