M47 Dragon - Revision history

Ominae at 07:28, 2 November 2021

2021-11-02T07:28:14Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 07:28, 2 November 2021
Line 1:		Line 1:
	[[Image:M47 Dragon.jpg‎\|thumb\|300px\|right\|M47 Dragon ATGM with SU-36/P daysight and front shock absorber detached- 140mm]]		[[Image:M47 Dragon.jpg‎\|thumb\|300px\|right\|M47 Dragon ATGM with SU-36/P daysight and front shock absorber detached- 140mm]]

	The '''M47 Dragon''' is a crew-served, man-portable wire-guided SACLOS (semi-active command line of sight) missile launcher introduced in 1975 and used by the US military. It was developed under the name '''FGM-77''' by Raytheon and manufactured by Raytheon and McDonnell Douglas, replacing the [[M67 recoilless rifle]]. It was officially withdrawn from service in 2001, by which point it was heavily supplemented by the the [[M136 AT4]], [[M141 SMAW-D]] and [[Mk 153 ~~Mod 0~~ SMAW]]: it was directly replaced by the [[FGM-148 Javelin]]. The US Army directed Anniston Defense Munitions Center to begin to destroy stockpiles of Dragons in 2006: 7,000 were destroyed over the next two years, and the remaining 5,433 in 2009, with the final batch of 24 blown up in an ADMC demil pit on September 8th.		The '''M47 Dragon''' is a crew-served, man-portable wire-guided SACLOS (semi-active command line of sight) missile launcher introduced in 1975 and used by the US military. It was developed under the name '''FGM-77''' by Raytheon and manufactured by Raytheon and McDonnell Douglas, replacing the [[M67 recoilless rifle]]. It was officially withdrawn from service in 2001, by which point it was heavily supplemented by the the [[M136 AT4]], [[M141 SMAW-D]] and [[Mk 153 SMAW]]: it was directly replaced by the [[FGM-148 Javelin]]. The US Army directed Anniston Defense Munitions Center to begin to destroy stockpiles of Dragons in 2006: 7,000 were destroyed over the next two years, and the remaining 5,433 in 2009, with the final batch of 24 blown up in an ADMC demil pit on September 8th.

	The Dragon uses a similar guidance system to other period systems like the [[BGM-71 TOW]], with the sight tracking a thermal beacon on the missile's tail to make course corrections and issuing commands to the missile via wires. It uses a similar soft-launch system with a smaller rocket engine propelling it clear of the launch tube, with a rather strange twist: instead of the missile achieving full flight speed using a main rocket engine and then gliding to the target using wings and steering fins, Dragon's missile lacks control surfaces entirely, with only small stabilising fins at the rear, and has no large second stage engine. It instead features sixty small rocket thrusters along the midsection, angled diagonally towards the rear of the missile, which fire to both keep it in the air and correct its flight path, creating distinctive popping sounds at intervals of half a second to a second as it flies depending on how much it is required to maneuver. For safety, the warhead does not arm until the missile has traveled 65 metres (213 feet): maximum range is 1,000 metres (0.6 miles), increased to 1,500 meters (0.9 miles) on the improved Dragon III missile in 1990.		The Dragon uses a similar guidance system to other period systems like the [[BGM-71 TOW]], with the sight tracking a thermal beacon on the missile's tail to make course corrections and issuing commands to the missile via wires. It uses a similar soft-launch system with a smaller rocket engine propelling it clear of the launch tube, with a rather strange twist: instead of the missile achieving full flight speed using a main rocket engine and then gliding to the target using wings and steering fins, Dragon's missile lacks control surfaces entirely, with only small stabilising fins at the rear, and has no large second stage engine. It instead features sixty small rocket thrusters along the midsection, angled diagonally towards the rear of the missile, which fire to both keep it in the air and correct its flight path, creating distinctive popping sounds at intervals of half a second to a second as it flies depending on how much it is required to maneuver. For safety, the warhead does not arm until the missile has traveled 65 metres (213 feet): maximum range is 1,000 metres (0.6 miles), increased to 1,500 meters (0.9 miles) on the improved Dragon III missile in 1990.

Mandolin at 01:06, 21 April 2021

2021-04-21T01:06:58Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 01:06, 21 April 2021
Line 5:		Line 5:
	The Dragon uses a similar guidance system to other period systems like the [[BGM-71 TOW]], with the sight tracking a thermal beacon on the missile's tail to make course corrections and issuing commands to the missile via wires. It uses a similar soft-launch system with a smaller rocket engine propelling it clear of the launch tube, with a rather strange twist: instead of the missile achieving full flight speed using a main rocket engine and then gliding to the target using wings and steering fins, Dragon's missile lacks control surfaces entirely, with only small stabilising fins at the rear, and has no large second stage engine. It instead features sixty small rocket thrusters along the midsection, angled diagonally towards the rear of the missile, which fire to both keep it in the air and correct its flight path, creating distinctive popping sounds at intervals of half a second to a second as it flies depending on how much it is required to maneuver. For safety, the warhead does not arm until the missile has traveled 65 metres (213 feet): maximum range is 1,000 metres (0.6 miles), increased to 1,500 meters (0.9 miles) on the improved Dragon III missile in 1990.		The Dragon uses a similar guidance system to other period systems like the [[BGM-71 TOW]], with the sight tracking a thermal beacon on the missile's tail to make course corrections and issuing commands to the missile via wires. It uses a similar soft-launch system with a smaller rocket engine propelling it clear of the launch tube, with a rather strange twist: instead of the missile achieving full flight speed using a main rocket engine and then gliding to the target using wings and steering fins, Dragon's missile lacks control surfaces entirely, with only small stabilising fins at the rear, and has no large second stage engine. It instead features sixty small rocket thrusters along the midsection, angled diagonally towards the rear of the missile, which fire to both keep it in the air and correct its flight path, creating distinctive popping sounds at intervals of half a second to a second as it flies depending on how much it is required to maneuver. For safety, the warhead does not arm until the missile has traveled 65 metres (213 feet): maximum range is 1,000 metres (0.6 miles), increased to 1,500 meters (0.9 miles) on the improved Dragon III missile in 1990.

	Like its successor the Javelin, the Dragon is a two-part system with a disposable encased missile and a re-usable sighting unit which is attached to the round prior to use. A tripod mount and vehicle mount were also available for a more stable firing platform. The original M222 missile will penetrate 330mm/13 inches of armor, improving t0 600mm/24 inches on the Dragon II's Mk 1 Mod O missile. The 1990 Dragon III adds a ~~precurser~~ warhead for improved performance against ERA and boosts penetration to over 800mm/32.8 inches. The Iranian Saeghe (lightning) surface-to-surface missile system first displayed in 2002 is believed to be a copy of the Super Dragon.		Like its successor the Javelin, the Dragon is a two-part system with a disposable encased missile and a re-usable sighting unit which is attached to the round prior to use. A tripod mount and vehicle mount were also available for a more stable firing platform. The original M222 missile will penetrate 330mm/13 inches of armor, improving to 600mm/24 inches on the Dragon II's Mk 1 Mod O missile. The 1990 Dragon III adds a precursor warhead for improved performance against ERA and boosts penetration to over 800mm/32.8 inches. The Iranian Saeghe (lightning) surface-to-surface missile system first displayed in 2002 is believed to be a copy of the Super Dragon.

	Being a shoulder-fired SACLOS system, Dragon had the problem that while there was no real recoil on firing, the soldier would suddenly be relieved of the weight of the 20-pound missile, which could throw the sight violently off-target and cause the missile to ground itself: for this reason, Dragon was only supposed to be used with its supporting bipod deployed. It was not a well-liked weapon due to being difficult to use: like TOW, there is a short delay between pulling the trigger and the missile firing during which the user will tend to tense up, which was much more problematic for the shoulder-launched Dragon. Moving the sight too quickly will cause the missile to ground itself, not helped by it being notoriously sensitive to small movements. Dragon also has a fearsome backblast with a "danger zone" almost a hundred feet long to the rear in a 90-degree arc, making it practically impossible to fire in a built-up area or indoors without knocking out most of a building's walls first. It was further not liked due to the requirement for the gunner to remain exposed in a seated position for up to 11.5 seconds while the missile is tracking (after kicking up a huge cloud of smoke to give away their position), a tendency for the control wires to break (largely because unlike most wire-guided missiles, Dragon rolls in flight: necessary to bring the banks of thrusters into position but not at all good for the command wires), frequent thruster failures causing erratic missile behavior, and the regular thruster firing making it impossible to ''not'' tell when one had been launched. A report by the US Army found Dragon's hit rate under combat conditions to be a dismal 20%. Dragon's single-stage HEAT warhead was quickly rendered obsolete by developments in reactive armor, and by the time it was actually employed in full-scale combat in the Gulf War, it was considered a weapon of last resort.		Being a shoulder-fired SACLOS system, Dragon had the problem that while there was no real recoil on firing, the soldier would suddenly be relieved of the weight of the 20-pound missile, which could throw the sight violently off-target and cause the missile to ground itself: for this reason, Dragon was only supposed to be used with its supporting bipod deployed. It was not a well-liked weapon due to being difficult to use: like TOW, there is a short delay between pulling the trigger and the missile firing during which the user will tend to tense up, which was much more problematic for the shoulder-launched Dragon. Moving the sight too quickly will cause the missile to ground itself, not helped by it being notoriously sensitive to small movements. Dragon also has a fearsome backblast with a "danger zone" almost a hundred feet long to the rear in a 90-degree arc, making it practically impossible to fire in a built-up area or indoors without knocking out most of a building's walls first. It was further not liked due to the requirement for the gunner to remain exposed in a seated position for up to 11.5 seconds while the missile is tracking (after kicking up a huge cloud of smoke to give away their position), a tendency for the control wires to break (largely because unlike most wire-guided missiles, Dragon rolls in flight: necessary to bring the banks of thrusters into position but not at all good for the command wires), frequent thruster failures causing erratic missile behavior, and the regular thruster firing making it impossible to ''not'' tell when one had been launched. A report by the US Army found Dragon's hit rate under combat conditions to be a dismal 20%. Dragon's single-stage HEAT warhead was quickly rendered obsolete by developments in reactive armor, and by the time it was actually employed in full-scale combat in the Gulf War, it was considered a weapon of last resort.

Mandolin at 15:17, 9 April 2021

2021-04-09T15:17:47Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:17, 9 April 2021
Line 3:		Line 3:
	The '''M47 Dragon''' is a crew-served, man-portable wire-guided SACLOS (semi-active command line of sight) missile launcher introduced in 1975 and used by the US military. It was developed under the name '''FGM-77''' by Raytheon and manufactured by Raytheon and McDonnell Douglas, replacing the [[M67 recoilless rifle]]. It was officially withdrawn from service in 2001, by which point it was heavily supplemented by the the [[M136 AT4]], [[M141 SMAW-D]] and [[Mk 153 Mod 0 SMAW]]: it was directly replaced by the [[FGM-148 Javelin]]. The US Army directed Anniston Defense Munitions Center to begin to destroy stockpiles of Dragons in 2006: 7,000 were destroyed over the next two years, and the remaining 5,433 in 2009, with the final batch of 24 blown up in an ADMC demil pit on September 8th.		The '''M47 Dragon''' is a crew-served, man-portable wire-guided SACLOS (semi-active command line of sight) missile launcher introduced in 1975 and used by the US military. It was developed under the name '''FGM-77''' by Raytheon and manufactured by Raytheon and McDonnell Douglas, replacing the [[M67 recoilless rifle]]. It was officially withdrawn from service in 2001, by which point it was heavily supplemented by the the [[M136 AT4]], [[M141 SMAW-D]] and [[Mk 153 Mod 0 SMAW]]: it was directly replaced by the [[FGM-148 Javelin]]. The US Army directed Anniston Defense Munitions Center to begin to destroy stockpiles of Dragons in 2006: 7,000 were destroyed over the next two years, and the remaining 5,433 in 2009, with the final batch of 24 blown up in an ADMC demil pit on September 8th.

	The Dragon uses a similar guidance system to other period systems like the [[BGM-71 TOW]], with the sight tracking a thermal beacon on the missile's tail to make course corrections and issuing commands to the missile via wires. It uses a similar soft-launch system with a smaller rocket engine propelling it clear of the launch tube, with a rather strange twist: instead of the missile achieving full flight speed using a main rocket engine and then gliding to the target using wings and steering fins, Dragon's missile lacks control surfaces entirely, with only small stabilising fins at the rear, and has no large second stage engine. It instead features sixty small rocket thrusters along the midsection, angled diagonally towards the rear of the missile, which fire to both keep it in the air and correct its flight path, creating distinctive popping sounds at intervals of half a second to a second as it flies depending on how much it is required to maneuver. For safety, the warhead does not arm until the missile has traveled 65 metres (213 feet): maximum range is 1,000 metres (0.6 miles), increased to 2,~~000~~ meters (1.2 miles) on the improved ~~Super~~ Dragon missile in 1990.		The Dragon uses a similar guidance system to other period systems like the [[BGM-71 TOW]], with the sight tracking a thermal beacon on the missile's tail to make course corrections and issuing commands to the missile via wires. It uses a similar soft-launch system with a smaller rocket engine propelling it clear of the launch tube, with a rather strange twist: instead of the missile achieving full flight speed using a main rocket engine and then gliding to the target using wings and steering fins, Dragon's missile lacks control surfaces entirely, with only small stabilising fins at the rear, and has no large second stage engine. It instead features sixty small rocket thrusters along the midsection, angled diagonally towards the rear of the missile, which fire to both keep it in the air and correct its flight path, creating distinctive popping sounds at intervals of half a second to a second as it flies depending on how much it is required to maneuver. For safety, the warhead does not arm until the missile has traveled 65 metres (213 feet): maximum range is 1,000 metres (0.6 miles), increased to 1,500 meters (0.9 miles) on the improved Dragon III missile in 1990.

	Like its successor the Javelin, the Dragon is a two-part system with a disposable encased missile and a re-usable sighting unit which is attached to the round prior to use. A tripod mount and vehicle mount were also available for a more stable firing platform. The ~~standard~~ missile ~~uses a single-stage HEAT warhead rated as able to~~ penetrate ~~8 feet~~ of ~~compacted earth~~, ~~4 feet of reinforced concrete, or 13~~ inches ~~of rolled homogeneous steel~~. The ~~1985 Dragon II and~~ 1990 ~~Super~~ Dragon improved ~~on this~~ performance~~, widening the warhead to full caliber~~ and ~~increasing~~ penetration to 24.8 inches ~~on the Super Dragon~~. The Iranian Saeghe (lightning) surface-to-surface missile system first displayed in 2002 is believed to be a copy of the Super Dragon.		Like its successor the Javelin, the Dragon is a two-part system with a disposable encased missile and a re-usable sighting unit which is attached to the round prior to use. A tripod mount and vehicle mount were also available for a more stable firing platform. The original M222 missile will penetrate 330mm/13 inches of armor, improving t0 600mm/24 inches on the Dragon II's Mk 1 Mod O missile. The 1990 Dragon III adds a precurser warhead for improved performance against ERA and boosts penetration to over 800mm/32.8 inches. The Iranian Saeghe (lightning) surface-to-surface missile system first displayed in 2002 is believed to be a copy of the Super Dragon.

	Being a shoulder-fired SACLOS system, Dragon had the problem that while there was no real recoil on firing, the soldier would suddenly be relieved of the weight of the 20-pound missile, which could throw the sight violently off-target and cause the missile to ground itself: for this reason, Dragon was only supposed to be used with its supporting bipod deployed. It was not a well-liked weapon due to being difficult to use: like TOW, there is a short delay between pulling the trigger and the missile firing during which the user will tend to tense up, which was much more problematic for the shoulder-launched Dragon. Moving the sight too quickly will cause the missile to ground itself, not helped by it being notoriously sensitive to small movements. Dragon also has a fearsome backblast with a "danger zone" almost a hundred feet long to the rear in a 90-degree arc, making it practically impossible to fire in a built-up area or indoors without knocking out most of a building's walls first. It was further not liked due to the requirement for the gunner to remain exposed in a seated position for up to 11.5 seconds while the missile is tracking (after kicking up a huge cloud of smoke to give away their position), a tendency for the control wires to break (largely because unlike most wire-guided missiles, Dragon rolls in flight: necessary to bring the banks of thrusters into position but not at all good for the command wires), frequent thruster failures causing erratic missile behavior, and the regular thruster firing making it impossible to ''not'' tell when one had been launched. A report by the US Army found Dragon's hit rate under combat conditions to be a dismal 20%. Dragon's single-stage HEAT warhead was quickly rendered obsolete by developments in reactive armor, and by the time it was actually employed in full-scale combat in the Gulf War, it was considered a weapon of last resort.		Being a shoulder-fired SACLOS system, Dragon had the problem that while there was no real recoil on firing, the soldier would suddenly be relieved of the weight of the 20-pound missile, which could throw the sight violently off-target and cause the missile to ground itself: for this reason, Dragon was only supposed to be used with its supporting bipod deployed. It was not a well-liked weapon due to being difficult to use: like TOW, there is a short delay between pulling the trigger and the missile firing during which the user will tend to tense up, which was much more problematic for the shoulder-launched Dragon. Moving the sight too quickly will cause the missile to ground itself, not helped by it being notoriously sensitive to small movements. Dragon also has a fearsome backblast with a "danger zone" almost a hundred feet long to the rear in a 90-degree arc, making it practically impossible to fire in a built-up area or indoors without knocking out most of a building's walls first. It was further not liked due to the requirement for the gunner to remain exposed in a seated position for up to 11.5 seconds while the missile is tracking (after kicking up a huge cloud of smoke to give away their position), a tendency for the control wires to break (largely because unlike most wire-guided missiles, Dragon rolls in flight: necessary to bring the banks of thrusters into position but not at all good for the command wires), frequent thruster failures causing erratic missile behavior, and the regular thruster firing making it impossible to ''not'' tell when one had been launched. A report by the US Army found Dragon's hit rate under combat conditions to be a dismal 20%. Dragon's single-stage HEAT warhead was quickly rendered obsolete by developments in reactive armor, and by the time it was actually employed in full-scale combat in the Gulf War, it was considered a weapon of last resort.

Wuzh at 20:20, 17 November 2019

2019-11-17T20:20:56Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 20:20, 17 November 2019
Line 1:		Line 1:
	[[Image:M47 Dragon.jpg‎ \|thumb\|300px\|right\|M47 Dragon ATGM with SU-36/P daysight and front shock absorber detached- 140mm]]		[[Image:M47 Dragon.jpg‎\|thumb\|300px\|right\|M47 Dragon ATGM with SU-36/P daysight and front shock absorber detached- 140mm]]

	The '''M47 Dragon''' is a crew-served, man-portable wire-guided SACLOS (semi-active command line of sight) missile launcher introduced in 1975 and used by the US military. It was developed under the name '''FGM-77''' by Raytheon and manufactured by Raytheon and McDonnell Douglas, replacing the [[M67 recoilless rifle]]. It was officially withdrawn from service in 2001, by which point it was heavily supplemented by the the [[M136 AT4]], [[M141 SMAW-D]] and [[Mk 153 Mod 0 SMAW]]: it was directly replaced by the [[FGM-148 Javelin]]. The US Army directed Anniston Defense Munitions Center to begin to destroy stockpiles of Dragons in 2006: 7,000 were destroyed over the next two years, and the remaining 5,433 in 2009, with the final batch of 24 blown up in an ADMC demil pit on September 8th.		The '''M47 Dragon''' is a crew-served, man-portable wire-guided SACLOS (semi-active command line of sight) missile launcher introduced in 1975 and used by the US military. It was developed under the name '''FGM-77''' by Raytheon and manufactured by Raytheon and McDonnell Douglas, replacing the [[M67 recoilless rifle]]. It was officially withdrawn from service in 2001, by which point it was heavily supplemented by the the [[M136 AT4]], [[M141 SMAW-D]] and [[Mk 153 Mod 0 SMAW]]: it was directly replaced by the [[FGM-148 Javelin]]. The US Army directed Anniston Defense Munitions Center to begin to destroy stockpiles of Dragons in 2006: 7,000 were destroyed over the next two years, and the remaining 5,433 in 2009, with the final batch of 24 blown up in an ADMC demil pit on September 8th.

Evil Tim at 23:01, 25 March 2019

2019-03-25T23:01:44Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 23:01, 25 March 2019
Line 3:		Line 3:
	The '''M47 Dragon''' is a crew-served, man-portable wire-guided SACLOS (semi-active command line of sight) missile launcher introduced in 1975 and used by the US military. It was developed under the name '''FGM-77''' by Raytheon and manufactured by Raytheon and McDonnell Douglas, replacing the [[M67 recoilless rifle]]. It was officially withdrawn from service in 2001, by which point it was heavily supplemented by the the [[M136 AT4]], [[M141 SMAW-D]] and [[Mk 153 Mod 0 SMAW]]: it was directly replaced by the [[FGM-148 Javelin]]. The US Army directed Anniston Defense Munitions Center to begin to destroy stockpiles of Dragons in 2006: 7,000 were destroyed over the next two years, and the remaining 5,433 in 2009, with the final batch of 24 blown up in an ADMC demil pit on September 8th.		The '''M47 Dragon''' is a crew-served, man-portable wire-guided SACLOS (semi-active command line of sight) missile launcher introduced in 1975 and used by the US military. It was developed under the name '''FGM-77''' by Raytheon and manufactured by Raytheon and McDonnell Douglas, replacing the [[M67 recoilless rifle]]. It was officially withdrawn from service in 2001, by which point it was heavily supplemented by the the [[M136 AT4]], [[M141 SMAW-D]] and [[Mk 153 Mod 0 SMAW]]: it was directly replaced by the [[FGM-148 Javelin]]. The US Army directed Anniston Defense Munitions Center to begin to destroy stockpiles of Dragons in 2006: 7,000 were destroyed over the next two years, and the remaining 5,433 in 2009, with the final batch of 24 blown up in an ADMC demil pit on September 8th.

	The Dragon uses a similar guidance system to other period systems like the [[BGM-71 TOW]], with the sight tracking a thermal beacon on the missile's tail to make course corrections and issuing commands to the missile via wires. It uses a similar soft-launch system with a smaller rocket engine propelling it clear of the launch tube, with a rather strange twist: instead of the missile achieving full flight speed using a main rocket engine and then gliding to the target using wings and steering fins, Dragon's missile lacks control surfaces entirely, with only small stabilising fins at the rear, and has no large second stage engine. It instead features ~~thirty~~ small rocket thrusters along the midsection, angled diagonally towards the rear of the missile, which fire to both keep it in the air and correct its flight path, creating distinctive popping sounds at intervals of half a second to a second as it flies depending on how much it is required to maneuver. For safety, the warhead does not arm until the missile has traveled 65 metres (213 feet): maximum range is 1,000 metres (0.6 miles), increased to 2,000 meters (1.2 miles) on the improved Super Dragon missile in 1990.		The Dragon uses a similar guidance system to other period systems like the [[BGM-71 TOW]], with the sight tracking a thermal beacon on the missile's tail to make course corrections and issuing commands to the missile via wires. It uses a similar soft-launch system with a smaller rocket engine propelling it clear of the launch tube, with a rather strange twist: instead of the missile achieving full flight speed using a main rocket engine and then gliding to the target using wings and steering fins, Dragon's missile lacks control surfaces entirely, with only small stabilising fins at the rear, and has no large second stage engine. It instead features sixty small rocket thrusters along the midsection, angled diagonally towards the rear of the missile, which fire to both keep it in the air and correct its flight path, creating distinctive popping sounds at intervals of half a second to a second as it flies depending on how much it is required to maneuver. For safety, the warhead does not arm until the missile has traveled 65 metres (213 feet): maximum range is 1,000 metres (0.6 miles), increased to 2,000 meters (1.2 miles) on the improved Super Dragon missile in 1990.

	Like its successor the Javelin, the Dragon is a two-part system with a disposable encased missile and a re-usable sighting unit which is attached to the round prior to use. A tripod mount and vehicle mount were also available for a more stable firing platform. The standard missile uses a single-stage HEAT warhead rated as able to penetrate 8 feet of compacted earth, 4 feet of reinforced concrete, or 13 inches of rolled homogeneous steel. The 1985 Dragon II and 1990 Super Dragon improved on this performance, widening the warhead to full caliber and increasing penetration to 24.8 inches on the Super Dragon. The Iranian Saeghe (lightning) surface-to-surface missile system first displayed in 2002 is believed to be a copy of the Super Dragon.		Like its successor the Javelin, the Dragon is a two-part system with a disposable encased missile and a re-usable sighting unit which is attached to the round prior to use. A tripod mount and vehicle mount were also available for a more stable firing platform. The standard missile uses a single-stage HEAT warhead rated as able to penetrate 8 feet of compacted earth, 4 feet of reinforced concrete, or 13 inches of rolled homogeneous steel. The 1985 Dragon II and 1990 Super Dragon improved on this performance, widening the warhead to full caliber and increasing penetration to 24.8 inches on the Super Dragon. The Iranian Saeghe (lightning) surface-to-surface missile system first displayed in 2002 is believed to be a copy of the Super Dragon.

Evil Tim at 11:56, 15 February 2019

2019-02-15T11:56:48Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 11:56, 15 February 2019
Line 3:		Line 3:
	The '''M47 Dragon''' is a crew-served, man-portable wire-guided SACLOS (semi-active command line of sight) missile launcher introduced in 1975 and used by the US military. It was developed under the name '''FGM-77''' by Raytheon and manufactured by Raytheon and McDonnell Douglas, replacing the [[M67 recoilless rifle]]. It was officially withdrawn from service in 2001, by which point it was heavily supplemented by the the [[M136 AT4]], [[M141 SMAW-D]] and [[Mk 153 Mod 0 SMAW]]: it was directly replaced by the [[FGM-148 Javelin]]. The US Army directed Anniston Defense Munitions Center to begin to destroy stockpiles of Dragons in 2006: 7,000 were destroyed over the next two years, and the remaining 5,433 in 2009, with the final batch of 24 blown up in an ADMC demil pit on September 8th.		The '''M47 Dragon''' is a crew-served, man-portable wire-guided SACLOS (semi-active command line of sight) missile launcher introduced in 1975 and used by the US military. It was developed under the name '''FGM-77''' by Raytheon and manufactured by Raytheon and McDonnell Douglas, replacing the [[M67 recoilless rifle]]. It was officially withdrawn from service in 2001, by which point it was heavily supplemented by the the [[M136 AT4]], [[M141 SMAW-D]] and [[Mk 153 Mod 0 SMAW]]: it was directly replaced by the [[FGM-148 Javelin]]. The US Army directed Anniston Defense Munitions Center to begin to destroy stockpiles of Dragons in 2006: 7,000 were destroyed over the next two years, and the remaining 5,433 in 2009, with the final batch of 24 blown up in an ADMC demil pit on September 8th.

	The Dragon uses a similar guidance system to other period systems like the [[BGM-71 TOW]], with the sight tracking a thermal beacon on the missile's tail to make course corrections and issuing commands to the missile via wires. It uses a similar soft-launch system with a smaller rocket engine propelling it clear of the launch tube, with a rather strange twist: instead of the missile achieving full flight speed using a main rocket engine and then gliding to the target using wings and steering fins, Dragon's missile lacks control surfaces entirely, with only small stabilising fins at the rear, and has no large second stage engine. It instead features thirty ~~pairs of~~ small rocket thrusters along the midsection, angled diagonally towards the rear of the missile, which fire to both keep it in the air and correct its flight path, creating distinctive popping sounds at intervals of half a second to a second as it flies depending on how much it is required to maneuver. For safety, the warhead does not arm until the missile has traveled 65 metres (213 feet): maximum range is 1,000 metres (0.6 miles), increased to 2,000 meters (1.2 miles) on the improved Super Dragon missile in 1990.		The Dragon uses a similar guidance system to other period systems like the [[BGM-71 TOW]], with the sight tracking a thermal beacon on the missile's tail to make course corrections and issuing commands to the missile via wires. It uses a similar soft-launch system with a smaller rocket engine propelling it clear of the launch tube, with a rather strange twist: instead of the missile achieving full flight speed using a main rocket engine and then gliding to the target using wings and steering fins, Dragon's missile lacks control surfaces entirely, with only small stabilising fins at the rear, and has no large second stage engine. It instead features thirty small rocket thrusters along the midsection, angled diagonally towards the rear of the missile, which fire to both keep it in the air and correct its flight path, creating distinctive popping sounds at intervals of half a second to a second as it flies depending on how much it is required to maneuver. For safety, the warhead does not arm until the missile has traveled 65 metres (213 feet): maximum range is 1,000 metres (0.6 miles), increased to 2,000 meters (1.2 miles) on the improved Super Dragon missile in 1990.

	Like its successor the Javelin, the Dragon is a two-part system with a disposable encased missile and a re-usable sighting unit which is attached to the round prior to use. A tripod mount and vehicle mount were also available for a more stable firing platform. The standard missile uses a single-stage HEAT warhead rated as able to penetrate 8 feet of compacted earth, 4 feet of reinforced concrete, or 13 inches of rolled homogeneous steel. The 1985 Dragon II and 1990 Super Dragon improved on this performance, widening the warhead to full caliber and increasing penetration to 24.8 inches on the Super Dragon. The Iranian Saeghe (lightning) surface-to-surface missile system first displayed in 2002 is believed to be a copy of the Super Dragon.		Like its successor the Javelin, the Dragon is a two-part system with a disposable encased missile and a re-usable sighting unit which is attached to the round prior to use. A tripod mount and vehicle mount were also available for a more stable firing platform. The standard missile uses a single-stage HEAT warhead rated as able to penetrate 8 feet of compacted earth, 4 feet of reinforced concrete, or 13 inches of rolled homogeneous steel. The 1985 Dragon II and 1990 Super Dragon improved on this performance, widening the warhead to full caliber and increasing penetration to 24.8 inches on the Super Dragon. The Iranian Saeghe (lightning) surface-to-surface missile system first displayed in 2002 is believed to be a copy of the Super Dragon.

Evil Tim: Dragon II+ is the Super Dragon and Dragon III was a never-produced variant from the Marine Dragon PIP

2019-02-15T09:15:53Z

Dragon II+ is the Super Dragon and Dragon III was a never-produced variant from the Marine Dragon PIP

← Older revision		Revision as of 09:15, 15 February 2019
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	The '''M47 Dragon''' is a crew-served, man-portable wire-guided SACLOS (semi-active command line of sight) missile launcher introduced in 1975 and used by the US military. It was developed under the name '''FGM-77''' by Raytheon and manufactured by Raytheon and McDonnell Douglas, replacing the [[M67 recoilless rifle]]. It was officially withdrawn from service in 2001, by which point it was heavily supplemented by the the [[M136 AT4]], [[M141 SMAW-D]] and [[Mk 153 Mod 0 SMAW]]: it was directly replaced by the [[FGM-148 Javelin]]. The US Army directed Anniston Defense Munitions Center to begin to destroy stockpiles of Dragons in 2006: 7,000 were destroyed over the next two years, and the remaining 5,433 in 2009, with the final batch of 24 blown up in an ADMC demil pit on September 8th.		The '''M47 Dragon''' is a crew-served, man-portable wire-guided SACLOS (semi-active command line of sight) missile launcher introduced in 1975 and used by the US military. It was developed under the name '''FGM-77''' by Raytheon and manufactured by Raytheon and McDonnell Douglas, replacing the [[M67 recoilless rifle]]. It was officially withdrawn from service in 2001, by which point it was heavily supplemented by the the [[M136 AT4]], [[M141 SMAW-D]] and [[Mk 153 Mod 0 SMAW]]: it was directly replaced by the [[FGM-148 Javelin]]. The US Army directed Anniston Defense Munitions Center to begin to destroy stockpiles of Dragons in 2006: 7,000 were destroyed over the next two years, and the remaining 5,433 in 2009, with the final batch of 24 blown up in an ADMC demil pit on September 8th.

	The Dragon uses a similar guidance system to other period systems like the [[BGM-71 TOW]], with the sight tracking a thermal beacon on the missile's tail to make course corrections and issuing commands to the missile via wires. It uses a similar soft-launch system with a smaller rocket engine propelling it clear of the launch tube, with a rather strange twist: instead of the missile achieving full flight speed using a main rocket engine and then gliding to the target using wings and steering fins, Dragon's missile lacks control surfaces entirely, with only small stabilising fins at the rear, and has no large second stage engine. It instead features thirty pairs of small rocket thrusters along the midsection, angled diagonally towards the rear of the missile, which fire to both keep it in the air and correct its flight path, creating distinctive popping sounds at intervals of half a second to a second as it flies depending on how much it is required to maneuver. For safety, the warhead does not arm until the missile has traveled 65 metres (213 feet): maximum range is 1,000 metres (0.6 miles), increased to ~~1,500 (0.9 miles) with the Dragon III/Dragon II+ and~~ 2,000 meters (1.2 miles) on the improved Super Dragon missile in 1990.		The Dragon uses a similar guidance system to other period systems like the [[BGM-71 TOW]], with the sight tracking a thermal beacon on the missile's tail to make course corrections and issuing commands to the missile via wires. It uses a similar soft-launch system with a smaller rocket engine propelling it clear of the launch tube, with a rather strange twist: instead of the missile achieving full flight speed using a main rocket engine and then gliding to the target using wings and steering fins, Dragon's missile lacks control surfaces entirely, with only small stabilising fins at the rear, and has no large second stage engine. It instead features thirty pairs of small rocket thrusters along the midsection, angled diagonally towards the rear of the missile, which fire to both keep it in the air and correct its flight path, creating distinctive popping sounds at intervals of half a second to a second as it flies depending on how much it is required to maneuver. For safety, the warhead does not arm until the missile has traveled 65 metres (213 feet): maximum range is 1,000 metres (0.6 miles), increased to 2,000 meters (1.2 miles) on the improved Super Dragon missile in 1990.

	Like its successor the Javelin, the Dragon is a two-part system with a disposable encased missile and a re-usable sighting unit which is attached to the round prior to use. A tripod mount and vehicle mount were also available for a more stable firing platform. The standard missile uses a single-stage HEAT warhead rated as able to penetrate 8 feet of compacted earth, 4 feet of reinforced concrete, or 13 inches of rolled homogeneous steel. The 1985 Dragon II~~/II+, Dragon III~~ and 1990 Super Dragon improved on this performance, widening the warhead to full caliber and increasing penetration to 18 inches on the Super Dragon. The Iranian Saeghe (lightning) surface-to-surface missile system first displayed in 2002 is believed to be a copy of the Super Dragon.		Like its successor the Javelin, the Dragon is a two-part system with a disposable encased missile and a re-usable sighting unit which is attached to the round prior to use. A tripod mount and vehicle mount were also available for a more stable firing platform. The standard missile uses a single-stage HEAT warhead rated as able to penetrate 8 feet of compacted earth, 4 feet of reinforced concrete, or 13 inches of rolled homogeneous steel. The 1985 Dragon II and 1990 Super Dragon improved on this performance, widening the warhead to full caliber and increasing penetration to 24.8 inches on the Super Dragon. The Iranian Saeghe (lightning) surface-to-surface missile system first displayed in 2002 is believed to be a copy of the Super Dragon.

	Being a shoulder-fired SACLOS system, Dragon had the problem that while there was no real recoil on firing, the soldier would suddenly be relieved of the weight of the 20-pound missile, which could throw the sight violently off-target and cause the missile to ground itself: for this reason, Dragon was only supposed to be used with its supporting bipod deployed. It was not a well-liked weapon due to being difficult to use: like TOW, there is a short delay between pulling the trigger and the missile firing during which the user will tend to tense up, which was much more problematic for the shoulder-launched Dragon. Moving the sight too quickly will cause the missile to ground itself, not helped by it being notoriously sensitive to small movements. Dragon also has a fearsome backblast with a "danger zone" almost a hundred feet long to the rear in a 90-degree arc, making it practically impossible to fire in a built-up area or indoors without knocking out most of a building's walls first. It was further not liked due to the requirement for the gunner to remain exposed in a seated position for up to 11.5 seconds while the missile is tracking (after kicking up a huge cloud of smoke to give away their position), a tendency for the control wires to break (largely because unlike most wire-guided missiles, Dragon rolls in flight: necessary to bring the banks of thrusters into position but not at all good for the command wires), frequent thruster failures causing erratic missile behavior, and the regular thruster firing making it impossible to ''not'' tell when one had been launched. A report by the US Army found Dragon's hit rate under combat conditions to be a dismal 20%. Dragon's single-stage HEAT warhead was quickly rendered obsolete by developments in reactive armor, and by the time it was actually employed in full-scale combat in the Gulf War, it was considered a weapon of last resort.		Being a shoulder-fired SACLOS system, Dragon had the problem that while there was no real recoil on firing, the soldier would suddenly be relieved of the weight of the 20-pound missile, which could throw the sight violently off-target and cause the missile to ground itself: for this reason, Dragon was only supposed to be used with its supporting bipod deployed. It was not a well-liked weapon due to being difficult to use: like TOW, there is a short delay between pulling the trigger and the missile firing during which the user will tend to tense up, which was much more problematic for the shoulder-launched Dragon. Moving the sight too quickly will cause the missile to ground itself, not helped by it being notoriously sensitive to small movements. Dragon also has a fearsome backblast with a "danger zone" almost a hundred feet long to the rear in a 90-degree arc, making it practically impossible to fire in a built-up area or indoors without knocking out most of a building's walls first. It was further not liked due to the requirement for the gunner to remain exposed in a seated position for up to 11.5 seconds while the missile is tracking (after kicking up a huge cloud of smoke to give away their position), a tendency for the control wires to break (largely because unlike most wire-guided missiles, Dragon rolls in flight: necessary to bring the banks of thrusters into position but not at all good for the command wires), frequent thruster failures causing erratic missile behavior, and the regular thruster firing making it impossible to ''not'' tell when one had been launched. A report by the US Army found Dragon's hit rate under combat conditions to be a dismal 20%. Dragon's single-stage HEAT warhead was quickly rendered obsolete by developments in reactive armor, and by the time it was actually employed in full-scale combat in the Gulf War, it was considered a weapon of last resort.

Evil Tim at 21:06, 13 February 2019

2019-02-13T21:06:56Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 21:06, 13 February 2019
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	[[Image:M47 Dragon.jpg‎ \|thumb\|300px\|right\|M47 Dragon ATGM with SU-36/P daysight and front shock absorber detached- 140mm]]		[[Image:M47 Dragon.jpg‎ \|thumb\|300px\|right\|M47 Dragon ATGM with SU-36/P daysight and front shock absorber detached- 140mm]]

	The '''M47 Dragon''' is a crew-served, man-portable wire-guided SACLOS (semi-active command line of sight) missile launcher introduced in 1975 and used by the US military. It was officially withdrawn from service in 2001, by which point it was heavily supplemented by the the [[M136 AT4]], [[M141 SMAW-D]] and [[Mk 153 Mod 0 SMAW]]: it was directly replaced by the [[FGM-148 Javelin]]. The US Army directed Anniston Defense Munitions Center to begin to destroy stockpiles of Dragons in 2006: 7,000 were destroyed over the next two years, and the remaining 5,433 in 2009, with the final batch of 24 blown up in an ADMC demil pit on September 8th~~. It was developed under the name '''FGM-77''' by Raytheon and manufactured by Raytheon and McDonnell Douglas, replacing the [[M67 recoilless rifle]]~~.		The '''M47 Dragon''' is a crew-served, man-portable wire-guided SACLOS (semi-active command line of sight) missile launcher introduced in 1975 and used by the US military. It was developed under the name '''FGM-77''' by Raytheon and manufactured by Raytheon and McDonnell Douglas, replacing the [[M67 recoilless rifle]]. It was officially withdrawn from service in 2001, by which point it was heavily supplemented by the the [[M136 AT4]], [[M141 SMAW-D]] and [[Mk 153 Mod 0 SMAW]]: it was directly replaced by the [[FGM-148 Javelin]]. The US Army directed Anniston Defense Munitions Center to begin to destroy stockpiles of Dragons in 2006: 7,000 were destroyed over the next two years, and the remaining 5,433 in 2009, with the final batch of 24 blown up in an ADMC demil pit on September 8th.

	The Dragon uses a similar guidance system to other period systems like the [[BGM-71 TOW]], with the sight tracking a thermal beacon on the missile's tail to make course corrections and issuing commands to the missile via wires. It uses a similar soft-launch system with a smaller rocket engine propelling it clear of the launch tube, with a rather strange twist: instead of the missile achieving full flight speed using a main rocket engine and then gliding to the target using wings and steering fins, Dragon's missile lacks control surfaces entirely, with only small stabilising fins at the rear, and has no large second stage engine. It instead features thirty pairs of small rocket thrusters along the midsection, angled diagonally towards the rear of the missile, which fire to both keep it in the air and correct its flight path, creating distinctive popping sounds at intervals of half a second to a second as it flies depending on how much it is required to maneuver. For safety, the warhead does not arm until the missile has traveled 65 metres (213 feet): maximum range is 1,000 metres (0.6 miles), increased to 1,500 (0.9 miles) with the Dragon III/Dragon II+ and 2,000 meters (1.2 miles) on the improved Super Dragon missile in 1990.		The Dragon uses a similar guidance system to other period systems like the [[BGM-71 TOW]], with the sight tracking a thermal beacon on the missile's tail to make course corrections and issuing commands to the missile via wires. It uses a similar soft-launch system with a smaller rocket engine propelling it clear of the launch tube, with a rather strange twist: instead of the missile achieving full flight speed using a main rocket engine and then gliding to the target using wings and steering fins, Dragon's missile lacks control surfaces entirely, with only small stabilising fins at the rear, and has no large second stage engine. It instead features thirty pairs of small rocket thrusters along the midsection, angled diagonally towards the rear of the missile, which fire to both keep it in the air and correct its flight path, creating distinctive popping sounds at intervals of half a second to a second as it flies depending on how much it is required to maneuver. For safety, the warhead does not arm until the missile has traveled 65 metres (213 feet): maximum range is 1,000 metres (0.6 miles), increased to 1,500 (0.9 miles) with the Dragon III/Dragon II+ and 2,000 meters (1.2 miles) on the improved Super Dragon missile in 1990.

Evil Tim at 21:06, 13 February 2019

2019-02-13T21:06:24Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 21:06, 13 February 2019
Line 1:		Line 1:
	[[Image:M47 Dragon.jpg‎ \|thumb\|300px\|right\|M47 Dragon ATGM with SU-36/P daysight and front shock absorber detached- 140mm]]		[[Image:M47 Dragon.jpg‎ \|thumb\|300px\|right\|M47 Dragon ATGM with SU-36/P daysight and front shock absorber detached- 140mm]]

	The '''M47 Dragon''' is a crew-served, man-portable wire-guided SACLOS (semi-active command line of sight) missile launcher introduced in 1975 and used by the US military. ~~While many remain in US Army and USMC stockpiles, it~~ was officially withdrawn from service in 2001, by which point it was heavily supplemented by the the [[M136 AT4]], [[M141 SMAW-D]] and [[Mk 153 Mod 0 SMAW]]: it was directly replaced by the [[FGM-148 Javelin]]. It was developed under the name '''FGM-77''' by Raytheon and manufactured by Raytheon and McDonnell Douglas, replacing the [[M67 recoilless rifle]].		The '''M47 Dragon''' is a crew-served, man-portable wire-guided SACLOS (semi-active command line of sight) missile launcher introduced in 1975 and used by the US military. It was officially withdrawn from service in 2001, by which point it was heavily supplemented by the the [[M136 AT4]], [[M141 SMAW-D]] and [[Mk 153 Mod 0 SMAW]]: it was directly replaced by the [[FGM-148 Javelin]]. The US Army directed Anniston Defense Munitions Center to begin to destroy stockpiles of Dragons in 2006: 7,000 were destroyed over the next two years, and the remaining 5,433 in 2009, with the final batch of 24 blown up in an ADMC demil pit on September 8th. It was developed under the name '''FGM-77''' by Raytheon and manufactured by Raytheon and McDonnell Douglas, replacing the [[M67 recoilless rifle]].

	The Dragon uses a similar guidance system to other period systems like the [[BGM-71 TOW]], with the sight tracking a thermal beacon on the missile's tail to make course corrections and issuing commands to the missile via wires. It uses a similar soft-launch system with a smaller rocket engine propelling it clear of the launch tube, with a rather strange twist: instead of the missile achieving full flight speed using a main rocket engine and then gliding to the target using wings and steering fins, Dragon's missile lacks control surfaces entirely, with only small stabilising fins at the rear, and has no large second stage engine. It instead features thirty pairs of small rocket thrusters along the midsection, angled diagonally towards the rear of the missile, which fire to both keep it in the air and correct its flight path, creating distinctive popping sounds at intervals of half a second to a second as it flies depending on how much it is required to maneuver. For safety, the warhead does not arm until the missile has traveled 65 metres (213 feet): maximum range is 1,000 metres (0.6 miles), increased to 1,500 (0.9 miles) with the Dragon III/Dragon II+ and 2,000 meters (1.2 miles) on the improved Super Dragon missile in 1990.		The Dragon uses a similar guidance system to other period systems like the [[BGM-71 TOW]], with the sight tracking a thermal beacon on the missile's tail to make course corrections and issuing commands to the missile via wires. It uses a similar soft-launch system with a smaller rocket engine propelling it clear of the launch tube, with a rather strange twist: instead of the missile achieving full flight speed using a main rocket engine and then gliding to the target using wings and steering fins, Dragon's missile lacks control surfaces entirely, with only small stabilising fins at the rear, and has no large second stage engine. It instead features thirty pairs of small rocket thrusters along the midsection, angled diagonally towards the rear of the missile, which fire to both keep it in the air and correct its flight path, creating distinctive popping sounds at intervals of half a second to a second as it flies depending on how much it is required to maneuver. For safety, the warhead does not arm until the missile has traveled 65 metres (213 feet): maximum range is 1,000 metres (0.6 miles), increased to 1,500 (0.9 miles) with the Dragon III/Dragon II+ and 2,000 meters (1.2 miles) on the improved Super Dragon missile in 1990.

Evil Tim: Those figures strike me as...wrong. I find it hard to believe basic Dragon has the same armour penetration as the lowball figure for Javelin

2019-02-12T05:02:21Z

Those figures strike me as...wrong. I find it hard to believe basic Dragon has the same armour penetration as the lowball figure for Javelin

← Older revision		Revision as of 05:02, 12 February 2019
Line 5:		Line 5:
	The Dragon uses a similar guidance system to other period systems like the [[BGM-71 TOW]], with the sight tracking a thermal beacon on the missile's tail to make course corrections and issuing commands to the missile via wires. It uses a similar soft-launch system with a smaller rocket engine propelling it clear of the launch tube, with a rather strange twist: instead of the missile achieving full flight speed using a main rocket engine and then gliding to the target using wings and steering fins, Dragon's missile lacks control surfaces entirely, with only small stabilising fins at the rear, and has no large second stage engine. It instead features thirty pairs of small rocket thrusters along the midsection, angled diagonally towards the rear of the missile, which fire to both keep it in the air and correct its flight path, creating distinctive popping sounds at intervals of half a second to a second as it flies depending on how much it is required to maneuver. For safety, the warhead does not arm until the missile has traveled 65 metres (213 feet): maximum range is 1,000 metres (0.6 miles), increased to 1,500 (0.9 miles) with the Dragon III/Dragon II+ and 2,000 meters (1.2 miles) on the improved Super Dragon missile in 1990.		The Dragon uses a similar guidance system to other period systems like the [[BGM-71 TOW]], with the sight tracking a thermal beacon on the missile's tail to make course corrections and issuing commands to the missile via wires. It uses a similar soft-launch system with a smaller rocket engine propelling it clear of the launch tube, with a rather strange twist: instead of the missile achieving full flight speed using a main rocket engine and then gliding to the target using wings and steering fins, Dragon's missile lacks control surfaces entirely, with only small stabilising fins at the rear, and has no large second stage engine. It instead features thirty pairs of small rocket thrusters along the midsection, angled diagonally towards the rear of the missile, which fire to both keep it in the air and correct its flight path, creating distinctive popping sounds at intervals of half a second to a second as it flies depending on how much it is required to maneuver. For safety, the warhead does not arm until the missile has traveled 65 metres (213 feet): maximum range is 1,000 metres (0.6 miles), increased to 1,500 (0.9 miles) with the Dragon III/Dragon II+ and 2,000 meters (1.2 miles) on the improved Super Dragon missile in 1990.

	Like its successor the Javelin, the Dragon is a two-part system with a disposable encased missile and a re-usable sighting unit which is attached to the round prior to use. A tripod mount and vehicle mount were also available for a more stable firing platform. The standard missile uses a single-stage HEAT warhead rated as able to penetrate 8 feet of compacted earth, 4 feet of reinforced concrete, or ~~500mm (19.7~~ inches) of rolled homogeneous steel. The 1985 Dragon II/II+, Dragon III and 1990 Super Dragon improved on this performance, widening the warhead to full caliber and increasing penetration to ~~890mm on the Dragon II/II+/III and 950mm~~ on the Super Dragon~~, which may have featured a standoff probe to counter explosive reactive armor~~. The Iranian Saeghe (lightning) surface-to-surface missile system first displayed in 2002 is believed to be a copy of the Super Dragon.		Like its successor the Javelin, the Dragon is a two-part system with a disposable encased missile and a re-usable sighting unit which is attached to the round prior to use. A tripod mount and vehicle mount were also available for a more stable firing platform. The standard missile uses a single-stage HEAT warhead rated as able to penetrate 8 feet of compacted earth, 4 feet of reinforced concrete, or 13 inches of rolled homogeneous steel. The 1985 Dragon II/II+, Dragon III and 1990 Super Dragon improved on this performance, widening the warhead to full caliber and increasing penetration to 18 inches on the Super Dragon. The Iranian Saeghe (lightning) surface-to-surface missile system first displayed in 2002 is believed to be a copy of the Super Dragon.

	Being a shoulder-fired SACLOS system, Dragon had the problem that while there was no real recoil on firing, the soldier would suddenly be relieved of the weight of the 20-pound missile, which could throw the sight violently off-target and cause the missile to ground itself: for this reason, Dragon was only supposed to be used with its supporting bipod deployed. It was not a well-liked weapon due to being difficult to use: like TOW, there is a short delay between pulling the trigger and the missile firing during which the user will tend to tense up, which was much more problematic for the shoulder-launched Dragon. Moving the sight too quickly will cause the missile to ground itself, not helped by it being notoriously sensitive to small movements. Dragon also has a fearsome backblast with a "danger zone" almost a hundred feet long to the rear in a 90-degree arc, making it practically impossible to fire in a built-up area or indoors without knocking out most of a building's walls first. It was further not liked due to the requirement for the gunner to remain exposed in a seated position for up to 11.5 seconds while the missile is tracking (after kicking up a huge cloud of smoke to give away their position), a tendency for the control wires to break (largely because unlike most wire-guided missiles, Dragon rolls in flight: necessary to bring the banks of thrusters into position but not at all good for the command wires), frequent thruster failures causing erratic missile behavior, and the regular thruster firing making it impossible to ''not'' tell when one had been launched. A report by the US Army found Dragon's hit rate under combat conditions to be a dismal 20%. Dragon's single-stage HEAT warhead was quickly rendered obsolete by developments in reactive armor, and by the time it was actually employed in full-scale combat in the Gulf War, it was considered a weapon of last resort.		Being a shoulder-fired SACLOS system, Dragon had the problem that while there was no real recoil on firing, the soldier would suddenly be relieved of the weight of the 20-pound missile, which could throw the sight violently off-target and cause the missile to ground itself: for this reason, Dragon was only supposed to be used with its supporting bipod deployed. It was not a well-liked weapon due to being difficult to use: like TOW, there is a short delay between pulling the trigger and the missile firing during which the user will tend to tense up, which was much more problematic for the shoulder-launched Dragon. Moving the sight too quickly will cause the missile to ground itself, not helped by it being notoriously sensitive to small movements. Dragon also has a fearsome backblast with a "danger zone" almost a hundred feet long to the rear in a 90-degree arc, making it practically impossible to fire in a built-up area or indoors without knocking out most of a building's walls first. It was further not liked due to the requirement for the gunner to remain exposed in a seated position for up to 11.5 seconds while the missile is tracking (after kicking up a huge cloud of smoke to give away their position), a tendency for the control wires to break (largely because unlike most wire-guided missiles, Dragon rolls in flight: necessary to bring the banks of thrusters into position but not at all good for the command wires), frequent thruster failures causing erratic missile behavior, and the regular thruster firing making it impossible to ''not'' tell when one had been launched. A report by the US Army found Dragon's hit rate under combat conditions to be a dismal 20%. Dragon's single-stage HEAT warhead was quickly rendered obsolete by developments in reactive armor, and by the time it was actually employed in full-scale combat in the Gulf War, it was considered a weapon of last resort.