RPG-29 antitank grenade launcher (USSR / Russia)

RPG-29 antitank grenade launcher with PG-29V grenade, ready for loading

Caliber: 105 mm barrel; 65/105mm warheads
Type: rocket booster
Overall length: 1850 mm ready to fire; 1000 mm disassembled for transportation
Weight: 12.1 kg unloaded, with optical sight; 18.8 kg loaded and ready to fire
Effective range: up to 500 m
Armour penetration: ERA plus more than 600 mm RHA

RPG-29 grenade launcher has been adopted by Soviet army in 1989, and it is intended to defeat most modern tanks, fitted with ERA protection.

The RPG-29 is a shoulder fired, single-shot, smooth-bored, recoilless launcher. Unlike previous RPG-series launchers, the RPG-29 is a breech-loading weapon, with large caliber barrel, made from two quick-detachable parts, front and rear. Rear part of the barrel is fitted with folding monopod support. Front part of the barrel has the fire control module with pistol grip, trigger and manual safety, the folding iron sights, and mount for 2.7X telescope sight. The trigger unit is of electronic type and is generally similar to the fire control unit of RPG-16. The PG-29 HEAT grenade has a tandem warhead and a rocket booster with eight folding stabilizer fins at the rear. With this design, the smaller front warhead is intended to set off the ERA (Explosive Reactive Armor) block from the safe range, and then second larger warhead strikes the hull of the tank. When used against buildings or entrenchments, the PG-29V can penetrate more than 1,5 meter (5ft) of concrete or brick wall and then cause significant damage to troops beyond the wall. Unlike previous designs, PG-29 grenade has no separate RCL-type launch charge. The rocket engine starts immediately as the trigger is pressed, and burns out completely before the grenade leaves the launcher. The rest of the flight is made under inertia. The warhead is similar in design to the PG-7VR warhead, developed for RPG-7V grenade launcher, but, thanks to the much more powerful rocket engine, the RPG-29/PG-29 combination has effective range about two times longer, than the RPG-7V/PG-7VR combination. The cost of this significant increase in combat performance is much bigger weight and bulk of both RPG-29 launcher and PG-29 grenade.