The SIMON is an Israeli bullet-trap
rifle grenade
A rifle grenade is a grenade that uses a rifle-based launcher to permit a longer effective range than would be possible if the grenade were thrown by hand.
The practice of projecting grenades with rifle-mounted launchers was first widely used dur ...
designed to
breach through doors, developed by
Rafael Advanced Defense Systems
Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd. ( he, רפאל - מערכות לחימה מתקדמות בע"מ, formerly Rafael Armament Development Authority), ("Rafael" from Hebrew acronym of "Authority for the Development of Armaments" - ) is an Israel ...
. It is intended for use with
5.56 mm rifle
A rifle is a long-barreled firearm designed for accurate shooting, with a barrel that has a helical pattern of grooves ( rifling) cut into the bore wall. In keeping with their focus on accuracy, rifles are typically designed to be held with ...
s such as the
M4 carbine
The M4 carbine (officially Carbine, Caliber 5.56 mm, M4) is a 5.56×45mm NATO, gas-operated, magazine-fed carbine developed in the United States during the 1980s. It is a shortened version of the M16A2 assault rifle.
The M4 is extensively ...
.
Overview
The system consists of a bullet-trap tail section which slides over the
muzzle of the rifle, an
explosive midsection and a front standoff rod. The grenade is propelled by a normal
ball or
tracer round to a maximum range of thirty meters and is
detonated
Detonation () is a type of combustion involving a supersonic exothermic front accelerating through a medium that eventually drives a shock front propagating directly in front of it. Detonations propagate supersonically through shock waves with ...
by the
impact
Impact may refer to:
* Impact (mechanics), a high force or shock (mechanics) over a short time period
* Impact, Texas, a town in Taylor County, Texas, US
Science and technology
* Impact crater, a meteor crater caused by an impact event
* Impac ...
of the standoff rod against the door to be breached, the standoff distance allowing the
blast wave
In fluid dynamics, a blast wave is the increased pressure and flow resulting from the deposition of a large amount of energy in a small, very localised volume. The flow field can be approximated as a lead shock wave, followed by a self-similar sub ...
to affect as much of the door surface as possible, negating any need to aim for hinges or locks.
A version which is manually attached to the door is also available, known as "static SIMON".
Specifications
* Weight: 640 g (including standoff rod)
* Length:
** Standoff rod: 400 mm
** Overall: 730 mm
* Warhead diameter: 100 mm
* Explosive fill:
** SIMON 150: 150 g
** SIMON 120: 120 g
* Range: 15 – 30 meters
Operators
Current operators
*
* - A variant of the SIMON 120 is in service with the
U.S. 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, cl ...
as the M100 Grenade Rifle Entry Munition (GREM). Changes from the original specification involved fuzing and reliability issues. An inert round, the M101 GREM-Target Practice (GREM-TP) allows training for
accuracy
Accuracy and precision are two measures of ''observational error''.
''Accuracy'' is how close a given set of measurements ( observations or readings) are to their ''true value'', while ''precision'' is how close the measurements are to each oth ...
without the explosive hazard. The system was given a U.S. Army award as one of the top ten best inventions of 2005.
* - Used by the Belgian Federal Police Special Units supported by the French GIGN during an anti-terrorism raid in Verviers (Belgium) in 2015.
References
External links
Strategy Page articleM100 Grenade Rifle Entry Munition(GREM)
Soldier Armed - M100 Grenade Rifle Entry Munition*
Future Weapons
''Future Weapons'', sometimes also written as ''FutureWeapons'' and ''Futureweapons'', is a television series that premiered on April 19, 2006, on the Discovery Channel. Host Richard "Mack" Machowicz, a former Navy SEAL, reviews and demonstrates ...
br>
video
{{Rafael Advanced Defense Systems
Rifle grenades
Weapons of Israel
Rafael Advanced Defense Systems
Military equipment introduced in the 2000s