An M20 recoilless rifle in action during the Korean War
Type
Recoilless anti-tank weapon
Place of origin
United States
Service history
Used by
United States
Wars
World War II
Korean War
First Indochina War
Algerian War[1]
Portuguese Colonial War
Lebanese Civil War
Vietnam War
Cambodian Civil War
Laotian Civil War
Salvadoran Civil War
Western Sahara War
Production history
Designed
1944
Produced
1945
Variants
Type 56
Specifications
Mass
103 lb (47 kg)
Length
82 in (2.1 m)
Barrel length
65 in (1.7 m)
Crew
1 or 2[2]
Shell
75 x 408 mm R[3] HE, HEAT, Smoke
Shell weight
20.5–22.6 lb (9.3–10.3 kg)
Caliber
75 mm (3.0 in)
Recoil
Recoilless
Carriage
M1917A1 tripod
Elevation
−27° to +65°
Traverse
360°[2]
Muzzle velocity
1,000 ft/s (300 m/s)
Maximum firing range
3.9 mi (6.3 km)[2]
An M20 recoilless rifle on display in the Royal Armouries at Fort NelsonSergeant Reckless, a decorated war horse serving with a US Marine Corps recoilless rifle platoon in the Korean War, stands beside a 75mm recoilless rifle
The M20 recoilless rifle is a U.S. 75 mm caliber recoilless rifle T21E12 that was used during the last months of the Second World War and extensively during the Korean War. It could be fired from an M1917A1 .30 caliber machine gun tripod, or from a vehicle mount, typically a Jeep. Its shaped charge warhead, also known as HEAT, was capable of penetrating 100 mm of armor. Although the weapon proved ineffective against the T-34 tank and most other tanks during the Korean War, it was used primarily as a close infantry support weapon to engage all types of targets including infantry and lightly armored vehicles. The M20 proved useful against pillboxes and other types of field fortifications.
^Huon, Jean (March 1992). "L'armement français en A.F.N." Gazette des Armes (in French). No. 220. pp. 12–16.
^ abcChamberlain, Peter (1975). Infantry, mountain, and airborne guns. Gander, Terry. New York: Arco. p. 58. ISBN 0668038195. OCLC 2067391.
^"75-77 MM CALIBRE CARTRIDGES". www.quarryhs.co.uk. Retrieved 2017-10-02.
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