| Launcher, Grenade, 40mm, M203 |
(dismounted) | | Type | Grenade Launcher | | Place of origin | United States of America | | Service history | | Used by | Argentina, Australia, Austria, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Greece, Ireland, Israel, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, Sweden, USA | | Wars | Vietnam and later | | Production history | | Unit cost | US$601 [1] | | Variants | See text | | Specifications | | Weight | 3 lb (1.36 kg) (unloaded) | | Length | 15 in (380mm) | | Barrel length | 12 in (305mm) |
| | Cartridge | 40x46 mm grenade | | Caliber | 40mm | | Action | Single shot | | Rate of fire | 5 to 7 round/min | | Muzzle velocity | 250 ft/s (76 m/s) | | Effective range | 160 yd (150 m) | | Maximum range | 1,312 ft (400 m) | | Sights | Quadrant sight or ladder sight on rifle | M203 generally refers to the United States Army designation for a single shot 40 mm grenade launcher that attaches to the M16 assault rifle or the M4 Carbine. Stand-alone variants exist as do versions capable of being used on many other rifles. The device attaches under the barrel and forward of the magazine, the trigger being just forward of the rifle magazine. The rifle magazine functions as a hand grip when firing the M203. A separate sighting system is added to rifles fitted with the M203, as the rifle's standard sights are not matched to the launcher. The M203 can fire high-explosive, smoke, illuminating, buckshot direct fire, CS gas, and training grenades. M203 Grenade Launcher. ...
This article does not cite its references or sources. ...
This article does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...
The word calibre (British English) or caliber (American English) designates the interior diameter of a tube or the exterior diameter of a wire or rod. ...
In firearms terminology, an action is the system of operation that the firearm employs to seal the breech (in a breech-loading firearm), and to load consecutive rounds. ...
(for paintball markers also)Rate of fire is the frequency at which a specific weapon can fire or launch its projectiles. ...
A guns muzzle velocity is the speed at which the projectile leaves the muzzle of the gun. ...
The United States Army is the largest and oldest branch of the armed forces of the United States. ...
The 40mm grenade is the calibre used by the US military for their M79, Colt XM148 and M203 grenade launchers. ...
A grenade launcher is weapon that fires or launches a grenade to longer distances than a soldier could throw by hand. ...
M16 (more formally United States Rifle, Caliber 5. ...
The AK-47 is the worlds most common assault rifle. ...
The M4 Carbine is a family of firearms tracing its lineage back to earlier carbine versions of the M16, all based on the original AR-15 made by ArmaLite. ...
The barrel of a firearm is the tube, usually metal, through which a controlled explosion is released in order to propel a projectile out of the end at great speed. ...
A 30-round STANAG magazine. ...
This article is concerned solely with chemical explosives. ...
A shotgun shell is a self-contained cartridge loaded with shot or a slug designed to be fired from a shotgun. ...
Related Compounds Related compounds SDBS Supplementary data page Structure and properties n, εr, etc. ...
History
The M203 was the only part of the army's flechette rifle project to go into production and was introduced to U.S. military forces during the early 1970s. Replacing the older M79 grenade launcher and conceptually similar Colt XM148 design. However, while the M79 was a separate weapon entirely, the M203 was designed as a rifle attachment in order to increase the efficiency at which a soldier could alternate between bullet fire and HE grenade fire. The Special Purpose Individual Weapon (SPIW) was a long-running US Army program to develop a workable flechette based rifle. Developed primarily by Irwin Barr, one of the founders of AAI (Aircraft Armaments Inc. ...
The armed forces of the United States of America consist of the United States Army United States Navy United States Air Force United States Marine Corps United States Coast Guard Note: The United States Coast Guard has both military and law enforcement functions. ...
The 1970s decade refers to the years from 1970 to 1979, also called The Seventies. ...
The M79 grenade launcher is a single-shot, shoulder-fired, break open grenade launcher which fires a 40 x46 mm grenade and first appeared during the Vietnam War. ...
The XM148 was an experimental 40 mm grenade launcher developed by Colt Firearms as the CGL-4 (Colt Grenade Launcher). ...
This article is about firearms projectiles. ...
It is sometimes thought that the M203 was a poor replacement for the M79, as while the M79 was quick to reload and more or less accurate under adverse conditions, such as in Vietnam War, the M203 was more difficult and awkward to operate, and could be sent off-target more easily by variables such as a gust of wind. ReLoad is the seventh album by American heavy metal band Metallica, released in 1997. ...
Combatants Republic of Vietnam United States Republic of Korea Thailand Australia New Zealand The Philippines National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam Democratic Republic of Vietnam People’s Republic of China Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea Strength US 1,000,000 South Korea 300,000 Australia 48,000...
For other uses, see Wind (disambiguation). ...
A new grenade launcher in development, the XM320, will likely replace the 203 in United States service eventually. The XM320 is lighter than the M203, and has other benefits such as an unobstructed side-loading breech. [2] XM320 refers to the U.S. Militarys designation for a new single-shot 40 mm grenade launcher to replace the M203. ...
The 40 mm grenades used in the M203 (40 x 46 mm) are not the same as in the Mk 19 grenade launcher (40 x 53 mm), which are fired at a higher velocity. Mk19 40mm grenade launcher MK-19 40mm grenade launcher during MIL-EX 2003 Mk19 40mm grenade launcher with cover open and training ammunition loaded The Mk 19 Grenade Launcher is a belt-fed automatic 40mm grenade launcher or grenade machine gun entered U.S. military service during the Cold War...
Perhaps its most famous use is as Tony Montana's "little friend" in the finale of the film, Scarface (though the piece used in the film was actually a replica 37mm launcher, not an M203). This article or section contains a plot summary that is overly long or excessively detailed compared to the rest of the article. ...
Scarface is a 1983 film directed by Brian De Palma, written by Oliver Stone and starring Al Pacino as Antonio Tony Montana. ...
Components The M203 Grenade launcher system comes with a variety of components, usually including the launcher, adaptors for attachment to assault rifles, and leaf sights (which can be used with the rifle's front sight post). M203s can also come with quadrant sights, mounting to a MIL-STD 1913 Rail, or to the carrying handle of an M16 rifle. This mains power plug travel adaptor allows European or British plugs to be inserted into American or Australian sockets An adapter or adaptor is a device used to match the physical or electrical characteristics of two different things so that a connection may be made between them. ...
Variants
Loading an M203 attached on an M16A2 rifle. There are numerous variants of the M203 manufactured in the U.S., and throughout the world, for various applications. These vary chiefly in the length of the barrel, attachment type, and quick detach (QD) capability. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (2820x1890, 1614 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): M203 grenade launcher ...
Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (2820x1890, 1614 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): M203 grenade launcher ...
M16 (more formally United States Rifle, Caliber 5. ...
Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1800x1200, 1663 KB) http://peosoldier. ...
Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1800x1200, 1663 KB) http://peosoldier. ...
The United States Army is the largest and oldest branch of the armed forces of the United States. ...
The standard M203 is intended for permanent (armorer level) attachment to the M16A1, M16A2 and M16A3 rifles, and utilizes a 12" rifled barrel. These can also be attached to M4 and M4A1 carbines, using a different front attachment point forward of the front sight block, but the SOPMOD kit uses M203A1 grenade launchers. M16 (more formally United States Rifle, Caliber 5. ...
M16 (more formally United States Rifle, Caliber 5. ...
M16 (more formally United States Rifle, Caliber 5. ...
The M4 Carbine is a family of firearms tracing its lineage back to earlier carbine versions of the M16, all based on the original AR-15 made by ArmaLite. ...
The M4 Carbine is a family of firearms tracing its lineage back to earlier carbine versions of the M16, all based on the original AR-15 made by ArmaLite. ...
The American M203A1 is intended for use with the M4 and M4A1 Carbine. The barrel is shortened to 9", and principally the M203A1 QD is able to quickly detach from the rifle, and be replaced by a Knight's Armament Company M4 RAS lower handguard. An advantage of using a 40 mm grenade launcher on an assault rifle equipped with MIL-STD 1913 Rails is the attachment of various range-finding optics. The M4 Carbine is a family of firearms tracing its lineage back to earlier carbine versions of the M16, all based on the original AR-15 made by ArmaLite. ...
The M4 Carbine is a family of firearms tracing its lineage back to earlier carbine versions of the M16, all based on the original AR-15 made by ArmaLite. ...
The Canadian M203A1 by Diemaco (now Colt Canada) was a similar design with a different mounting system that did not require mounting points of the same profile as the M16A1 rifle's. The weapon's 9" barrel slides forward further than the standard American models to allow longer rounds to be loaded. This model is identifiable by the increased distance between the grenade launcher's barrel axis and the rifle's. This weapon may no longer be in production.
The M203A2 is intended for use with the M16A4 MWS (Modular weapon system). Using standard 12" barrels, the grenade launcher is intended for use in concert with the Knight's Armament Company M5 RAS. Again, an advantage of this system is the attachment of range-finding optics makes precision targeting easier.
The M203 PI system is used for attachment of the M203 to other rifles, including but not limited to the Steyr AUG, H&K G3 and other rifles, and even the MP5 submachine gun. Most of these other companies have since devised 40 mm grenade launchers custom integrated with the weapon. The Steyr AUG is an Austrian 5. ...
The G3 is a 7. ...
“MP5†redirects here. ...
The M203 and M203A1 are currently manufactured by Airtronic USA, Inc. of Elk Grove Village, Illinois for the U.S. Department of Defense under contract numbers W52H09-06-D-0200 and W52H09-06-D-0225. Each contract is for up to 12,000 units. Each unit is shipped with hand guard, leaf sight and quadrant range sight. The contracts unit prices vary from $840 to $1,050 each. The production rate is 1,500 units per month. The M203A1 was revised to use a standard 12 inch barrel due to accuracy requirments. The M203 PI is manufactured for both U.S. Department of Defense and for commercial sales (to Law Enforcement agencies both in the USA and abroad, and for foreign military sales) by RM-Equipment Inc. of Miami, Florida. Official language(s) English[1] Capital Springfield Largest city Chicago Largest metro area Chicago Metropolitan Area Area Ranked 25th - Total 57,918 sq mi (149,998 km²) - Width 210 miles (340 km) - Length 390 miles (629 km) - % water 4. ...
This article is about the city in Florida. ...
Official language(s) English Capital Tallahassee Largest city Jacksonville Largest metro area Miami metropolitan area Area Ranked 22nd - Total 65,795[1] sq mi (170,304[1] km²) - Width 361 miles (582 km) - Length 447 miles (721 km) - % water 17. ...
Usage The M203 has proved vastly popular worldwide and inevitably has been fitted to a number of weapon systems other than the M16 rifle/M4 carbine for which it was designed. These include: M16 (more formally United States Rifle, Caliber 5. ...
Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ...
The F88 Austeyr Black eye gun(the recoil has been known to push the scope into an unwary shooters eye) The plastic Fantastic is a derivative of the Austrian designed Steyr AUG assault rifle. ...
Image File history File links Flag_of_Austria. ...
The Steyr AUG is an Austrian 5. ...
Image File history File links Flag_of_Chile. ...
The SIG 550 (Sturmgewehr 90) is an assault rifle manufactured by Swiss Arms AG (formerly SIG Arms AG) of Switzerland. ...
Estonian soldiers armed with Galil rifles in Baghdad during the Iraq War. ...
Image File history File links Flag_of_Colombia. ...
Estonian soldiers armed with Galil rifles in Baghdad during the Iraq War. ...
Image File history File links Flag_of_Ireland. ...
The Steyr AUG is an Austrian 5. ...
Image File history File links Flag_of_Israel. ...
The M4 Carbine is a family of firearms tracing its lineage back to earlier carbine versions of the M16, all based on the original AR-15 made by ArmaLite. ...
Estonian soldiers armed with Galil rifles in Baghdad during the Iraq War. ...
IMI rifles. ...
Image File history File links Flag_of_Italy. ...
Estonian soldiers armed with Galil rifles in Baghdad during the Iraq War. ...
The Nucleo Operativo Centrale di Sicurezza (Central Security Operations Service, NOCS) are a part of the italian police. ...
Logo of Pietro Beretta This article is about a firearm manufacturer; for the car, see Chevrolet Beretta. ...
The M4 Carbine is a family of firearms tracing its lineage back to earlier carbine versions of the M16, all based on the original AR-15 made by ArmaLite. ...
Image File history File links Flag_of_Malaysia. ...
The Steyr AUG is an Austrian 5. ...
Image File history File links Flag_of_New_Zealand. ...
The F88 Austeyr Black eye gun(the recoil has been known to push the scope into an unwary shooters eye) The plastic Fantastic is a derivative of the Austrian designed Steyr AUG assault rifle. ...
Image File history File links Flag_of_Portugal. ...
The G3 is a 7. ...
Image File history File links Flag_of_Singapore. ...
The SAR-21 (Singapore Assault Rifle - 21st Century) is a bullpup assault rifle designed and manufactured in Singapore. ...
Image File history File links Flag_of_Sweden. ...
The Ak 5 (sometimes AK5) is the Swedish version of the FN FNC assault rifle with certain modifications, mostly to better adapt the weapon to the Swedish climate. ...
Image File history File links Flag_of_Turkey. ...
The G-3 is a free trade agreement between Colombia, Mexico and Venezuela that came into effect on January 1, 1995, creating an extended market of 149 million consumers with a combined GDP of US$486. ...
Civilian ownership In the United States, M203 grenade launchers are classified as "Destructive Devices" under the National Firearms Act subject to the NFA process. M203s are not that common in the civilian NFA market because each explosive 40 mm grenade is also subject to the NFA process and its subsequent $200 tax. 37 mm flares are legal for civilian use without an NFA stamp, and 37 mm flare launchers have been built along near identical lines to the M203 launchers. This article does not cite any references or sources. ...
The 37 mm flare caliber is the specification for a civilian legal variant of the US militarys 40 mm grenade system. ...
Data
Range qualification with a M203 - Launcher: 3 pounds (1.36 kilograms)
- Rifle (M16A2): 8.79 pounds (3.99 kg)
- Total weight (including 30 rounds): 11.79 pounds (5.35 kg)
- Bore diameter: 40 mm
- Maximum effective range:
- Area target: 1148 feet (350 meters)
- Point target: 492 feet (150 meters)
- Maximum range: 1312 feet (400 meters)
- Minimum safe range:
- Non-Direct Fire: 115 feet (35 meters)
- Training: 427 feet (130 meters)
- Combat: 102 feet (31 meters)
- Unit Replacement Cost: $601 (USD) (2005)
Note: some data differs for versions that attach to the M4 Carbine. ImageMetadata File history File links Download high resolution version (1368x2100, 570 KB) Summary http://www. ...
ImageMetadata File history File links Download high resolution version (1368x2100, 570 KB) Summary http://www. ...
The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States. ...
The M4 Carbine is a family of firearms tracing its lineage back to earlier carbine versions of the M16, all based on the original AR-15 made by ArmaLite. ...
See also List of all weapons currently in development, production, or significant service in the world. ...
Grenade may refer to: The well-known hand grenade commonly used by soldiers. ...
Individual weapons by type and current level of use. ...
Rocket launchers, grenade launchers, and machine guns FIM-92 Stinger FOTT Javelin M2 machine gun M242 Bushmaster Chain gun M19 (Mk19) Grenade launcher M37 M47 Dragon M60 machine gun M73 M85 M219 M220 TOW M240 M1919 OCSW Mortars M29 81 mm mortar M30 107 mm mortar M120 120 mm mortar...
A rifle grenade is a form of grenade that utilizes a rifle as a launch mechanism to increase the effective range of the grenade. ...
This article is about a shotgun. ...
The AG36 is a single shot 40 mm x 46 mm grenade launcher for the G36 assault rifle, designed by the German weapons manufacturing company Heckler & Koch. ...
The German Army (German: [1], [IPA: heÉ] ) is the land component of the Bundeswehr (Federal Defence Forces) of the Federal Republic of Germany. ...
The Santa Barbara LAG 40 is an Automatic Grenade Launcher currently manufactured in Spain. ...
M4 carbine with XM26 LSS The XM26 Lightweight Shotgun System (LSS) is a developmental under-barrel shotgun attachment for the M16/M4 family of U.S. service firearms. ...
Click to enlarge The FN 303 is a semi-automatic less-lethal launcher manufactured by Fabrique Nationale. ...
M16 (more formally United States Rifle, Caliber 5. ...
The M4 Carbine is a family of firearms tracing its lineage back to earlier carbine versions of the M16, all based on the original AR-15 made by ArmaLite. ...
The M79 grenade launcher is a single-shot, shoulder-fired, break open grenade launcher which fires a 40 x46 mm grenade and first appeared during the Vietnam War. ...
The EX-41 China Lake NATIC (a. ...
XM320 refers to the U.S. Militarys designation for a new single-shot 40 mm grenade launcher to replace the M203. ...
Mk19 40mm grenade launcher MK-19 40mm grenade launcher during MIL-EX 2003 Mk19 40mm grenade launcher with cover open and training ammunition loaded The Mk 19 Grenade Launcher is a belt-fed automatic 40mm grenade launcher or grenade machine gun entered U.S. military service during the Cold War...
The SAG-30 is a portable semi-automatic grenade launcher manufactured by Czech Weapons (CZW). ...
MEI Hellhound Product Guide Page The HELLHOUND 40mm Low Velocity Multi-Purpose Grenade is a fixed type ammunition designed to be fired from a 40mm Grenade Launcher M79, M203 (attached to the M16/M16A1/M16A2 or M4 carbine rifle) or Milkor MK-1. ...
The MGL is a grenade launcher manufactured in South Africa by Milkor Marketing. ...
References
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