 |
This article is under construction.
This article or section is in the process of an expansion or major restructuring, and is not yet ready for use. If this article has not been edited in several days, please remove this template. If you are the editor who added this template and you are actively editing, please be sure to replace this template with {{in use}} during the active editing session. |
The M72 LAW (Light Anti-tank/Anti-armor Weapon) is a lightweight disposable single-shot rocket launcher developed by the United States and first used during the Vietnam War.
History[]
The M72 LAW was developed as a lightweight, single-shot replacement for large infantry anti-tank rifle grenades such as the ENERGA, designed to take advantage of the latest lightweight materials to create a simple "throwaway" launcher for a hollow-charge warhead that could cripple Warsaw Pact tanks. The intent was to create a device with superior range and accuracy to a rifle grenade, without overly encumbering the soldier by having him carry a full-sized rocket launcher.
The first-model LAW was not particularly well-liked due to technical issues, particularly in the form of the second arming pin located at the rear of the launcher. It proved readily possible to rip the pull-ring out of the pin before the pin itself would budge and render the entire launcher useless, and this feature was deleted on all later LAW variants.
It was regarded as obsolete in its principle role as an anti-tank weapon by the 1980s, with the FGR-17 Viper launcher slated to replace it briefly entering production before the entire project was abruptly terminated in 1983 due to cost overruns and serious technical issues including static damage and faulty fuzes which could cause rockets to detonate instantly on launching. Congress ordered the US military to consider off-the-shelf replacements, and while an improved LAW called the M72E5 participated in the trials, the ultimate result was the US Army choosing the AT4 while the USMC procured the Mk 153 SMAW.
However, in the urban and mountain warfare of Iraq and Afghanistan the LAW found a new lease of life in its HE-DP M72A6 and A7 variants, as high-performance anti-tank warheads were seldom needed and two LAWs could be carried for the weight of a single AT4.
Design details[]
The M72 series are single-shot striker-fired rocket launchers with a single-action trigger that is cocked when the launch tube is extended from carry to firing position. As a result, this must be done in a fairly fast and smooth motion: slowly opening the tube can cause the firing mechanism to fail to cock.
LAWS up until the M72A4 feature a peephole rear sight with a front ladder sight. The markings on the front sight were in radioluminescent paint containing promethium-147 so that it could be used at night: as a result, troops were instructed to snap off the front sight for disposal by a radiation safety officer prior to disposing of the spent tube. M72A4 and later instead use more basic iron sights (3-prong front and aperture rear) derived from those developed for the FGR-17 Viper and very similar to the sights of the AT4.
Ammunition[]
The M72 LAW was issued as a prepackaged "wooden round," meaning it required no complex maintenance. Improvements to the launcher and differences in the ammunition were differentiated by a single designation.
The LAW came prepacked with a rocket containing a 66 mm HEAT warhead which is attached to the inside of the launcher by the igniter. The standard M72A2 antiarmor HEAT warhead has an official stated penetrate in 1977 of up to 200mm (7.9in) of rolled homogeneous armor (RHA), 600mm of reinforced concrete, or 1.8 meters of compacted earth.