SPG-9 Kopye (Spear) Russian 73mm Tripod-Mounted Man-Portable Recoilless Gun

The SPG-9 Kopye (Spear) is a tripod-mounted man-portable, 73-millimeter caliber recoilless gun developed by the Soviet Union. It fires fin-stabilized, rocket-assisted HE and HEAT projectiles similar to those fired by the 73 mm 2A28 Grom low-pressure gun of the BMP-1 armored vehicle. It was accepted into service in 1962, replacing the B-10 recoilless rifle. The projectile is launched from the gun by a small charge, which gives it an initial velocity of between 250 and 400 meters per second. The launch charge also imparts spin to the projectile by a series of offset holes. Once the projectile has traveled approximately 20 meters (65.6 feet) from the launcher, a rocket motor in its base ignites. For the PG-9 projectile, this takes it to a velocity of 700 meters per second (2,297 feet per second) before the motor burns out. The SPG-9 is light, and is normally transported by vehicle, and carried into position by its two crew. It can be deployed in around a minute. The weapon is in service with a large number of armed forces, and a variety of ammunition is produced; however, they are mostly copies of the original Soviet PG-9 HEAT and OG-9 FRAG-HE rounds. The SPG-9 is widely available to terrorists and maritime pirates such as in the Horn of Africa region, as well as in other regions to a lesser degree. It is not as popular as the RPG-7 because it has to be mounted on a vehicle or boat and cannot be easily carried and shoulder-fired. The SPG-9 requires much more skill to fire accurately than the RPG-7. There have been reports of these mounted in skiffs and larger "mother ships". The SPG-9 can typically be found mounted on a wide variety of vehicles known as "technicals" in Somalia. A variant for use with airborne troops including detachable wheels was built as the SPG-9D. The SPG-9 was used by both sides during the Transnistria War, with at least one combat kill: a T-64BV of Russian peacekeepers was destroyed using an SPG.