T148E1 grenade launcher
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The T148E1 Grenade Launcher is an American semi-automatic grenade launcher manufactured by
Springfield Armory The Springfield Armory, more formally known as the United States Armory and Arsenal at Springfield located in the city of Springfield, Massachusetts, was the primary center for the manufacture of United States military firearms from 1777 until ...
, being the first in the T148 (sometimes written "T-148") launcher family. It fires 40mm grenades from a three-round magazine in a harmonica gun type configuration. The weapon was tested during the early part of the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...
, though never officially used in combat. The already deployed Springfield Armory M79 which the design was based on was relatively new for grenadiers, although the M79 left a pause of "out of combat" to its operators due to the need to reload after each firing, which could endanger the user briefly during a firefight situation. The T148E1 was designed experimentally in an attempt to create a launcher that would solve this issue. With few produced and the design program prematurely ending the manufacturing by termination of the project(s) in 1960, the weapon was ultimately rejected for adoption due to being prone to jamming,Rottman, Gordon L. ''The Book of Gun Trivia: Essential Firepower Facts'' Osprey Publishing, 20 Oct 2013 a result of the vulnerability to dirt and poor conditions with its chambering method, which deemed it unreliable. Currently, at least four of the launchers are on record of being in the Springfield Armory Museum's collection in Springfield, Massachusetts.


References


External links


T148E2 Training Manual
Grenade launchers of the United States {{Firearms-stub