Manual infantry flamethrower "Bumblebee. Flamethrower "Bumblebee" and its modifications Reactive infantry flamethrowers rpo a bumblebee

Rocket infantry flamethrower "Bumblebee" (RPO-A)

Since the 1980s, rocket-propelled flamethrowers have become one of the varieties of hand-held recoilless weapons (essentially disposable multi-purpose grenade launchers). They inherited their name from jet flamethrowers used during the years of the first and second world wars. As you know, this type of wearable weapon, due to the short range of throwing fire mixture and its significant losses on the trajectory, has practically ceased to exist.

The creation in the 1980s of new explosives with a significant high-explosive and thermal effect made it possible to create a hand-held recoilless weapon with multi-factor destructive ammunition. The first example of such a weapon in the USSR was the rocket-propelled infantry flamethrower RPO "Lynx". Subsequently, to replace him in the Instrument Design Bureau (KBG, Tula), a disposable flamethrower RPO "Shmel" was developed.

The Shmel flamethrower is used to increase the combat capabilities of ground forces units. It is designed to destroy live targets and fire weapons located in various protective structures, destroy fortifications, destroy vehicles and lightly armored vehicles, as well as create fires and smoke zones. The flamethrower is made with three variants of warheads: RPO-A - thermobaric, RPO-3 - incendiary and RPO-D - smoke. "Bumblebee" has high combat properties, is simple in design and reliable in operation.

In a disposable launcher (it also acts as a sealed container during storage and transportation), a capsule is placed in the warhead of the corresponding equipment and a powder engine. The launcher is made of fiberglass. It has a firing mechanism with a fuse and a mechanical sighting device, consisting of a front sight and a folding diopter sight adjustable in range. It is possible to equip the flamethrower with an optical sight. The RPO wearable set includes two equipped launchers, connected in a pack for carrying behind the back, with a total weight of 24 kg.

After departure from the launcher, the warhead flies by inertia. Stabilization of the flight of the warhead is provided by the stabilizer blades. The original scheme of the shot provides a minimum spread of initial velocities and high accuracy of fire. This provides a high probability of hitting an infantry fighting vehicle type target at a distance of 400 m. The flamethrower is fired from the shoulder. It is possible to use a flamethrower from rooms with a volume of more than 60 m3 in the presence of obstacles behind the weapon.

The RPO-A 93mm rocket-propelled infantry flamethrower is an individual flamethrower weapon. It is designed to destroy enemy manpower located openly or located in long-term firing and other fortifications, as well as his military equipment and other objects.

Characteristics of the 93-mm rocket-propelled infantry flamethrower RPO-A (Bumblebee)

Maximum firing range - 1200 m

Sighting range - 600 m

Combat rate of fire 2 rounds per minute.

The initial flight speed of the ammunition - 130 m per second

Combat weight - 11 kg

Caliber - 93 mm

Flamethrower length - 920 mm

Application temperature from -50 to + 50 degrees

The given zone of destruction of an openly located manpower is 50 square meters.

Purpose of the 93-mm rocket-propelled infantry flamethrower RPO-A (Bumblebee)

The RPO-A 93mm rocket-propelled infantry flamethrower is an individual flamethrower weapon. It is designed to destroy enemy manpower located openly or located in long-term firing and other fortifications, as well as his military equipment and other objects.

The aiming range of a flamethrower with a diopter sight is 600 m, with an optical OPO - 450 m, OPO-1 - 850 m. The optical sight ensures successful firing at dusk, on a moonlit night and cloudy weather.

The RPO-A flamethrower is a one-time weapon, cannot be reloaded, and is discarded after use.

RPO-A flamethrowers proved to be very effective weapons for urban combat. They were used as follows: a group of infantrymen, by their actions, provoked the enemy to open fire. Another group with intense fire forbade the maneuver of the enemy (pressed to the floor), and the flamethrowers deployed at the advantageous line almost destroyed several firing points with one salvo.

The general device of the RPO-A flamethrower

The flamethrower consists of the following components: container, ammunition, collet and engine.

Container designed to fire a shot, direct the ammunition to the target and ensure the hermetic packaging of the shell with equipment and the engine.

Engine designed to report the speed of the ammunition. Powder engine, separated from the ammunition in the barrel, with the expiration of part of the powder gases into the projectile space.

ammunition designed to hit the target. It is a feathered artillery shell that rotates in flight. The ammunition has a capsule filled with fire mixture. The fire mixture is designed to hit the target.

When fired, the powder gases formed during the combustion of the propellant charge disperse the ammunition over the container by the pressure of the gases entering the projectile space. Part of the gases enters the gap between the shell and the container, balancing the pressure of the fire mixture that occurs during the shot on the walls of the shell. The front cover of the container is thrown off by the pressure of the air compressed between the shell and the cover, clearing the way for the ammunition to fly out. At the same time, powder gases, passing through the nozzle holes of the engine, throw back the liners that secure the engine from the container. When the ammunition leaves the barrel, under the action of elastic forces, the wings of the benchmark are straightened. When the ammunition meets the target, the impact mechanism of the fuse is triggered, causing the detonation of the igniter-explosive charge, the combustion products of which break the tube, the shell of the ammunition, ignite the fire mixture and scatter it on the target.

Parts and mechanisms of the RPO-A flamethrower

A flamethrower with proper care, proper storage and careful handling is a reliable and trouble-free weapon. However, as a result of careless handling of the flamethrower, contamination, as well as breakage of the firing mechanism, there may be delays in firing. In the event of a delay in firing, it is necessary to re-cock the firing mechanism and repeat the shot. If the shot did not occur during the re-arming, the flamethrower should be destroyed.

Safety measures when firing from an RPO flamethrower

1. Persons who have thoroughly studied its design and operating rules are allowed to fire from a flamethrower.

2. When the flamethrower is located in an open area near various solid barriers (walls, etc.), including objects of military equipment located in the danger zone, the distance between the flamethrower and the barrier must be at least 3 m behind, at least on the side 1 m. When the flamethrower is located indoors, the distance between the flamethrower and the wall located at the back must be at least 6 m, from the side - at least 1 m; The volume of the room must be at least 45 cubic meters.

3. When firing from a prone position, the legs and body of the flamethrower should be at an angle of 600 to the axis of the flamethrower.

4.When aiming, the eye of the flamethrower should

be pressed against the eyecup of the optical sight.

5. On flat terrain, with an unprepared position, it is prohibited to shoot from the following positions:

Lying at a distance of more than 200 m;

From the knee to a distance of more than 400 m.

- use a pack or a separate flamethrower as a means of protection from bullets and shrapnel

Shoot without making sure that there are no parts of the belt on the rear cut of the flamethrower;

Remove the trigger mechanism from the fuse until the target is detected;

Shoot at targets closer than 20 m.

There should be no obstacles in the zone up to 20 m;

Throw a flamethrower.

7. Carrying, loading and unloading of flamethrowers is carried out in compliance with safety precautions that exclude their fall. In case of an accidental fall of the flamethrower on the ground from a height of up to 0.5 m. And the absence of external damage, the flamethrower is allowed to be used. If the flamethrower is accidentally dropped from a height of 0.5 to 3 m. Its performance is not guaranteed. In case of an accidental fall from a height of more than 3 m, the flamethrower must be destroyed in the prescribed manner.

8. When shooting through any component of the flamethrower with a bullet or fragment, detonation does not occur. However, the flamethrower is dangerous due to the possibility of its ignition or operation.

Mankind got acquainted with the phenomenon of a volumetric explosion long before the advent of gunpowder - mills, granaries, sugar factories, carpentry workshops and coal mines periodically took off into the air. In a word, rooms in which a suspension of combustible substances and air accumulates. It is on this principle that the ammunition of a volumetric explosion operates. It is necessary to create an aerosol cloud of a combustible substance mixed with atmospheric air and apply a spark to this cloud. The explosion is very powerful, and the consumption of the active substance is several times less than that of high explosives in an explosion with comparable parameters. Volumetric explosion ammunition does not contain an oxidizing agent, its role is played by atmospheric oxygen. However, creating a cloud at the target and initiating an explosion is a very non-trivial technical task, and this is where the most important design know-how lies.

German engineers were the first to experiment with such ammunition, trying to simulate an explosion of coal dust in mines. Coal dust was sprayed with a charge of gunpowder and then undermined. In the mine, where strong walls favored the development of detonation, the method worked, but it did not work out in the open air.

When firing from a missile defense system, you need to hold your left hand very firmly, otherwise the flamethrower may “nod”. After a shot, a spent jet engine flies out of the pipe, which falls a few meters from the shooter. Beginners are often frightened, thinking that the charge itself has dropped.

A solution for open spaces was found years later. During the Vietnam War, the Americans used volume explosion munitions to instantly clear helicopter landing sites in the jungle. They did not bother with coal dust, but equipped the bombs with ethylene oxide, propylene oxide, methane, silver nitrate and MAPP (a mixture of propyne, propadiene and propane). Similar ammunition appeared with us. Soviet specialists quickly abandoned oxides - they were toxic and quite dangerous during storage due to their volatility. We settled on a compromise: a mixture of different types of fuel (analogues of light gasoline) and aluminum-magnesium alloy powder. However, experiments have shown that with chic external effects, the damaging effect of volumetric detonating ammunition (ODB) leaves much to be desired. The idea of ​​an atmospheric explosion to destroy aircraft was the first to fail - the effect turned out to be negligible, except that the turbines “failed”, which immediately restarted again, because they did not even have time to stop. This did not work at all against armored vehicles, even the engine did not stall there. In a word, it was established empirically that bombs and projectiles of a volumetric explosion are best used as specialized ammunition for hitting targets that are not resistant to a shock wave, primarily unfortified buildings and manpower. And that's all. For a total war, this weapon was clearly not suitable.

It's unbearable

During Soviet experiments with different layouts of bulk ammunition, it turned out that if the primary bursting charge is not completely drowned in the mixture, but left open at the ends, then the cloud is ignited from the very beginning of its spraying and partly detonation occurs, and partly - ordinary combustion. We get a "defective" explosion - however, high-temperature. This process is called thermobaric. In the early 1980s, the action of thermobaric ammunition, which at first seemed useless, was demonstrated to the top military leadership, presenting it as anti-sabotage - the charges burned out all life without damaging protected and armored objects. The demonstration turned out to be so effective that almost all branches of the military were eager to have such weapons. For the flamethrower units of the RCB protection troops of the RF Armed Forces, the development of reactive infantry flamethrowers "Bumblebee" and "Lynx" began. The Main Rocket and Artillery Directorate placed an order for the design of thermobaric warheads for multiple launch rocket systems, the Radiation, Chemical and Biological Defense Forces (RHBZ) decided to acquire their own Buratino heavy flamethrower system (TOS).

Soon the first prototypes appeared in Afghanistan, where the weapon with two red stripes on the body became iconic. And our country has received the status of the undisputed leader in the development of such weapons. It was especially effective in urban combat - one hit through the window, and a small house was completely cleared of the enemy.

The damaging effect of ODB differs from the effect of traditional high explosives such as TNT or RDX. The action of the shock wave when using high explosives is very short in time, and the increased pressure in a thermobaric explosion persists for a rather long time, since we have a combination of explosion with combustion. “If you characterize the action of a conventional explosive as hitting a pedestrian with a fast moving truck, then the action of a volumetric explosion ammunition can be compared to a skating rink that not only ran over, but also stood for some time on the victim,” a civilian expert, a specialist in thermobaric explosions, explains to us. “But the corpses of the enemy themselves do not burn - they simply do not have time, the process is still quite fast. They lie as if alive, but if you come up and poke with your foot, they sway, as if they were made of jelly.

The second one is gone!

“I have no right to comment on manufacturing technologies and the effect of ammunition,” the polite Major Khomenko continues. “But I can make good flamethrowers out of you.” We are moving on to the MRO-A "Borodach" small-sized jet flamethrower. The Bumblebee is good for everyone, but it is heavy (11 kg), and it is not recommended to shoot from rooms with a volume of less than 40 m³, since barotrauma is inevitable. Although it shows maximum efficiency in urban conditions. They say that during the Chechen campaign, one officer, covering the withdrawal of his squad, fired more than ten shots from the "Bumblebee" just from a room of less than 40 m³, for which he received the title of Hero of Russia. And we just don’t give a Hero like that.

So, from the “Bearded Man” you can shoot from the window, and they will no longer give awards for this. And it weighs much less than the "Bumblebee" - only 4.6 kg. But, says Major Khomenko, both flamethrowers inflict colossal damage on the enemy. True, the maximum range of the "Bearded" is designated as 450 m, and the "Bumblebee" - 1 km.

With an already familiar movement, I straighten the front handle, put the pipe on my shoulder, raise the aiming bar, set the range, pull the pin, raise the safety and press the trigger from above. The rocket has gone! Shooting from the Beardach is much more comfortable both in terms of sound and in terms of retention, which affects accuracy. We fired at the tank from a distance of 150 m. How, for example, a Bumblebee can hit a window at a distance of a kilometer, I have little idea. In such a distance, rocket-propelled flamethrowers can only be fired in one gulp.

Jet on the enemy

An uninitiated person can easily confuse the Varna jet infantry flamethrower with the Bumblebee - outwardly they are very similar, and the 93 mm caliber is the same, as are the sights. But otherwise, these flamethrowers differ dramatically. If in the "Bumblebee" the thermobaric composition flies to the target inside the hull, then in the SPO everything is different. A jet expelling engine, assembled together with a container with a fire mixture open at the end, is fired from a flamethrower and flies ten meters ahead. At this moment, an already ignited clot of fire mixture flies out of the container in a special mesh shell, which does not allow the mixture to fall apart in the air.

The last decades have shown that in order to successfully conduct combat operations, infantry units do not have enough familiar small arms, they need a fundamentally new class of hand weapons. Already during the Second World War, the armies of some countries of the world received hand-held grenade launchers that successfully performed the functions of light artillery, such as fighting enemy armored vehicles and providing fire support to an offensive during the assault on fortified points. Despite the imperfection of the first samples, they immediately proved their effectiveness.

Tasks of modern infantry

The increase in the role of each soldier in street fighting and the possibility of inflicting maximum damage on the enemy is ensured by the presence in his arsenal of light, but very powerful weapons of enormous destructive power. The Afghan war revealed the problems that combat units face when conducting active operations in mountainous areas. Any complex terrain with many folds, ruins, residential buildings, industrial facilities or specially built defense facilities with powerful defenses create serious difficulties for the advancing troops to advance. To overcome them, the Tula gunsmiths at the end of the eighties created the Shmel thermobaric grenade launcher.

The backpack-type flamethrower, previously used to suppress fortified points, did not fully meet the requirements for modern assault weapons.

Classic type flamethrower and its disadvantages

A conventional flamethrower is quite simple. On his back, the fighter is forced to carry a volumetric tank with a combustible mixture, in his hands he has a means of direct destruction, which is something like a hose with an igniter, these two main units are connected by a hose. The advantage of this weapon is its simplicity, the large possible area of ​​destruction and the strong psychological effect produced on the defenders, but there are also enough shortcomings. Firstly, it is not very convenient to attack with a heavy tank behind your back. Secondly, the distance of defeat is small, and in order to cause any significant damage to the enemy, you need to get close to him, and this is sometimes very difficult. The impressive size of the device makes it difficult to covertly approach. Thirdly, this weapon is dangerous not only for the enemy, but also for the flamethrower himself, since any damage to the tank or hose will cause spontaneous ignition of the combustible mixture and, as a result, a terrible and painful death. The Bumblebee is spared these design flaws.

A new type of flamethrower

In 1984, Soviet weapons developers received an order from the army for a new means of fire destruction of enemy manpower and equipment. The range of action should be at least half a kilometer. The power required is large, with the ability to suppress well-fortified targets. At the same time, the device must be made light, so that the soldier can not only walk with it, but run and climb mountains. In practice, a hand cannon weighing ten kilograms was needed.

It was difficult to complete such a technical task. But the Tula gunsmiths from the State Research and Production Enterprise "Basalt" worked and created the "Bumblebee". The flamethrower turned out great. Consider its main characteristics.

"Bumblebee": a flamethrower and its deadly flight

The flamethrower, nicknamed the “shaitan-pipe” by the internationalist soldiers, is similar in principle to a conventional rocket-propelled grenade launcher. The main difference is in the rocket projectile with which it is loaded. When it hits a target, the Bumblebee hand-held flamethrower not only generates an explosive wave and fragments, but creates a volumetric explosion on the principle of vacuum ammunition. This quality made it an indispensable means of fighting the Mujahideen hiding in crevices or under jacked-up rock layers. The Bumblebee rocket-propelled flamethrower is also suitable for destroying armored vehicles, the barothermal shock created during the explosion will incapacitate the crew of an unpressurized tank or armored personnel carrier in an area of ​​50 square meters of open area with a total volume of guaranteed destruction of 80 cubic meters.

Tactical and technical data RPO-A "Bumblebee"

The flamethrower is most effective at a distance of 400 meters, but it is possible to shoot accurately at six hundred meters. "Bumblebee" is light and compact, it weighs 11 kg, which is quite a bit for a weapon of such destructive power, and is a cylindrical body 92 cm long and a decimeter in diameter with a protruding pistol grip and sight. Projectile caliber - 93 mm. A charge weighing 2 kg 100 g creates a volumetric explosion, which determines its high efficiency.

New "Bumblebee" RPO-PDM-A

No matter how good the "Bumblebee" is, the Tula specialists were able to improve it. The next modification received an additional RPO-PDM-A index (PDM means "increased range and power"). Now it strikes at 1.7 km with an effective aiming distance of 800 m. The mass of the charge has also been increased to 6 kg, and the flamethrower itself has become lighter, it weighs 8 kg 800g. He has one more feature, the new Shmel-M flamethrower is equipped with a removable control unit with an optical

Weight reduction was achieved through the use of composite materials, in particular, the launch tube is made of heavy-duty fiberglass. To protect the projectile from external influences and mechanical damage, rubber covers are used that fly off when it exits. The rocket is initiated using an electronic ignition system. Another design feature is the integration of a solid fuel engine with a charging compartment.

"Bumblebees" for export

Unique weapons are one of the important items of Russian export, and there is nothing wrong with that. We will not sell - others will do it. It is all the more important to use The world has not yet created portable systems that could surpass the Shmel flamethrower in terms of thermobaric efficiency. Photos and videos sent by correspondents of news channels from hot spots on the planet demonstrate the sad popularity of this weapon even in the most exotic countries. According to military experts, this small device can produce the same amount of destruction as a 155mm howitzer...

fiery somersault If we discard dry facts and figures, then thermobaric rocket-propelled flamethrowers are the most deadly infantry weapons. A new type of ammunition, work on which began during the hostilities in Afghanistan, in the future could provide excellent opportunities for defeating enemy personnel without involving additional forces and means. The essence of a jet flamethrower, in a nutshell, is that causing serious damage to the enemy, the ammunition does not need to wait from the air, requesting aviation, or deliver using cannon or rocket artillery. Many of those who study small arms, in particular infantry, have a question - did the good old RPG-7 not solve 100% of the tasks to destroy fortifications? Certainly he did. However, during the same Afghan campaign, it turned out that the consumption of ammunition to defeat one fortified firing point of the Mujahideen required 5-6 cumulative shots. Veterans of the Afghan war cite this amount of ammunition only as an approximation, since it happened that up to 10 shots were spent on a well-built fortification from RPG-7. The rocket flamethrower that came into service with the Soviet troops replaced the Lynx. A rocket flamethrower with thermobaric ammunition capable of reaching the most powerful enemy in any terrain and any shelters was adopted by the Soviet troops in 1988. At the same time, it became clear that now infantry formations would be able to cope with the task on their own, without involving artillery or air strikes. enemy point. Address work "Bumblebee"
The most massive use, to the surprise of many, was not in Afghanistan, but in the fighting in the North Caucasus. It was during the battles for Chechnya, Dagestan and other regions of the Caucasus that it became clear that it was the “targeted” work of the RPO “Shmel” that was his real vocation. If you look for messages from those years (from 1994 to 1999 inclusive), literally through one printed edition you can find in the materials a mention of the "secret vacuum weapon" that the militants were so afraid of. And although the term "vacuum" ammunition itself is fundamentally wrong, the main in those difficult years, when the opposition to radical bandit formations was just beginning, there was another thing left - the effectiveness of the thermobaric munition. Outbuildings, houses, garages - all this was used as firing points. Of course, it was possible to crush such with the help of tanks, but the collateral damage was unacceptable. The use of "Bumblebee" in this case was justified one hundred percent. With one shot, it was possible to “gouge” almost any fortified point - be it a house, a barn or the like, ”says a soldier of the federal troops, Captain Yuri Senkov, in an interview with Zvezda.“Thermobaric ammunition with its air-fuel mixture burned like sticky, any the number of bandits inside. The area of ​​work - it is difficult to measure in meters, but in fact ... in two adjacent rooms the militants were simply roasted. 50 meters is obtained if counted,” the captain continues. “An interesting feature of the flamethrower is the characteristic “shift” of the roof of almost any building on which it is used. If, for example, we are talking about a building that was once a residential building in which the militants took refuge, then at the moment of impact, one can observe how the roof of the house “jumps” and slides to one side, if the building, of course, remains intact. Frankly speaking, I watched entire buildings only a couple of times after the shot, ”says Captain Yuri Senkov.
Hand lighter and anti-sniper flamethrower
An aerosol cloud and a shock wave penetrating even the smallest cracks are a universal means for suppressing the enemy. In fact, the destruction of the target occurs even without directly breaking through the barrier. In the case of a hit in a building, a fortified firing point, any type of transport, there will not be much difference for a thermobaric munition. However, an air-fuel mixture exploding with incredible force is not the only way the Bumblebee can greet the enemy. There are other reactive "gifts" in the ammunition nomenclature. In addition to the RPO-D smoke flamethrower, the warhead of which is a mixture that forms up to 80 meters of a dense smoke screen, there is another, no less interesting option - RPO-3. The incendiary version of the jet flamethrower carries a special capsule with fire mixture inside and turns even a capital building into one blazing fire. For example, there was a case when it was from RPO-3 that a sniper and a group of militants decided to be smoked out. First, they suppressed it with small arms fire, then they threw VOGs at them, and towards the end, the fighter, who had been preparing for shooting all this time, hit the building with a Bumblebee. The fire was almost until the morning. Then the building was cleared and the surviving militants were not found. All that was found was smoldering incomprehensible lumps and fragments of clothing, ”recalls a veteran of military operations in the Caucasus, Captain Yuri Senkov. According to the military, "Bumblebee" is still one of the most versatile means for the treatment of terrorism in any, even the most neglected form. Recognized power The unique infantry flamethrower is almost the only one of its kind. The unique combination of a reliable shipping container, a reliable descent and sights that any conscript can handle in 10 minutes and special ammunition make the Bumblebee a truly terrifying weapon. This is how they dubbed it in the American edition of Popular Mechanics. It is not in vain that the American edition admires the capabilities of the RPO, because a fiery cloud, reaching seven meters in diameter and carrying out an instant “roasting” of the enemy, can be compared in terms of impact with a 152-mm artillery shell. directed, notes the author of the article in the American edition of Popular Mechanics. However, watching the hits of the Russian "Bumblebee" and admiring its unique abilities is only half the battle. The layout of the building, which was built by two or three drafts on one of the training grounds, had to be conditionally hit with aimed shots. Considering that two or three people are firing from jet "Bumblebees" at once, the shooting turned out to be so effective that after the third shot struck, the building of three floors and two entrances was formed. I fully admit that it could have been built in haste, just for demonstration. But even such destruction says a lot, ”recalls Yuri Senkov. The level of high-explosive impact on armored vehicles is another unique indicator booked for. The military admits that making a hole in light armored vehicles with a “two-band Bumblebee” (meaning the marking in the form of two red stripes on the front of the flamethrower) can be no worse than some 125-mm artillery shell. The use of RPO "Bumblebee" in the North Caucasus during the first and second Chechen campaigns showed that infantry formations armed with jet flamethrowers can not only effectively suppress the enemy's manpower, but also with great success "leak" a significant amount of equipment. The developers of "Bumblebee" - Tulskoye Design Bureau of Instrument Engineering, despite the resounding success of its product, does not think to stop there. Judging by the RPO PDM-A presented in 2010 (the abbreviation stands for "increased range and power"), Russian gunsmiths not only managed to reduce the weight of the portable flamethrower kit - up to 19 kg (two containers), but also significantly increased the firing range, coming close to the mark of 1700 meters. The mass and power of the warhead of the new RPO PDM-A was increased, and this is a sure sign that a new, very intriguing chapter begins in the history of domestic jet flamethrowers.