M79 - Weapon Library

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M79
Also called the

	Available Images
	Technical Data

	Manufacturer	-
	Country Of Origin	United States
	Date Of Introduction	1961
	Caliber	40 mm
	Feed System	Breech loaded
	Rate Of Fire	5 - 7 rounds per minute
	Weights	3 kg
	Length	737 mm

More Information ^*

In 1961, the first M79 grenade launchers were delivered to the US Army. They were designed as a close support weapon for the infantry in order to bridge the gap in range between hand-thrown grenades and mortars (between 50 and 300 meters). This unique ability gave the squad a very lethal integral indirect fire weapon.

The M79 was a product of the failure of Project NIBLICK to create an envisioned multi-shot 40 mm system, for which the cartridge had originally been designed. In many respects a crude system, the M79 never the less provided an excellent force multiplier until the arrival of the first generation of underbarrel grenade launchers (UGLs), the XM148 and the XM203.

These weapons were developed because the M79's greatest drawback proved to be its single-shot only capability. This left the user totally unable to keep up a constant volume of fire during a firefight, and often grenadiers were only equipped with a pistol as a backup, if even that.

Short in length and fairly light in weight, the M79 proved extremely useful in the confining jungles of Vietnam. The M79 has seen notable limited use during Operation Iraqi Freedom, such as for clearing IEDs.

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