Grenade launcher

A grenade launcher is a weapon that propels a grenade with more accuracy, higher velocity and to greater distances than a soldier could throw it by hand. The term encompasses a broad array of weapons, from small, hand-held launchers to crew-served automatic weapons, all being man-portable weapons firing grenade rounds.

Automatic grenade launcher


 The automatic grenade launcher (sometimes referred to as a grenade machinegun), is a belt-fed, blowback-operated, air-cooled automatic weapon designed to lay down a heavy volume of explosive ordnance and support infantry and vehicle operations. Designed for use as a crew-served weapon, the automatic grenade launcher was intended for use against a variety of targets ranging from infantry and light vehicles to fortifications and other materiel. The sheer weight of the weapon and bulk of the ammunition limited its versatility, until the advent of power armor. Since then, many units were converted for use on foot, rather than from a tripod.

U.S. automatic grenade launchers were manufactured in two major variants, accepting 25mm and 40mm grenades, together with a variety of additional equipment, such as an electronic fire control system. 


 * For the unique grenade machinegun found in Fallout: New Vegas, see: Mercy.

Pump-action grenade launcher


A pump-action weapon with a tubular magazine holding four 40mm grenades, the grenade launcher is an excellent tool for delivering explosives over long distances. Leaf iron sights similar to the grenade rifle are mounted on it. The front sight is a fixed square notch.

While the feed system makes the launcher significantly heavier than a standard grenade rifle, the launcher's body makes an excellent platform for experimental energy weapon conversions.

M79 grenade launcher


One of the earliest United States grenade launcher designs, built around the 40mm grenade. Utilizing the High-Low propulsion system, the M79 allows the operator to deliver high explosive rounds at a range of hundreds of meters, while its rugged design, consisting of just five major parts, a receiver, fore-end, barrel, sight, and stock, offers excellent reliability. The one drawback is that the grenade launcher is single-shot only, reducing its rate of fire and precluding a sustained volume of fire. However, it is quite compact, especially with the stock sawed off, while the straightforward optics, consisting of a fixed blade sight on the front and a folding leaf sight on the rear, enable accurate fire with just pointing and shooting. These qualities kept it in use well into the late 21st century. 


 * For the unique grenade rifle found in Fallout: New Vegas, see: Thump-Thump.
 * For the Mercenary Pack pre-order exclusive add-on grenade rifle in Fallout: New Vegas, see: Mercenary's grenade rifle.
 * For Lonesome Road grenade rifles, see Great Bear grenade rifle and Red Victory grenade rifle.

25mm grenade anti-personnel weapon


The 25mm grenade APW is a semi-automatic grenade launcher. It gives the player character the death-dealing capability of the grenade machinegun in a more portable package.



Grenade pistol


The grenade pistol is a flare gun modified to fire 40mm grenades.



Heckler


Heckler is a drum-fed grenade launcher that fires 40mm grenades.