M20 75mm

History

Recoilless rifles are a special class of battlefield weapons that are less used today than they were in World War II and the years following the introduction of missile systems in the 1960s and 1970s. In its most basic form, the recoilless rifle enables rifle teams to fire large-caliber artillery projectiles at targets within sight, and the weapon uses the inherent propellant gas produced by the fired projectile to reduce recoil. Therefore, the grenade is completed as a one-piece casing assembly, which contains the warhead and the required propellant.

Projectiles are usually loaded through the breech of the weapon, and the barrel is rifled to provide a spinning effect on the fired projectile (as opposed to "smooth-bore" weapons such as mortars). When the gun is fired, the ignition propellant is directed away from the projectile and towards the rear of the breech, where it escapes through an orifice. In fact, the expelled propellant gas is used against the expelled projectile, resulting in acceptable or near-zero recoil for weapons of this caliber (compared to conventional artillery systems).

As a result, recoilless rifles do not have to be equipped with complex recoil reduction systems (called recoil dampers), resulting in a relatively "lighter" overall system weight. While the recoil of a recoilless rifle is not fully attenuated, this approach allows infantry units to use their own portable anti-tank capabilities.

Recoilless rifles are also useful in infantry support roles, where they can use HE shells to good effect against infantry. One of the most popular recoilless rifles of all time is the Cold War-era "Carl Gustaf" 84mm launcher, which is still in regular use around the world today.

However, steerable anti-tank missiles have largely replaced recoilless rifles in most modern armies.

The M20 has a barrel length of 6 feet 10 inches and weighs 114.5 pounds. Despite these numbers, the M20 is intended as a man-portable weapon system on the battlefield. Its design is fairly simple, and the barrel is the largest part of the weapon. It looks sleek and has no muzzle brake on the business end.

The carrying handle is located on the side of the barrel system, just behind the center. The tail features an enlarged conical outlet section that tapers outwards and is attached with a vented screen cap to allow the propellant gases needed for launch to escape.

The shape of this assembly turned out to be critical in containing the exhaust gas and directing it to the rear of the gun. The barrel is usually mounted on a heavy tripod assembly for support, usually an M1917A1 machine gun mount, but can also be mounted on a vehicle if desired.

The tripod mounts behind the center point of the gun because the weight is usually concentrated across the rear of the gun. The tripod is adjustable in height and height, allowing 360-degree traversal, while the sighting device is mounted on the left side of the barrel.

The M20 uses a 75 x 408mmR (2.95") projectile, identifiable by its widely perforated base, which allows propellant gases to quickly escape to the vent cap at the rear of the breech Almost half of the projectiles are perforated this This way, the warhead is a traditional conical. The 75mm projectile is loaded through the breech, which has a vented door with two handles for quick access.

The door then closes and the weapon is ready to fire. The M20's barrel uses a single right Rotary design, which produces the required projectile twist when fired (so no stabilizer is visible on the projectile itself.) Standard 20 1,000 ft/s 5 lb HEAT (High Explosive, Anti-Tank) cartridge, under ideal conditions , with a range of up to 7,000 yards and armor penetration up to 100 mm (4 in). Other projectile types available are the regular 21.8 lb HE for use against soft targets and infantry, and the 22.6 lb for smoke screens Smoke bombs.

Due to the nature of the M20 and the weight involved, a typical shooting crew consists of at least two or three people. Of course, no one is allowed to stand behind the weapon for obvious reasons of propellant gas escaping.[/p ]

The U.S. Army's development into a combat recoilless rifle eventually yielded a viable form at the end of World War II. The M20 entered service in the final months of the conflict and was shipped in limited quantities to U.S. troops in Europe and the Pacific theater from March 1945.

Their use is also restricted because the war in Europe ended in May and the war in the Pacific ended in August.

After the M20 inventory increased since the end of World War II, after the start of the Korean War, and after the Communist North invaded the Democratic South, the M20 returned to action. The United Nations, led by the United States, has tried to contain the spread of communism by any means, including armed deterrence. While the M20's armor-piercing capabilities left a lot to be desired, especially when it came to the fabled Soviet T-34 medium tank used in the North and China, the system excelled against lightly armored targets and fixed infantry defensive positions.

As a result, it played the role of short-range infantry support rather than the expected anti-tank role.

The M20 had limited service early in the Vietnam War, but generally fell out of favor as wire-guided anti-tank missile systems now come online. Despite its World War II pedigree, the M20 still sees limited frontline service in the inventory of underdeveloped militaries around the world.

M20 75mm size

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