RPG-22

Operation

The weapon fires an unguided projectile, can be prepared to fire in around 10 seconds, and can penetrate 400 mm of armour, 1.2 metres of brick or 1 metre of reinforced concrete.

The smoothbore container is made from two fibreglass parts; a main tube containing the rocket, and a telescoping forward extension, which slides over the barrel.

In transport mode, both ends of the barrel are closed by plastic covers, which open when the weapon is extended. The firing mechanism is manually cocked by raising the rear sight. Lowering the rear sight de-cocks the weapon if there is no target.

On firing, there is a backblast danger area behind the weapon, of at least 15 metres. The solid propellant motor completely burns out while the rocket is still in the barrel tube, accelerating it to about 133 metres per second. The weapon has simple pop-up sights graduated to ranges of 50, 150 and 250 metres.

To keep training costs down, a reusable RPG-22 is available that fires a 30 mm subcalibre projectile, weighing 350g, to operational ranges. Handling is identical to that of the full calibre version, with the exception of the discharge noise and backblast.[[File:Ручные реактивные гранатометы и огнеметы производства России и СССР - Russian RPG launchers.jpg|thumb|left|RPG-22 (third from the bottom) with comparable Soviet/Russian rocket launchers]]

Usage

Real IRA

On the evening of 20 September 2000, dissident Irish Republican group the Real IRA attacked the MI6 Building in London (the headquarters of the British Secret Intelligence Service) with a single RPG-22 round, causing superficial damage.

The rocket used in London was made in Russia; a rocket found in a Real IRA cache near Dungannon came from Bulgaria. A weapons cache destined for the Real IRA, seized in Croatia in August 2000, contained a number of RPG-22s. Prices range from £150 to £220 per launcher.

Operators

Current operators

• • Bulgarian Land Forces
    • Local production at VMZ Sopot
• • Colombian National Army
• • Croatian Army
• • Georgian Land Forces
• • Indian Army
• Iraq
  • Iraqi insurgents
• Moldova
  • Moldovan Ground Forces
• • Peruvian Army
• • Russian Ground Forces
• Transnistria
• Turkmenistan
  • Turkmenistan Ground Forces
• • Ukrainian Ground Forces
  • Ukrainian National Guard

Former operators

• Soviet Union Soviet Union
  • Passed on to successor states
• Real Irish Republican Army

References

Reference in print

• Jones, Richard. Jane's Infantry Weapons 2005–06. Coulsdon: Jane's, 2005. .

References

1. Campbell, David. (30 Nov 2017). "Soviet Paratrooper vs Mujahideen Fighter: Afghanistan 1979–89". [[Osprey Publishing]].
2. (August 2018)
3. (11 December 2009). "RPG-22 Neto light anti-tank weapon (Russian Federation), Anti-tank weapons". Jane's Infantry Weapons.
4. Cracknell, David. (5 November 2000). "Found: Real IRA's rocket launcher that scored a hit on MI6". [[The Daily Telegraph]].
5. (2000-09-21). "'Rocket' theory over MI6 blast". BBC.
6. (2000-09-23). "Missile launcher in attack was new to UK". The Independent.
7. "RPG-22 NETTO". VMZ Sopot Official Website.
8. Small Arms Survey. (2012). "Small Arms Survey 2012: Moving Targets". [[Cambridge University Press]].
9. Michael Weiss. (25 February 2023). "Are Syrian rebels now armed with heavy weapons from Croatia?".
10. "RPG-22 Single-Use Anti-Tank Rocket Launcher {{!".