with an RPG-2 launcher. Studying German and US anti-tank rocket designs, in 1944 the Soviets developed the
RPG-1 with the goal of combining the best features of the German
Panzerfaust single shot recoilless weapon with the US
Bazooka rocket launcher. Propelled by a 30 mm cartridge, the
high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT)
shaped charge round could penetrate about of homogeneous armour. Early testing revealed several minor problems, but, by the time these were being solved, 150 mm of penetration was no longer considered effective against modern tanks, even late-war designs like the
Panther. The warhead was already straining the abilities of the cartridge and its range was already considered too low. Modifications to improve this began, but in 1947 the RPG-2 program began as a parallel project. Development of the RPG-2 was carried out by the GSKB-30 design bureau, originally part of the
Commissariat for Munitions, but in the post-war period handed to the
Ministry of Agriculture to help design farm equipment. The main difference in performance between the two were due to size. The RPG-2 used a custom designed cartridge to provide much greater power, and the warhead enlarged to . This improved penetration to , which allowed it to penetrate the frontal armor of all but the very heaviest tanks, and the side and rear armor of any tank. The larger cartridge gave the PG-2 warhead slightly better practical range as well, about against stationary targets. The design of the PG-2 differed considerably from that of the PG-1 of the RPG-1. The rear section of the PG-1 consisted of a central tube holding the propelling charge, and a second tube around this carrying the fins. When the round was inserted into the launcher, the second tube was outside the launcher tube, requiring the front of the launcher to be free of any fittings. The PG-2 replaced the fins with small metal leaves attached to the inner tube, and eliminated the outer tube found on the PG-1. This allowed the entire propellant section to be inserted into the launcher, which in turn allowed the sights and trigger assembly to be mounted right at the front of the launcher. This slightly reduced the length compared to the RPG-1, made the entire assembly more robust, and allowed the use of conventional fore-and-aft sights. The new design was such an improvement on the earlier design that development of the RPG-1 ended in 1948. The first production versions of the RPG-2 entered service with the Soviet Army's infantry squads in 1954. Although the RPG-2 could be operated by one man, standard military practice called for a two-man crew: a grenadier carrying a
Stechkin APS, the launcher and a purpose-built backpack containing three grenades and an assistant armed with a rifle and carrying another three-grenade backpack. In 1957, the launcher was adapted to be able to mount the NSP-2
infrared (IR) night-sight system, which consisted of an IR spotlight and a detector, together weighing (with batteries) . The NSP-2 was usable out to under good conditions. When fitted with the NSP-2, the launcher became known as the RPG-2N. Widely distributed to allies of the Soviet Union, it was also produced under license by China,
North Vietnam and
North Korea. Used against the
U.S. military in the
Vietnam War, its Vietnamese variants were called the
B40 ("Bazooka, 40mm") and
B50, using the Chinese Type 50 HEAT warhead. On March 8, 1968, a medevac helicopter was shot down with a B-40 rocket by a Vietnamese soldier during the Vietnam War. In February 20, 1971, UH-1H was shot down with B-40 rocket during the Vietnam War. In June 6, 1970, UH-1C was shot down with B-40 rocket. There were numerous reports of US military helicopters shot down with B-40 during
Vietnam war. ==Design==