In
World War II,
combat engineers used satchel charges to demolish heavy stationary targets such as rails, obstacles,
blockhouses,
bunkers, caves, and bridges. The World War II–era
United States Army M37 Demolition Kit contained eight blocks of high explosive, with two priming assemblies, in a canvas bag with a shoulder strap. Part or all of this charge could be placed against a structure or slung into an opening. It was usually detonated with a pull igniter. When used as an
anti-tank weapon, charges were sufficient to severely damage the tracks. charges were enough to destroy medium tanks. Wehrmacht soldiers also used Satchel charges as improvised solutions to destroy armored structures and vehicles. They employed the
Stielhandgranate for the purpose, which was called the Geballte Ladung (), The heads of a number of M24 grenades – their handles and fuses removed – would be strapped around a complete grenade, usually with simple rope, cloth, or metal wire, a solution initially invented during
World War I using M15, M16 and M17 grenades. These "bundle charges" could be crafted with up to six additional heads around the complete grenade, the most common styles being the addition of four or six M24 heads. During the early years of World War II, there was little in terms of truly effective German handheld weaponry designed to fight hard targets such as armored vehicles and structures, and even later in the war this style of bundle grenade remained useful to the common
Heer infantryman. Later in the
Vietnam War,
Vietcong and
North Vietnamese soldiers
assigned elite sappers to stealthily penetrate defenses of sites controlled by enemy forces. Often, this meant using satchel charges as well as
Bangalore torpedoes to blast through
barbed wire entanglements,
minefields, structures, and other fortifications. The later U.S. M183 Demolition Charge Assembly contained of C-4 in each satchel, and could be used with a timed fuse. In the
Second Battle of Fallujah in
Iraq, U.S. M2 20 lb assault demolitions were used to collapse houses being used as fighting positions by insurgents. Some
special forces may use customized satchel charges designed to destroy their specific mission's target. == Gallery ==