RP-3

RP-3
Loading of RP-3 rockets fitted with 60 lb semi-armour-piercing high-explosive warheads onto a Hawker Typhoon
TypeUnguided air-to-surface rocket
Place of originUnited Kingdom
Service history
In service1943–1968 (UK)
Used byRoyal Air Force, Royal Navy, Royal Australian Air Force and others
WarsWorld War II, Indonesian National Revolution, Malayan Emergency, Suez Crisis, Korean War, Aden Emergency
Production history
Variantssee variants
Specifications
Mass35 lb (16 kg) 17.9 kg (39 lb) Mk 1 engine
17.2 kg (38 lb) Mk 2, 3, 4 engine
Length55 in (1,400 mm) rocket
500–560 mm (20–22 in) warhead
Diameter3.25 in (83 mm) rocket body
WarheadTNT/RDX/Amatol
Warhead weight1.3–5.5 kg (2.9–12.1 lb)

Enginesolid fuel rocket
7,800 N; 1,800 lbf (800 kgf)
Propellantcordite
Operational
range
5,200 ft (1,600 m)
Maximum speed With 25 lb (11 kg) warhead: 1,200 ft/s (380 m/s)
With 60 lb (27 kg) warhead: 750 ft/s (230 m/s)
Guidance
system
Unguided
Launch
platform
Aircraft
Landing Craft Tank (Rocket)

The RP-3 (from Rocket Projectile 3 inch) was a British air-to-ground rocket projectile introduced during the Second World War. The "3 inch" designation referred to the nominal diameter of the rocket motor tube. The use of a 60 lb (27 kg) warhead gave rise to the alternative name of the "60-pound rocket". Though an air-to-ground weapon, it saw limited use in other roles. They were generally used by British fighter-bomber aircraft against targets such as tanks, trains, motor transport and buildings, as well as by Coastal Command and Royal Navy aircraft against U-boats and ships.

Use continued post-war, with the last known major operational use being during the Aden Emergency in 1964, where Hawker Hunters flew 642 sorties and fired 2,508 RP-3s in support of Radforce. Use continued until the withdrawal from Aden Protectorate in November 1967, at which point the RP-3 was withdrawn from service in favour of the newer SNEB. Concerned about the possibility of shipboard radar setting off the SNEB's electrical ignition, the Royal Navy replaced their RP-3s with a new design, sometimes known as the 2-inch RP.