Type 69 40mm Rocket Launcher

Last updated: 23 February 2007

The Type 69 manufactured by NORINCO is a Chinese copy of the Russian RPG-7 40mm handheld anti-tank rocket launcher with some improvements. First introduced in the late 1960s, the Type 69 was equipped by the PLA in significant numbers. The weapon was also exported to a number of third-world countries in the 1970s and is still in service with many countries today. New types of grenade rounds were developed in the 1980s/90s to meet the requirements of modern battlefields. The improved version known as Type 69-I was introduced in the 1980s.

To counter the growing threats of new-generation main battle tanks, the PLA began to develop a new 40mm anti-armour rocket launcher based on the Soviet RPG-7 in the early 1960s. The weapon was first demonstrated to PLA leaders in 1964 and officially entered PLA service in 1970 under the designation Type 69. The rocket launcher was manufactured in mass numbers in the 1970s and 1980s, and was widely used during the 1979 and 1980s Sino-Vietnam border conflicts. The production of the Type 69 and Type 69-I stopped in the mid-1980s as the PLA introduced the new generation 80mm PF89 rocket launcher.

Under the PLA’s table of organisation and equipment (TOE) in the 1980s, the Type 69 was equipped by every infantry squad as a standard anti-armour weapon among troops deployed in northern China directly facing the Soviet Union. A standard infantry squad has two Type 69 rocket gunners, each carrying one launcher and three grenade rounds. There are also two assistant gunners, each carrying three grenade rounds, providing each squad with a total of two launchers and 12 grenade rounds. In the troops deployed in the mountain and jungle regions in southern China, the Type 69 was found in the weapon platoon of infantry companies to provide anti-personnel and anti-obstacle fire support.

The Type 69 is generally similar to the Russian RPG-7 in design, with some improvements including a heavier launcher, a folding bipod, a redesigned handgrip, and a rearsight adjustable for windage. Its performance is generally same to that of the Russian version. The improved Type 69-I launcher has a slightly shorter launcher tube as well as some other minor modifications.

The Type 69 is a shoulder-launched, muzzle-loaded anti-tank and anti-personnel grenade launcher which launches a family of fin-stabilised, over-sized grenades from its 40mm tube. The original Type 69 launcher has an optical daylight sight. The improved Type 69-I could also be fitted with infrared and electro-optical sight. NORINCO has introduced a range of anti-armour and anti-personnel grenades for the Type 69 and Type 69-I, therefore extending the tactical utility of this anti-tank weapon into light fire support.

Specifications

Launcher tube diameter: 40mm
Launcher length: 910mm
Weight, launcher (without optical sight): 5.6kg

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