M18 recoilless rifle

M18 recoilless rifle
M18 on a M1917A1 Tripod
Type	Recoilless anti-tank weapon
Place of origin	United States
Service history
In service	1945–1960s
Used by	See users
Wars	World War II Second Sino-Japanese War Chinese Civil War First Indochina War Korean War Algerian War Portuguese Colonial War Bay of Pigs Bangladesh Liberation War[1] Chadian Civil War (1965–79) Vietnam War (limited) Cambodian Civil War Laotian Civil War Lebanese Civil War Syrian Civil War
Production history
Designer	Kroger and Musser
Designed	1942
Produced	October 1944
Variants	Type 36
Specifications
Mass	44.4 lb (20.1 kg)[2]
Length	61.6 in (1,560 mm)[2]
Crew	1 or 2
Shell	57×303mmR HEAT (5.3 lb (2.4 kg))[3] HE (5.3 lb (2.4 kg))[3] WP (5.3 lb (2.4 kg))[3]
Caliber	57 mm (2.2 inches)
Action	Interrupted lug rotating breechblock[2]
Recoil	Recoilless
Carriage	M1917A1 machine gun tripod mount
Elevation	+65° to −27°
Traverse	360°
Muzzle velocity	1,200 ft/s (370 m/s)[2]
Effective firing range	490 yd (450 m)
Maximum firing range	4,340 yd (3.97 km)[2]
Sights	Telescope M86C 2.8-power[4]

The M18 recoilless rifle is a 57 mm shoulder-fired, anti-tank recoilless rifle that was used by the U.S. Army in World War II and the Korean War. Recoilless rifles are capable of firing artillery-type shells at reduced velocities comparable to those of standard cannon, but with greater accuracy than anti-tank weapons that used unguided rockets, and almost entirely without recoil. The M18 was a breech-loaded, single-shot, man-portable, crew-served weapon. It could be used in both anti-tank and anti-personnel roles. The weapon could be both shoulder fired or fired from a prone position. The T3 front grip doubled as an adjustable monopod and the two-piece padded T3 shoulder cradle could swing down and to the rear as a bipod for the gunner. The most stable firing position was from the tripod developed for the water-cooled Browning M1917 machine gun.^[5]