Type 69 RPG

Norinco Type 69 RPG
A Type 69 RPG and a pair of Type 56-2 assault rifles.
Type	Anti-tank, anti-personnel, rocket-propelled grenade
Place of origin	China
Service history
In service	1970–Present
Used by	See Operators
Wars	Vietnam War Laotian civil war Cambodian Civil War Cambodian–Vietnamese War Sino-Vietnamese War Soviet war in Afghanistan Iran–Iraq War Sri Lankan Civil War War on Terror Iraq War 2008 Cambodian-Thai stand-off Syrian civil war
Production history
Designer	Norinco
Designed	1970
Manufacturer	Norinco
Variants	Type 69-I
Specifications
Weight	5.6 kg (12.3 lb)
Length	910 mm (35.8 in)
Crew	1 or 2, depending on situation
Cartridge	40 mm (1.57") barrel 85mm warhead
Effective firing range	200 m (656 ft)
Maximum firing range	600 m (1,968 ft)
Feed system	one round per shot
Sights	Iron sights. Infrared and night vision sights possible

The Type 69 85mm rocket propelled grenade (RPG), made by Norinco, is a Chinese copy of the RPG-7. First introduced in the early 1970s, the Type 69 RPG is a common individual anti-tank weapon in service with the PLA. New types of grenade rounds were developed in the 1980s and 1990s to meet the requirements of modern battlefields.

The Type 69, like its predecessor the RPG-7, is one of the most popular infantry anti-tank and general support weapons in the world. It is robust, cheap, easy to operate and effective. The weapon is well liked by many infantrymen and guerrillas around the world.

The origin of the RPG can be traced back to the World War II German Panzerfaust, on which the Soviets based a range of grenade launchers. Among the most successful designs is the RPG-7, which was first fielded by the Soviet Red Army in 1961. Since then, the weapon has entered service with over 40 countries' armies, and is copied in many countries including Albania, Algeria, Bangladesh, Bulgaria, Cambodia, China, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Iran, Iraq, Myanmar, North Korea, Pakistan, Romania, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam.

China first obtained the RPG-2 85mm anti-tank RPG in the early 1950s, and began to build Chinese copies in 1957 under the designation Type 56. However, the rapid development of the new generation main battle tanks (MBTs) in the early 1960s posed new threats to the PLA, which was later proven in the 1969 Sino-Soviet border conflict. Because the Type 56 was unable to penetrate the armour of the new generation Soviet tanks such as the T-62, the PLA desperately needed a new individual anti-tank weapon to replace the aging Type 56.

Reverse-engineering of the RPG-7 began in the early 1960s, and demonstrations were made to senior PLA officials in 1964. The Chinese copy of the RPG-7, designated Type 69, received its design certificate in 1970. The weapon entered service with the PLA in the mid-1970s, and took part in the 1979 Sino-Vietnam border conflict to provide platoon-level anti-personnel and anti-obstacle fire support. Its performance was highly praised by the troops.