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recoilless rifle |
Also found in: Acronyms, Wikipedia, Hutchinson | 0.01 sec. |
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recoilless rifle, light artillery piece, without recoil, usually operated by two men. An American invention, it was used as an infantry weapon for attacking fortifications such as pillboxes and bunkers during the last months of World War II and later in the Korean and Vietnam wars. Unlike standard artillery pieces it does not need a recoil mechanism and thus is light enough to be carried by one man. Recoilless rifles use a perforated artillery cartridge case that allows a portion of the propellent gases to escape through vents in the breech of the gun, thereby greatly reducing the recoil. recoilless rifle [ri′kȯi·ləs ′rif·əl] (ordnance) A weapon consisting of a light artillery tube of the recoilless type and a very light mount. How to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit webmaster's page for free fun content. |
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Before the M-3, ARSOF Soldiers had to rely on the M-136 AT-4 light anti-armor weapon, a one-shot, disposable munition that has a range of only 400 meters; or the M-67 90 mm recoilless rifle or the 106 mm recoilless rifle, both of which were obsolete and cumbersome for use during direct-action missions, according to Major Scott Phelps, the MAAWS project officer in the Army Special Operations Command GS. After graduation from the Basic School, he was assigned to the Second Marine Division where he served as a Rifle Platoon Commander and Executive Officer of Company K and 106 Recoilless Rifle Platoon Commander in Third Battalion, Second Marines. Reinforcements rushed in by other Chinooks were pinned down by intense enemy fire from RPGs, mortars and even a 75mm recoilless rifle. |
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