MBT LAW
| MBT NLAW | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Type | Anti-tank missile launcher |
| Place of origin |
Sweden United Kingdom |
| Service history | |
| Used by |
Sweden United Kingdom Luxembourg Finland |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Saab Bofors Dynamics |
| Designed | May 2002 |
| Manufacturer | Thales Air Defence |
| Produced | 2009 |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 12.5 kg |
| Length | 1016 mm |
| Crew | One |
|
|
|
| Calibre | 150 mm Warhead |
| Muzzle velocity | 40 m/s to Subsonic |
| Effective firing range | 20 m to 600 m |
| Maximum firing range | 1000 m |
The Main Battle Tank and Light Anti-tank Weapon (MBT LAW), also known as the NLAW, is a joint British and Swedish short-range fire-and-forget anti-tank missile system. Designed for use by infantry, the MBT LAW is shoulder fired and disposable, firing once before being disposed of. It is currently in use with the military forces of the United Kingdom, Finland, Luxembourg, and Sweden.
The MBT LAW was developed by Saab Bofors Dynamics and Thales Air Defence in consolidation with the Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom) in 2002. The development is a joint venture between the UK and Sweden using technology derived from the BILL 2 (warhead and guidance), and AT4 CS (confined space capability) systems. The UK MoD Defence Procurement Agency will procure the systems for both the UK and Sweden, with Sweden signing a contract for the weapon in December 2005 where it will be designated the "RB (Robot) 57". It has been estimated that the UK requirement may be for up to 20,000 systems for the British Armed Forces and each system has a shelf life of around 20 years. In December 2007, Finland placed an order for an undisclosed number of NLAW systems. An additional (undisclosed) number was ordered in December 2008. It is a soft-launch system, allowing it to be used by infantry from within an enclosed space. In this system, the missile is first launched out of the launcher using a low powered ignition. After the missile travels several meters into flight, its main rocket ignition occurs, which propels the missile from there on, to the target. Guidance is obtained using predicted line of sight (PLOS); for a moving target, the gunner maintains tracking for three seconds, training the missile's guidance electronics to compute the target's angular speed. After launch the missile flies autonomously to the target adjusting the necessary corrections according to the data acquired by the tracking. It is unnecessary for the gunner to consider the range to the target. After launch the missile's position in its trajectory always coincides with the target irrespective of range.
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