Shoot Boom: The Deadly Science Behind RPGs

What started as a way for Soviet ground troops to take out German tanks in World War II has since turned into a global weapons phenomenon: The rocket-propelled grenade.[caption id="attachment_9426" align="aligncenter" width="480"]

Also known as “RPG!!!”[/caption]While the original anti-tank technology was meant to have a one-off use, the modern RPG is a reloadable weapon, with a shaped-charge explosive used by militias and official military forces alike.“The Russians were extremely impressed by the panzerfaust,” said Will Fowler, an explosives expert, in the video below. “It was the basis for their RPG-2 program which went on to the now-famous RPG-7.”

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With varying degrees of celebration.[/caption]When an RPG is fired, it leaves the barrel at 383 feet per second. An additional rocket fires and deploys stabilizing fins as the shell spins toward a target.

The RPG’s cone shape forms a jet of explosive energy outward when the shell strikes its target. That’s where the weapons gets its armor-penetrating power.

The RPG is a simple, cheap, and efficient system that can completely destroy a soft-skinned vehicle and can cause grievous harm to some up-armored ones.Troops who encounter an RPG round in combat are lucky to survive to tell the tale.“When I was in Iraq, the RPG was a deadly weapon,” Staff Sgt. Matthew Bertles, a U.S. Army M240 gunner, told the show Weaponology. “An RPG struck my 240, blew me back, destroyed our vehicle, and injured me.”Watch the history of the RPG in the video below:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jw5mDO90tmY17 insane Russian military inventionsThe 10 Most Incredible Weapon Systems Used By The Russian MilitaryThe future is nigh: AC-130 gunships could be outfitted with laser cannons