The RPO-A Shmel ( rus, реактивный пехотный огнемёт-А Шмель (РПО-А Шмель), Rocket-propelled Infantry Flamethrower-A
Bumblebee
A bumblebee (or bumble bee, bumble-bee, or humble-bee) is any of over 250 species in the genus ''Bombus'', part of Apidae, one of the bee families. This genus is the only extant group in the tribe Bombini, though a few extinct related gener ...
) is a man-portable disposable rocket-assisted
Flamethrower
A flamethrower is a ranged incendiary device designed to project a controllable jet of fire. First deployed by the Byzantine Empire in the 7th century AD, flamethrowers saw use in modern times during World War I, and more widely in World ...
,
It is classified as a
thermobaric
A thermobaric weapon, also called an aerosol bomb, a vacuum bomb or a fuel air explosive (FAE), is a type of explosive that uses oxygen from the surrounding air to generate a high-temperature explosion. The fuel–air explosive is one of the be ...
warhead rocket launcher by some in the West.
The ''Shmel'' is designed, produced and exported by the
Russian Federation
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
and previously by the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
. It entered service with the
Soviet Armed Forces
The Soviet Armed Forces, the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union and as the Red Army (, Вооружённые Силы Советского Союза), were the armed forces of the Russian SFSR (1917–1922), the Soviet Union (1922–1991), and th ...
at the end of the 1980s as the successor for the
RPO Rys.
Description
The RPO-A is a single-shot, self-contained tube shaped launcher that operates much like the
LAW anti-tank launcher, a sealed tube, carried in a man-pack in pairs. The same person can remove the tube, place it in firing position, and launch the weapon without assistance. After launch, the tube is discarded. All models are externally similar.
Designed to defeat concealed enemy firing positions, disable lightly armored vehicles and destroy enemy manpower. The aiming range of a flamethrower with a diopter sight is 600 meters, with an OPO optical sight - 450 m, OPO-1 - up to 850 m.
Ammunition
Each weapon contains a single rocket, of which there are three varieties. The basic rocket is the RPO-A, which has a
thermobaric
A thermobaric weapon, also called an aerosol bomb, a vacuum bomb or a fuel air explosive (FAE), is a type of explosive that uses oxygen from the surrounding air to generate a high-temperature explosion. The fuel–air explosive is one of the be ...
warhead and is designed for attacking soft targets under moderate cover. The RPO-Z is the
incendiary warhead (
Rus. зажигательный / ''Zazhigatel'nyy'', Incendiary) designed to spread fire and ignite targets. There is a smoke-producing warhead (
Rus. дымовой / ''Dymovoy'', Smoke) offered, the RPO-D.
Variants
![RPO PDM-A Shmel-M](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/88/RPO_PDM-A_Shmel-M.jpg)
An updated development is the improved RPO-M "Shmel-M" that was shown for the first time at
Eurosatory 2006. This version is similar to the original weapon, but has a calibre of 90 mm, a weight of , and an overall length of 940 mm. The system has better ergonomics, an improved rocket, and better ballistics and terminal effects. It consists of a disposable launching tube attached to a reusable fire control unit that includes the pistol grip, electronic trigger and safety, and a folding base with an optical sight and additional rail for an infrared/
night vision sight
A night-vision device (NVD), also known as a night optical/observation device (NOD), night-vision goggle (NVG), is an optoelectronic device that allows visualization of images in low levels of light, improving the user's night vision. The dev ...
. Effective range is 300 m, maximum sighting range is 800 m, and maximum range is 1,700 m. The thermobaric warhead's blast effect is equivalent to of
TNT, comparable to a 155 mm artillery shell. The "Shmel-M" is also known as RPO PDM-A (
Rus. Повышенной Дальности и Мощности / ''Povyshennoy Dal'nosti i Moshchnosti'' — "enhanced range and power") and is produced for the local and export markets. A version with a mechanical sight was adopted on 24 December 2003.
The
MRO-A is a smaller development of the RPO-series with caliber reduced to 72.5 mm, similar to the
RShG-2
The RPG-26 ''Aglen'' is a disposable anti-tank rocket launcher developed by the Soviet Union. It fires a single-stage rocket with jack-knife fins, which unfold after launch. The rocket carries a diameter high explosive anti-tank single shaped ...
. It is self-contained, disposable, single-shot recoilless launcher with an overall length of 900 mm, weight of , and has a folding forward grip. The sights are RPO-based, with a fixed front and folding ladder-type
diopter rear, giving an effective range of 90 m and maximum range of 450 m. The MRO-series includes different versions, again based on RPO versions: MRO-A thermobaric; MRO-D
white phosphorus
Elemental phosphorus can exist in several allotropes, the most common of which are white and red solids. Solid violet and black allotropes are also known. Gaseous phosphorus exists as diphosphorus and atomic phosphorus.
White phosphorus
White ...
smoke; and MRO-Z incendiary. It was adopted by the Russian army around 2002 and issued to chemical troops to supplement the larger RPO-A.
MGK ''Bur'' (
Rus. Малогабаритный Гранатомётный Комплекс "Бур" / ''Malogabaritnyy Granatomotnyy Kompleks "Bur"'' — Compact Grenade-launching System
"Auger") is a 62 mm version of the RPO-M consisting of two major components: the disposable launch tube and reusable fire control unit. Described as "the most compact grenade launcher in the world," the weapon has an overall length of 742 mm and weighs . Loaded tubes weigh and can fire thermobaric (blast yield similar to of TNT, or a 122 mm artillery rocket) or fragmentation warheads. The fire control unit is the same one used on the RPO-M, weighing and enabling ranges of 25–650 m with the baseline day sight; night and thermal systems are also available. Maximum range is 950 meters, with a firing mechanism service life of at least 500 rounds. It can be fired in confined spaces with a volume of at least 30 cubic meters. As of October 2014, it has been accepted into service and serial production has been started.
Service history
RPO weapons have seen use by the Soviet Army in
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
and by both the Russian invasion forces and Chechen resistance forces in the
First
First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1).
First or 1st may also refer to:
*World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement
Arts and media Music
* 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...
and
Second
The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds ...
Chechen Wars. On September 3, 2005, Russian forces used RPO-A Shmel as part of the effort to end the
Beslan school siege. On 9 August 2014, during the
War in Donbas, the Ukrainian border checkpoint of Milove was attacked using RPO flamethrowers. The main building was hit by five incendiary rockets. It was used by Indian Army in September 2016 for surgical strike against insurgents in Pakistan's part of Kashmir successfully. It was also used on 8 February 2017 in Ukraine, killing DPR commander
Mikhail "Givi" Tolstykh. The munition has seen wide use by the Russian Federation in its 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Operators
Current operators
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Donetsk People's Republic
The Donetsk People's Republic ( rus, Донецкая Народная Республика, Donetskaya Narodnaya Respublika, dɐˈnʲetskəjə nɐˈrodnəjə rʲɪˈspublʲɪkə; abbreviated as DPR or DNR, rus, ДНР) is a Territorial ...
(
recognition disputed internationally)
*
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* The PDM-A Priz is replacing the RPO-A Shmel flamethrower
* Produced under license in the name PF97
*
:*
Cobra militia received several RPO-A in September 1997
*
*
Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda
The Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (french: Forces démocratiques de libération du Rwanda, FDLR) is an armed rebel group active in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. As an ethnic Hutu group opposed to the ethnic Tuts ...
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Former operators
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See also
*
FHJ 84
The FHJ-84 () is an over/under twin-barreled 62 mm incendiary rocket launcher developed by Norinco for the People's Liberation Army. Type 84 features two tubes that can be loaded with 62mm incendiary and smoke rockets. The FHJ-84 is China's a ...
— an over/under two-shot variant from China
*
M202A1 FLASH
The M202 FLASH ("Flame Assault Shoulder") is an American rocket launcher manufactured by Northrop Corporation, designed to replace the World War II–vintage flamethrowers (such as the M1 and the M2) that remained the military's standard incendi ...
— a similar weapon developed by the
US Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
*
List of Russian weaponry
The following is a list of modern Russian small arms and light weapons which were in service in 2016:
Handguns
Revolvers
Pistols
Special purpose
Submachine guns
Special purpose
Shotguns
Rifles
Bolt-action
Semi-a ...
*
Russian NBC Protection Troops __NOTOC__
The Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Protection Troops of the Russian Armed Forces (russian: Войска радиационной, химической и биологической защиты Вооружённых сил Росси ...
— main user.
References
External links
RPO-A Shmel - Military-Today
{{Russian RPG series
Weapons of Russia
Rocket-propelled grenade launchers
Modern thermobaric weapons of Russia
Modern incendiary weapons of Russia
Cold War weapons of the Soviet Union
KBP Instrument Design Bureau products
Flamethrowers of the Soviet Union
Military equipment introduced in the 1980s