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RPG-2
The RPG-2 (Russian: РПГ-2, Ручной противотанковый гранатомёт, Ruchnoy Protivotankovy Granatomyot; English: "manually operated antitank grenade launcher") is a Soviet shoulder-fired rocket launcher, the forerunner to the ubiquitous RPG-7. It is the successor to the earlier, unsuccessful RPG-1. Introduced in 1954, it, like the RPG-1, is based on Soviet studies of the German Panzerfaust and American Bazooka rocket launchers. While light and compact enough to be comfortably used by a single person, in practice, at least two people were needed to operate the weapon at maximum effectiveness.
Its low cost and simplicity lead to the RPG-2 being widely produced by the Soviet Union and exported, with other nations producing licensed copies of the launcher. Copies have been produced in China under the designation Type 56, (not to be confused with the Norinco Type 56 Carbine, Norinco Type 56 assault rifle, or the Norinco Type 56 light machine gun), Vietnam as the B40 and B50, Somalia, Yugoslavia as the M57, and Czechoslovakia as the P-27. The RPG-2 was extensively used against US forces during the Vietnam War and saw use throughout Cold War conflicts like the Nigerian Civil War, Rhodesian Bush War, Portuguese Colonial War, Salvadoran Civil War, Lebanese Civil War, and Somali Civil War. The launcher was produced until 1960, when concerns over short effective range and poor accuracy led to the introduction of the RPG-7 in 1961. Despite the RPG-7 being the launcher arguably most associated with modern warfare, the RPG-2 continues to see service, with recorded use as recently as the Syrian Civil War, Iraqi Civil War of 2014-2017, and Battle of Marawi.
Specifications
(1954 - Present)
- Type: Rocket Launcher
- Caliber: 40mm barrel, 82mm warhead
- Weight: 6.2 lbs (2.8 kg) (unloaded), 10.3 lbs (4.7 kg) (ready to fire)
- Length: 25.6 in (65 cm)
The RPG-2 and variants can be seen in the following films, television series, video games, and anime used by the following actors:
Film
| Title | Actor | Character | Note | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Raiders of the Lost Ark | Harrison Ford | Indiana Jones | modified as a German anti-tank weapon | 1981 |
| The Killing Fields | Khmer Rouge soldiers | 1984 | ||
| The Park is Mine | Peter Langley | Oscar Verdanken | With custom cloth strip camouflage and fake PG-7V rocket | 1985 |
| Platoon | NVA soldier | 1986 | ||
| Forrest Gump | NVA soldiers | 1994 | ||
| The Pest | Edoardo Ballerini | Himmel Shank | With fake PG-7V rocket | 1997 |
| We Were Soldiers | NVA soldier | 2002 | ||
| Battle Royale II: Requiem | Wild Seven member | 2003 | ||
| Danger Close: The Battle of Long Tan | Vietcong soldier | 2019 |
Television
| Show Title / Episode | Actor | Character | Note | Air Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Professionals | . | Terrorists | . | 1977-1981 |
| Ultimate Weapons / Firepower | archive footage | 2010 |
Video Games
| Game Title | Referred as | Mods | Notation | Release Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Battlefield: Vietnam | 2004 | |||
| Conflict: Vietnam | 2004 | |||
| The Stalin Subway | Anachronistic. | 2005 | ||
| Shellshock 2: Blood Trails | 2009 | |||
| Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker | 2010 | |||
| Karma Online | 2011 |