Smith 1 Cody Smith Mr.

Berge English 1 Research Report 4/28/11 Period 5 The Vietnam War The Vietnam War is the longest war America has ever fought in. It lasted eighteen years and over seven million people died. This total includes civilians, military personnel from both sides, and the people who died from the after effects of Agent Orange. Throughout the war there were several standard issue weapons that were issued to the American and North Vietnamese armys, marines, and air forces. Some of the most advanced and reliable weapons that are used by our armed forces today were designed, tested, and perfected during the Vietnam War, such as the M16. During the Vietnam War, the armed forces decided to replace the standard issue M14 with a newer, fully automatic, assault rifle. And so the M16A1 was created, it performed well in tests and met all of the requirements the military established an additional reason it was selected is because it didnt break the bank (it was less than half the price of the other assault rifles in the competition). But once it got into the hands of a soldier in Vietnam it was clear that the weapon had some design flaws. Sometimes the gun would simply jam (which could be a matter of life or death in some situations), sometimes it would slam fire (where the gun keeps shooting when you

Smith 2 take your finger off of the trigger) and unintentionally injury allies or civilians, and in severe cases the gun would literally explode in a soldiers hand (usually causing small injuries like cuts, bruises, and burns, but in severe cases it could lead to an amputation of the hand, being hit by shrapnel, or death). So the engineers went back to the drawing board and redesigned it into the M16A1 which used less intricate parts, a new more reliable chrome lined barrel and chamber, it also came with a cleaning kit, and finally were made to include a forward assist. These modifications brought these problems into an acceptable range.

The 7.62mm M60 general purpose machine-gun (GPMG) was employed in a light role on its bipod (with an effective range 500 meters) or in a medium role on a tripod (with an effective range 1,100 meters) as well as being used as protective armament on vehicles and helicopters. Gas operated, air cooled and belt fed, with a quick-change barrel to counter overheating during sustained firing, it has a practical rate of fire of 200 rpm (550 rpm max). In Vietnam it was the main firepower of the infantry rifle section. With bipod the M60 weighs 10.5 kg (23 pounds), which increases by 6.8kg (15 pounds) if a tripod is added (Total 38 pounds minus ammo). These facts along with an easy to use design and easy to clean parts made it a highly praised and recommended firearm.

The M1911 is a single-action, semi-automatic, magazine-fed, and recoil-operated handgun chambered for the .45 ACP cartridges. John M. Browning designed the firearm which was the standard-issue side arm for the United States armed forces from 1911 to 1985. It was widely used in World War I, World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. In total, the United States procured around 2.7 million M1911 and M1911A1 pistols in military contracts

Smith 3 during its service life. It is popular with civilian shooters in competitive events such as USPSA, IDPA, International Practical Shooting Confederation, and Bulls eye shooting.

The M72 LAW (light anti-tank weapon) was designed for use against tanks, but in Vietnam it was used primarily against bunkers. When carried, the smooth-bore launcher tube was carried closed, and was watertight. In action, the end covers were opened by removing safety pins and the inner tube was telescoped outwards. This cocked the firing mechanism (GRUNT 5). When fired it launched a small one kilogram HEAT (high explosive anti-tank) rocket. The rocket motor was fully burnt out by the time it left the launcher and resulted in a large back-blast danger area behind the firer. Once fired the tube was discarded. Due to its low weight, a number of these could be carried in a squad with each person capable of packing at least two if necessary.

Easily recognized with its high front sights, large selector/safety switch on the right side and the long, and curved banana magazine the AK-47 is a gas-operated, magazine-fed rifle which has a semiautomatic ROF of 40 rounds (effective range about 400 meters), increasing to 100 rounds on fully automatic (effective range about 300 meters). It has a 30 round detachable box magazine. Renowned for its durability, the AK-47 is shorter and heavier than the M-16 but with a lower ROF and muzzle velocity. The AK47s durability made it perfect for Vietnams fighting conditions and many times a soldier would use the weapon of a fallen enemy instead of their M16 (word about the malfunctions it experienced spread quickly).

The standard infantry squad support weapon, the RPD was analogous to the US M-60 and fired a 7.62mm slug from a 100 round belt which was usually contained in a drum mounted below the gun. The drum itself could be changed in a matter of seconds by an experienced

Smith 4 gunner and protected the ammo from dirt and hence jamming. With a maximum rate of cyclic fire of about 150 rounds per minute, an effective range of 800m and rapid reload time, this light and uncomplicated weapon was capable of laying down sustained heavy fire. The gunner was usually accompanied by an assistant acting as an ammo carrier, loader and capable of taking over as the primary gunner in the event of the main gunner becoming a casualty. First introduced in the 1930s and utilizing the self-cocking design from Colt, the Tokarev TT33 was used extensively by Soviet forces in WWII and was produced in nearly all Warsaw Pact countries and the PRC. The Chinese Type-54 could be distinguished from the Soviet TT33 by the serrations on the slide and by the Chinese ideograms on the pistol grip (the Soviet weapon had a star in the center of the pistol grip). The Soviet TT33 had alternate narrow and wide vertical cuts, whereas the Type-51 and Type-54 had uniform narrow markings, to aid gripping the slide when manually cocking the weapon. There was no safety mechanism but the hammer could be locked at half-cock and the weapon was normally carried around with a round in the chamber. Production of the weapon in the USSR stopped in 1954, but continued in other Communist countries, notably the PRC. The pistol was widely used by VC and NVA officers. The Tokarev TT33 fired the Soviet 7.62-mm x 25 Type-P pistol cartridge. It operated on a recoil single action and was semi-automatic, feeding ammunition from an 8-round box magazine. Maximum ROF was 32-rpm and with a maximum effective range out to about 50-meters. The pistol was quite heavy, weighing about 1-kg (2.2-lbs) when loaded and was 196-mm (7.72inches) in length.

The RPG-7 is a muzzle loaded, shoulder fired antitank grenade launcher. The VC and Vietnam NVA used the RPG7V, a Soviet produced short-range, anti-armor, rocket-propelled

Smith 5 grenade, from 1967 against armored vehicles, defensive positions, personnel and even helicopters. This smoothbore, recoilless weapon consists of a launcher tube fitted with a simple iron sight or a more sophisticated telescopic range-finding sight, and a HEAT rocket grenade projectile with a caliber of 40mm.

In conclusion, the weapons developed during the Vietnam War have paved a path for the weapons of today. Even now we are designing weapons based on the principles and designs of weapons that were developed during the Vietnam War. As weaponry and war continue to change and evolve, we will always be able to track basic designs to the Vietnam War.