View source for Bazooka

{{Short description|Man-portable recoilless rocket antitank weapon}}
{{About|the weapon|the namesake musical instrument|Bazooka (instrument)|other uses|Bazooka (disambiguation)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2021}}
{{Use American English|date=July 2020}}
{{Infobox weapon
|name = Bazooka
|image = Soldier with Bazooka M1.jpg
|image_size = 300
|caption = M1 Bazooka
|origin = United States
|type = Recoilless rocket anti-tank weapon
<!-- Type selection -->
|is_ranged = yes
|is_explosive =yes
|is_artillery =yes
<!-- Service history -->
|service = 1942–present{{fact|date=September 2024}}
|used_by = See {{section link||Users}}
|wars =
*[[World War II]]
*[[Chinese Civil War]]
*[[First Indochina War]]
*[[Korean War]]
* [[Algerian War]]
*[[Vietnam War]]
*[[Operation Vantage]]{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}}
*[[The Troubles]]
* [[Bay of Pigs Invasion]]
*[[Yom Kippur War]]<ref name ="israel"/>
*[[Iran-Iraq War]]
*[[Falklands War]]
<!-- Production history -->
|designer = [[Edward Uhl]]<ref name=UHL/>
|design_date = 1942
|manufacturer =
|production_date= June 1942 – May 1945 (2.36 inch Bazookas)
|number = {{ubl|112,790 (M1){{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=17}} |59,932 (M1A1){{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=19}} |6,087 (M9){{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=20}} |277,819 (M9A1){{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=20}} |Unknown (M20) |1,500 (M25){{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=29}}}}
|variants =
<!-- General specifications -->
|weight =
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<!-- Ranged weapon specifications -->
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|sights =
<!-- Artillery specifications -->
|breech =
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The '''Bazooka''' ({{IPAc-en|b|ə|ˈ|z|uː|k|ə}})<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/bazooka|title=bazooka noun – Definition, pictures, pronunciation and usage notes|website=Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary}}</ref> is a [[Man-portable anti-tank systems|man-portable]] recoilless [[Anti-tank warfare|anti-tank]] [[rocket launcher]] weapon, widely deployed by the [[United States Army]], especially during [[World War II]]. Also referred to as the "stovepipe", the innovative Bazooka was among the first generation of [[rocket-propelled grenade|rocket-propelled]] anti-tank weapons used in [[infantry]] combat. Featuring a [[solid-propellant rocket]] for propulsion, it allowed for [[high-explosive anti-tank]] (HEAT) [[shaped charge]] warheads to be delivered against [[Vehicle armour|armored vehicles]], [[machine gun]] nests, and fortified [[bunker]]s at ranges beyond that of a standard thrown [[grenade]] or [[land mine|mine]]. The universally applied nickname arose from the weapon's '''M1''' variant's vague resemblance to the musical instrument called a ''[[Bazooka (instrument)|bazooka]]'' invented and popularized by 1930s American comedian [[Bob Burns (humorist)|Bob Burns]].
During [[World War II]], the [[Nazi Germany|German]] armed forces captured several Bazookas in early North African<ref name="MC 2008"/> and Eastern Front encounters and soon [[Reverse engineering|reverse engineered]] their own version,<ref name="MC 2008"/> increasing the warhead diameter to 8.8&nbsp;cm (among other minor changes) and widely issuing it as the ''Raketenpanzerbüchse'' "[[Panzerschreck]]" ("rocket anti-armor rifle 'tank terror{{'"}}).<ref name="MC 2008"/> Near the end of the war, the Japanese developed a similar weapon, the [[Type 4 70 mm AT rocket launcher]], which featured a rocket-propelled grenade of a different design.<ref>{{cite book |last=Rottman |first=Gordon L. |year=2014 |title=''Panzerfaust'' and ''Panzerschreck'' |isbn=978-1782007883 |publisher=Osprey Publishing}}</ref> During the [[Korean War]], the M1 and '''M9''' Bazooka series was replaced by the larger caliber '''M20 Super Bazooka'''.
The term "bazooka" still sees informal use as a [[generic trademark|generic term]]<ref name="gen">{{cite web |url=https://www.genericides.org/trademark/bazooka |title=Has bazooka become a generic trademark? |access-date=January 28, 2021 |website= genericides.org}}</ref> referring to any [[shoulder-fired missile|shoulder fired]] ground-to-ground/[[Man-portable air-defense system|ground-to-air]] missile weapon (mainly rocket-propelled grenade launchers or [[recoilless rifle]]s), and as an expression that ''heavy measures'' are being taken.<ref name="gen"/>
==Name==
The name "bazooka" comes from an extension of the word ''[[:wiktionary:bazoo|bazoo]]'', which is slang for "mouth" or "boastful talk", and which ultimately probably stems from the Dutch ''bazuin'' ([[buisine]], a medieval trumpet).<ref name="etymonline/bazooka">{{cite web |last1=Harper |first1=Douglas |title=bazooka : Etymology, origin and meaning |url=http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=bazooka |website=Online Etymology Dictionary |access-date=11 February 2023 |language=en}}</ref> The word ''bazooka'' appears in the 1909 novel ''The Swoop, or how Clarence Saved England'' by [[P. G. Wodehouse]], describing the character Grand Duke Vodkakoff and a musical instrument used in music halls:{{citation needed|date=December 2020|reason=The word appears once, and the context makes it sound much more like a body part than a music hall instrument: ''the 'aughty kind of a feller who'd cleave you to the bazooka for tuppence with his bloomin' falchion'' https://www.gutenberg.org/files/7050/7050-h/7050-h.htm}} "I shouldn't 'arf wonder, from the look of him, if he wasn't the 'aughty kind of a feller who'd cleave you to the bazooka for [[Twopence (British pre-decimal coin)|tuppence]] with his bloomin' [[falchion]]."<ref name="gutenberg/7050">{{cite book |last1=Wodehouse |first1=P. G. (Pelham Grenville) |author1-link=P. G. Wodehouse |title=The Swoop! or, How Clarence Saved England: A Tale of the Great Invasion |date=1909 |url=https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/7050 |access-date=11 February 2023 |language=English |quote=1 December 2004}}</ref>
During World War II, "Bazooka" became the universally applied nickname of the new American [[anti-tank weapon]], due to its vague resemblance to the [[bazooka (instrument)|musical instrument]] invented and popularized by 1930s American comedian [[Bob Burns (humorist)|Bob Burns]].<ref>{{cite book|last=van der Sijs|first=Nicoline|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qIsDdUSYJMIC&pg=PA271|title=Cookies, Coleslaw, and Stoops: The Influence of Dutch on the North American Languages|page=271|year=2009|publisher=[[Amsterdam University Press]]|via=[[Google Books]]|isbn=978-9-0896-4124-3|access-date=December 14, 2017}}</ref>{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=16}}
Shortly after the first prototype launcher and rockets had been tested by firing into the [[Potomac River]], U.S. Army colonel [[Leslie Skinner]], and Lieutenant Colonel [[Edward Uhl]] took the new system to a competitive trial of various types of [[spigot mortar]] (at that time seen as the most promising way to deliver a shaped charge), which was held at the Aberdeen Proving Ground in May 1942. The new rocket launcher scored several hits on a moving tank while the five different mortars achieved none; this was a considerable achievement since the launcher's sights had been fabricated that morning from a wire coat hanger bent with a broken nail.{{Sfn|Rottman|2012|p=27}} The trial was being watched by various senior officers, among them the chief of research and engineering in the [[Ordnance Department]], Major General [[Gladeon M. Barnes]]. Barnes was delighted by the performance of the system and fired it himself, but commented: "It sure looks like Bob Burns' bazooka".{{sfn|Hoffman|2011| pp= 77–78}}{{sfn|Rottman|2012|pp=14–15}}
==History==
===Design and development===
The development of the Bazooka involved the development of two specific lines of technology: the rocket-powered weapon and the [[shaped charge]] warhead. It was also designed for easy maneuverability and access.
====World War I====
This rocket-powered weapon was the brainchild of [[Robert H. Goddard]] as a side project (under U.S. Army contract during World War I) of his work on rocket propulsion. Goddard, during his tenure at [[Clark University]], and while working at [[Worcester Polytechnic Institute]]'s magnetic lab and [[Mount Wilson Observatory]] (for security reasons), designed a tube-fired rocket for military use. He and his co-worker [[Clarence N. Hickman]] successfully demonstrated his rocket to the [[Signal Corps (United States Army)|U.S. Army Signal Corps]] at [[Aberdeen Proving Ground]], Maryland, on November 6, 1918, but as the [[Armistice with Germany (Compiègne)|Compiègne Armistice]] was signed only five days later, development was discontinued. The project was also interrupted by Goddard's serious bout with [[tuberculosis]]. He continued to be a part-time consultant to the U.S. government at [[Indian Head, Maryland]], until 1923, but turned his focus to other projects involving rocket propulsion. Hickman completed the development of the Bazooka after becoming head of the [[National Defense Research Committee]] in the 1940s, where he guided rocket development for the war effort.<ref name="gruntman">{{cite book |title=Blazing the Trail: The Early History of Spacecraft and Rocketry |author=Mike Gruntman |author-link=Mike Gruntman |date=July 30, 2004 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2XY9KXxF8OEC&pg=PA178|publisher=American Institute of Aeronautics & Ast |page=178 |isbn=978-1563477058}}</ref>
====Shaped charge development====
[[Shaped charge]] technology was developed in the U.S. into a shaped charge [[anti-tank grenade]] for use by infantry, effective at defeating up to 60&nbsp;mm (2.4&nbsp;in) of [[vehicle armor]]. The grenade was standardized as the M10. However, the M10 grenade weighed 3.5&nbsp;lb (1.6&nbsp;kg), proving difficult to throw by hand and too heavy to be launched as a [[rifle grenade]]. The only practical way to use the weapon was for an infantryman to place it directly on the tank, a dangerous and unlikely means of delivery in most combat situations. A smaller, less powerful, version of the M10, the [[M9 rifle grenade|M9]], was then developed, which could be fired from a rifle. This resulted in the creation of a series of rifle grenade launchers, the M1 ([[M1903 Springfield|Springfield M1903]]), the M2 ([[M1917 Enfield|Enfield M1917]]), the [[M7 grenade launcher|M7]] ([[M1 Garand]]), and the M8 ([[M1 carbine]]). However, a truly capable anti-tank weapon had yet to be found, and following the lead of other countries at the time, the U.S. Army prepared to evaluate competing designs for a more effective man-portable anti-tank weapon.<ref name="Bayonet Strength">{{cite web |website=Bayonet Strength |title=Infantry Anti-Tank Weapons |url-status= dead |url=http://www.bayonetstrength.150m.com/Weapons/infantryantitank/infantry_anti_tank_weapons.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080731165237/http://www.bayonetstrength.150m.com/Weapons/infantryantitank/infantry_anti_tank_weapons.htm |archive-date=July 31, 2008}}</ref>{{Sfn|Green|Green|2000|pp=36–37}} The combination of rocket motor and shaped charge warhead led to the Army's development of light antitank weapons.<ref>{{cite book |last=Zaloga |first=Steven J. |title=US Anti-tank Artillery 1941–45 |place=Oxford |publisher=Osprey |year=2005 |page=8 |series=New vanguard |volume=107 |isbn=9781841766904}}</ref>
====Rocket-borne shaped charge weapons development====
[[File:Bell telephone magazine (1922) (14569350208).jpg|thumb|A prototype of the world's first "tube-type rocket-propelled grenade launcher", the grip part of the "Original Bazooka" is marked "May 1942" and is signed by the development team including Hickman, Skinner, and Uhl]]
In 1942, U.S. Army Colonel [[Leslie Skinner]] received the M10 shaped-charge grenade which was capable of stopping German tanks. He gave Lieutenant [[Edward Uhl]] the task of creating a delivery system for the grenade. Uhl created a small rocket, but needed to protect the operator from the rocket motor's exhaust. According to Uhl:
{{blockquote|I was walking by this scrap pile, and there was a tube that... happened to be the same size as the grenade that we were turning into a rocket. I said, That's the answer! Put the tube on a soldier's shoulder with the rocket inside, and away it goes.<ref name=UHL>{{Cite magazine |last=Scales |first=Robert |date=May 31, 2010 |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1990849,00.html |title=Edward Uhl |magazine=Time |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100523162739/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1990849,00.html |archive-date=May 23, 2010}}</ref>}}
[[File:Bazookasmithsonian.jpg|thumb|An M1 Bazooka with M6A1 and M6A3 rockets]]
At the launcher's first firing test, Uhl wore a [[welding helmet]], but discovered that there was not enough exhaust from the rocket to require protective equipment. The prototype launcher was demonstrated in May 1942 at a competitive trial of various types of [[spigot mortar]]s at Aberdeen Proving Ground. On the morning of the trial Skinner and Uhl realised that the launcher had no sights, so they improvised some from a wire coathanger; despite this, it was the only weapon in the trial to be able to hit a moving tank. This led to the launcher being demonstrated to General [[George C. Marshall]], the [[Chief of Staff of the United States Army]], who ordered 5,000 units on the spot.{{sfn|Hoffman|2011|pp=76-78}} By late 1942, the improved ''Rocket launcher, M1A1'' was introduced. The forward hand grip was deleted, and the design simplified. The production M1A1 was 55&nbsp;inches (1.37 m) long and weighed 12.75 pounds (5.8&nbsp;kg).
The ammunition for the original M1 launcher was the M6 ("trials" code: T1), which was notoriously unreliable. The M6 was improved and designated ''M6A1'', and the new ammunition was issued with the improved M1A1 launcher. After the M6, several alternative warheads were introduced. Many older M1 launchers were modified to M1A1 standards in July and August 1943. Batches of M6 rockets designated ''M6A2'' were overhauled with the latest ignition systems and had been modified to be able to be fired from the upgraded M1 launchers.{{sfn|Zaloga|2016|p={{page needed|date=July 2022}}}} The M6A3 rocket featured a blunt, rounded nose to lessen the chances of it ricocheting off angled armor. The M6A3 was meant to be fired from the M9, and later M9A1, launchers. Late in World War II, the M6A4 and M6A5 rockets with improved fuses were developed. These rockets arrived too late to see service during the war, but were used post-war.
The 2.36 inch (60&nbsp;mm) smoke rocket M10 and its improved subvariants (M10A1, M10A2, M10A4) used the rocket motor and fin assembly of the M6A1, but replaced the anti-tank warhead with a [[white phosphorus munitions|white phosphorus]] (WP) smoke head. WP smoke not only acts as a visibility screen, but its burning particles can cause severe injuries to skin. The M10 was therefore used to mark targets, to blind enemy gunners or vehicle drivers, or to drive troops out of bunkers and dugouts.<ref>{{Citation |last=Smith |first=Carl |title=US Paratrooper, 1941–45 |publisher=Osprey |year=2000 |isbn=978-1-85532-842-6 |page=63}}.</ref> The 2.36-inch incendiary rocket T31 was an M10 variant with an incendiary warhead designed to ignite fires in enemy-held structures and unarmored vehicles, or to destroy combustible supplies, ammunition, and [[materiel]]; it was not often utilized.
The original M1 and M1A1 rocket launchers were equipped with simple fixed sights and used launch tubes without reinforcements. During the war, the M1A1 received a number of running modifications. The battery specification was changed to a larger, standard battery cell size, resulting in complaints of batteries getting stuck in the wood shoulder rest (the compartment was later reamed out to accommodate the larger cells).{{Sfn|Dunlap|1948|pp=304–305}} The M1 and M1A1 used rear iron sights and front rectangular "ladder" sights positioned at the muzzles. The vertical sides of the ladder sight were inscribed with graduations of 100, 200, 300, and 400 yards, with the user elevating the Bazooka so the rear sight lined up with the selected "rung" on the front sight. On the M9, the ladder sight was replaced by the General Electric T43 aperture sight. Ranging was accomplished by looking through the rear sight's peep hole while rotating the assembly (which had graduations of 100, 200, and 300 yards) so it lined up with the blade positioned at the muzzle. In September 1944, during the production of the M9A1, the T43 sight was replaced by the Polaroid T90 optical reflector sight, which used an etched [[reticle]] for aiming. The T43 and T90 sights were interchangeable.{{sfn|Zaloga|2016|p={{page needed|date=July 2022}}}} Various types of blast deflectors were tried, and an additional strap iron shoulder brace was fitted to the M9 launcher.
The Bazooka required special care when used in tropical or arctic climates or in severe dust or sand conditions. Rockets were not to be fired at temperatures below 0&nbsp;°F or above 120&nbsp;°F (−18&nbsp;°C to +49&nbsp;°C).<ref name="tm9294">{{Citation |publisher=US War Department |url=http://www.lonesentry.com/manuals/bazooka/ |title=TM 9-294: 2.36-inch A.T. Rocket Launcher M1A1 |date=September 1943}}.</ref>
====Field experience-induced changes====
In 1943, field reports of rockets sticking and prematurely detonating in M1A1 launch tubes were received by Army Ordnance at Ogden Arsenal and other production facilities. At the U.S. Army's Aberdeen Proving Grounds, various metal collars and wire wrapping were used on the sheet metal launch tube in an effort to reinforce it. However, reports of premature detonation continued until the development of bore slug [[Go/no go gauge|test gauges]] to ensure that the rocket did not catch inside the launch tube.<ref>{{Citation |last=Keith |first=Elmer |title=Hell, I Was There |publisher=Petersen Publishing |year=1979 |isbn=978-0-8227-3014-9 |pages=184–91}}.</ref>
The original M6 and M6A1 rockets used in the M1 and M1A1 launchers had pointed noses, which were found to cause [[Deflection (ballistics)|deflection]] from the target at low impact angles. In late 1943, another 2.36-in rocket type was adopted, the M6A3, for use with the newly standardized M9 rocket launcher.<ref name="Bayonet Strength"/> The M6A3 was 19.4&nbsp;inches (493&nbsp;mm) long, and weighed 3.38&nbsp;lb (1.53&nbsp;kg). It had a blunted, more round nose to improve target effect at low angles, and a new circular fin assembly to improve flight stability. The M6A3 was capable of penetrating {{convert|3.5|-|4|in}} of armor plate.
Battery problems in the early Bazookas eventually resulted in replacement of the battery-powered ignition system with a [[ignition magneto|magneto sparker system]] operated through the trigger. A trigger safety was incorporated into the design that isolated the magneto, preventing misfires that could occur when the trigger was released and the stored charge prematurely fired the rocket. The final major change was the division of the launch tube into two discrete sections, with bayonet-joint attachments. This was done to make the weapon more convenient to carry, particularly for use by airborne forces. The final two-piece launcher was standardized as the M9A1. In September 1944, the fragile folding aperture sight was replaced by a Polaroid optical reflector sight.{{sfn|Zaloga|2016|p={{page needed|date=July 2022}}}} However, the long list of incorporated modifications increased the launcher's tube length to 61&nbsp;inches (1.55 m), with an overall empty weight of 14.3&nbsp;lb (6.5&nbsp;kg). From its original conception as a relatively light, handy, and disposable weapon, the final M9A1 launcher had become a heavy, clumsy, and relatively complex piece of equipment.{{Sfn |Dunlap |1948 |pp=304}}{{dubious|date=March 2017}}
In October 1944, after receiving reports of inadequate combat effect of the M1A1 and M9 launchers and their M6A1 rockets, and after examining captured examples of the German 8.8&nbsp;cm RPzB 43 and RPzB 54 [[Panzerschreck]], the U.S. Ordnance Corps began development on a new, more powerful anti-tank rocket launcher, the 3.5-inch (90&nbsp;mm) M20. However, the weapon's design was not completed until after the war and saw no action against an enemy until the Korean War.{{Sfn |Green |Green |2000 |pp=38–39}}
In 1945, the U.S. Army's [[Chemical Corps (United States Army)|Chemical Warfare Service]] standardized improved chemical warfare rockets intended for the new M9 and M9A1 launchers, the Army adopted the M26 gas rocket, a [[cyanogen chloride]] (CK)-filled warhead for the 2.36-in rocket launcher.<ref name="Smart, Jeffrey 1997 p. 40">{{Citation |last=Smart |first=Jeffrey |title=History of Chemical and Biological Warfare: An American Perspective |chapter=2 |place=Aberdeen, MD, United States |publisher=Army Chemical and Biological Defense Command |year=1997 |page=40}}.</ref> CK, a deadly blood agent, was capable of penetrating the protective filter barriers in some gas masks,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/ershdb/emergencyresponsecard_29750039.html|title=CDC – The Emergency Response Safety and Health Database: Systemic Agent: CYANOGEN CHLORIDE (CK) – NIOSH|date=September 27, 2018|website=www.cdc.gov}}</ref> and was seen as an effective agent against Japanese forces (particularly those hiding in caves or bunkers), whose gas masks lacked the impregnants that would provide protection against the chemical reaction of CK.<ref name="Smart, Jeffrey 1997 p. 40"/><ref>{{Citation |title=Field Manual 3–5 |contribution=Characteristics and Employment of Ground Chemical Munitions |place=Washington, DC |publisher=War Department |year=1946 |pages=108–19}}.</ref><ref>{{Citation |last=Skates |first=John R |title=The Invasion of Japan: Alternative to the Bomb |publisher=University of South Carolina Press |year=2000 |isbn=978-1-57003-354-4 |pages=93–96}}</ref> While stockpiled in US inventory, the CK rocket was never deployed or issued to combat personnel.<ref name="Smart, Jeffrey 1997 p. 40"/>
====Aviation use====
Following [[Operation Overlord]] in 1944, the military version of the slow-flying [[Piper J-3 Cub]] high-wing civilian monoplane, the L-4 Grasshopper, began to be used in a light anti-armor role by a few U.S. Army artillery spotter units over France; these aircraft were field-outfitted with either two or four Bazookas attached to the [[lift strut]]s,<ref name="Francis, Devon E. 1973 p. 117"/> against German armored fighting vehicles.
Upon arriving [[Operation Overlord|in France in 1944]], U.S. Army major, [[Charles Carpenter (pilot)|Charles Carpenter]], an Army aviator flying liaison and artillery-spotting lightplanes like the military version of the Piper J-3 Cub, the L-4 Grasshopper, was issued a new L-4H version during the concluding stages of "Overlord", taking this "light attack" role against German armor by himself. With a 150-pound pilot and no radio aboard, the L-4H had a combined cargo and passenger weight capacity of approximately 232 pounds.<ref>''[http://www.pipercubforum.com/balance.htm Piper Cub Weight & Balance Calculation]'', retrieved October 24, 2011</ref><ref name="MtgBf">Fountain, Paul, ''The Maytag Messerschmitts'', Flying Magazine, March 1945, p. 90.</ref> This margin allowed him to eventually mount a total of six Bazookas, three per side on the lift struts as other L-4s had done.<ref name="Francis, Devon E. 1973 p. 117">{{cite book|last=Francis|first= Devon E.|title=Mr. Piper and His Cubs|publisher= Iowa State University Press<!--|isbn=0-8138-1250-X-->|isbn= 9780813812502 |year=1973|page= 117}}.</ref><ref name="PM_PCtankbuster">{{cite magazine |title=Piper Cub Tank Buster |date=February 1945 |journal=[[Popular Science]] |location=New York |publisher=Popular Science Publishing Company |volume=146 |number=2 |page=84 |issn=0161-7370}}</ref>
Within a few weeks, Carpenter was credited with knocking out a German armored car and four tanks. Carpenter's plane was known as "Rosie the Rocketer", and his exploits were soon featured in many press accounts, including ''[[Stars and Stripes (newspaper)|Stars and Stripes]]'', the [[Associated Press]], ''[[Popular Science]]'', ''[[The New York Sun]]'', and ''[[Liberty (general interest magazine)|Liberty]]'' magazine. Carpenter once told a reporter that his idea of fighting a war was to "attack, attack and then attack again".<ref>Gallagher, Wes, ''Major Charles Carpenter, Once History Teacher, Now Legend in Patton's Army'', The Rock Island Argus, September 26, 1944</ref> During the critical late-September [[Battle of Arracourt]], Carpenter managed to achieve disabling hits on several German armored cars and two [[Panther tank]]s, along with killing or wounding a dozen or more enemy soldiers.<ref name="MtgBf"/><ref>''Puddle-Jumped Panzers'', Newsweek, Newsweek Inc., Vol. 24, Part 2 (October 2, 1944), p. 31.</ref> {{dubious|date=March 2017}}
In the opening months of the [[Korean War]], in August 1950, a joint U.S. Navy and Marine Corps test used a newly acquired [[Bell H-13 Sioux|Bell HTL-4]] helicopter to test if a Bazooka could be fired from a helicopter in flight. One of the larger, 3.5 inch, models of the Bazooka was chosen, and was mounted ahead and to the right of the helicopter to allow the door to remain clear. The Bazooka was successfully tested, although it was discovered that it would require shielding for the engine compartment, which was exposed in the model 47 and other early helicopters. The helicopter itself belonged to HMX-1, a marine experimental helicopter squadron.<ref>''Helicopter Gunships: Deadly Combat Weapon Systems'', Wayne Mutza, pp. 13–14.</ref>
===Operational use===
====World War II====
[[File:American soldier with M1A1 Bazooka on 23 August 1944 near Fontainebleau, France, from- American Troops near Fontainebleau NARA 111-SC-193562cropped (cropped).jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|American soldier with M1A1 bazooka on August 23, 1944, near Fontainebleau, France]]
In September 1942, a consignment of 600 M1 Bazookas was shipped to Egypt for use by the British Army in the [[Western Desert campaign]]. In a demonstration to British commanders, a Bazooka penetrated the frontal armor of a captured [[Panzer III]]; however it was decided that the desert terrain lacked the concealment required for such a short range weapon and it was not deployed in that theater.{{Sfn|Mayo|1968|p=31}} In November 1942 during [[Operation Torch]], early production versions of the M1 launcher and M6 rocket were hastily supplied to some of the U.S. invasion forces during the landings in [[North Africa]]. On the night before the landings, General [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]] was shocked to discover from a subordinate that none of his troops had received any instruction in the use of the Bazooka.{{Sfn|Green|Green|2000|p=38}}
Initially supplied with the highly unreliable M6 rocket and without training for its operators, the M1 did not play a significant armed role in combat in the North African fighting,{{Sfn|Green|Green|2000 |pp=38–39}} but did provide a German intelligence coup<ref name="MC 2008"/> when some were captured by the Germans in early encounters with inexperienced U.S. troops. A U.S. general visiting the Tunisian front in 1943 after the close of combat operations could not find any soldiers who could report that the weapon had actually stopped an enemy tank.{{Sfn|Green |Green|2000|pp=38–39}} Further issue of the Bazooka was suspended in May 1943.
[[File:Luccaitaly1944.png|thumb|left|A U.S. soldier fires an M9 Bazooka at a German machine gun nest, [[Lucca]] 1944]]
During the Allied invasion of Sicily, small numbers of the M1A1 Bazooka (using an improved rocket, the M6A1) were used in combat by U.S. forces. The M1A1 accounted for four medium German tanks and a heavy [[Tiger I]], with the latter being knocked out by an improbable hit through the driver's vision slot.{{Sfn |Green |Green |2000 |pp=38–39}}
When the existence of the Bazooka was revealed to the American public, official press releases for the first two years stated that it "packed the wallop of a 155 mm cannon"—a great exaggeration.<ref>{{Citation |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=It8DAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA64 |title=Popular Mechanics |date=January 1944|publisher=Hearst Magazines|page=64}}</ref>
In late 1942, numbers of early-production American M1 Bazookas were captured by German troops from Red Army forces who had been given quantities of the Bazooka under [[lend-lease]]. There were also examples captured during the Operation Torch invasions in the North African Campaign.<ref name="MC 2008"/> The Germans promptly developed their own version of the weapon called the ''Panzerschreck'', increasing the diameter of the warhead from 60&nbsp;mm to 88&nbsp;mm (2.4 to 3.5 in), which as a result, gave it significantly greater armor penetration. During U.S. trials of the M1, calls for a larger-diameter warhead had also been raised by some ordnance officers but were rejected. Later in the war, after participating in an armor penetration test involving a German Panther tank using both the ''Raketenpanzerbüchse'', or RPzB 54 ''Panzerschreck'' and the U.S. M9 Bazooka, Corporal Donald E. Lewis of the U.S. Army informed his superiors that the ''Panzerschreck'' was "far superior to the American Bazooka": 'I was so favorably impressed [by the ''Panzerschreck''] I was ready to take after the Krauts with their own weapon.'{{Sfn |Green |Green |2000 |p=39}}
<!-- Commented out: [[File:Bazooka Charlie.jpg|thumb|right|Major Carpenter with the six-launcher armed ''Rosie the Rocketer'']] -->
The M1 Bazooka fared much better on the rare occasions when it could be used against the much thinner armor typically fitted to the lower sides, undersides, and tops of enemy tanks. To hit the bottom of an enemy tank, the Bazooka operator had to wait until the tank was surmounting a steep hill or other obstruction, while hitting the top armor usually necessitated firing the rocket from the upper story of a building or a similar, elevated, position. Even the heavy [[Tiger II|King Tiger]] tank only possessed hull and turret top armor of [[Tiger II#Specifications|44 mm]] ({{fraction|1|3|4}} in) thickness at best, able to be pierced by the Bazooka's shaped-charge rocket. During the 1944 Allied offensive in France, when some examples of liaison aircraft with the U.S. Army began to be experimentally field-armed, and were already flying with pairs or quartets of the American ordnance<ref name="Francis, Devon E. 1973 p. 117"/>—and most notably used during the [[Battle of Arracourt#Battle|Battle of Arracourt]]—Major Charles "Bazooka Charlie" Carpenter mounted a battery of three M9 Bazookas on the [[Lift strut|wing-to-fuselage struts]] on each side of his [[L-4 Grasshopper]] aircraft to [[Plunging fire|attack enemy armor]], and was credited with destroying six enemy tanks, including two Tiger I heavy tanks.<ref name="PM_PCtankbuster"/><ref>{{Citation |last=Carpenter |first=Leland F |url=http://www.aero-web.org/specs/piper/l-4j.htm |contribution=Piper L-4J Grasshopper |title=Aviation Enthusiast Corner |access-date=October 21, 2011 |publisher=Aero Web |url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110904052344/http://www.aero-web.org/specs/piper/l-4j.htm |archive-date=September 4, 2011}}.</ref> In the hands of American infantry the Bazooka still enjoyed rare successes against heavy Nazi armored fighting vehicles. In 1945, during the failed [[Operation Nordwind]] offensive, a Bazooka team managed the unlikely achievement of destroying a [[Jagdtiger]] heavy tank destroyer, the most heavily armored fighting vehicle in World War Two. The team managed to do this by positioning themselves to get a shot at the massive vehicle's thinner side armor, scoring a direct hit on the ammunition bustle and causing a [[catastrophic kill]]. This incident shows that when correctly aimed at vulnerable points on vehicles the Bazooka could still be effective against even the largest of armored vehicles, though it required significant skill to accomplish.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Wiley |first1=David |title=Tank Chats: Jagdtiger |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xv9QAXPJVSc&t=905s |via=YouTube |publisher=The Tank Museum |access-date=August 10, 2020 |url-status=live |archive-date=2021-12-11 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/xv9QAXPJVSc}}{{cbignore}} {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190624012323/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xv9QAXPJVSc&gl=US&hl=en |date=2019-06-24}}{{cbignore}}</ref>
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-708-0299-06, Russland-Süd, Soldaten, Sturmgeschütz III.jpg|thumb|right|A German [[StuG III]] with ''Schürzen'' armor skirts]]
In a letter dated May 20, 1944, General [[George S. Patton]] stated to a colleague that "the purpose of the Bazooka is not to hunt tanks offensively, but to be used as a last resort in keeping tanks from overrunning infantry. To insure this, the range should be held to around 30 yards."{{Sfn|Green|Green|2000|pp=38–39}}
In the Pacific campaign, as in North Africa, the original Bazookas sent to combat often had reliability issues. The battery-operated firing circuit was easily damaged during rough handling, and the rocket motors often failed because of high temperatures and exposure to moisture, salt air, or humidity. With the introduction of the M1A1 and its more reliable rocket ammunition, the Bazooka was effective against some fixed Japanese infantry emplacements such as small concrete bunkers and [[Pillbox (military)|pillboxes]].<ref>{{Citation |last=Rottman |first=Gordon L |title=US Airborne Units in the Pacific Theater 1942–45 |publisher=Osprey |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-84603-128-1 |page=43}}.</ref><ref>{{Citation |last=Harclerode |first=Peter |title=Wings of War–Airborne Warfare 1918–1945 |publisher=Weidenfeld & Nicolson |year=2005 |isbn=0-304-36730-3 |pages=332–33}}.</ref> Against coconut and sand emplacements, the weapon was not always effective, as these softer structures often reduced the force of the warhead's impact enough to prevent detonation of the explosive charge.{{Sfn |Kleber |Birdsell |2001 |pp=549–54}} Later in the Pacific war, Army and Marine units often used the [[M2 flamethrower]] to attack such emplacements.{{Sfn |Kleber |Birdsell |2001 |pp=549–54}} In the few instances in the Pacific where the Bazooka was used against tanks and armored vehicles, the rocket's warhead easily penetrated the thin armor plate used by the Japanese and destroyed the vehicle.<ref>{{Citation |last1=Green |first1=Michael |last2=Stewart |first2=Greg |title=Weapons of the Modern Marines |publisher=Zenith Imprint Press |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-7603-1697-9 |page=45}}.</ref> Overall, the M1A1, M9, and M9A1 rocket launchers were viewed as useful and effective weapons during World War II, though they had been primarily employed against enemy emplacements and fixed fortifications, not as anti-tank weapons.{{Sfn|Green|Green|2000|p=39}} General Dwight Eisenhower later described it as one of the four "tools of victory" which won World War II for the Allies (together with the [[atom bomb]], [[Willys MB|Jeep]] and the [[C-47 Skytrain]] transport aircraft).<ref>{{cite web |title=The US Forces included Navy, Army, Army Air Force and Marine Corps |publisher=Digger history |url=http://www.diggerhistory.info/pages-uniforms/usa.htm |access-date=November 19, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 12, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081212014023/http://www.diggerhistory.info/pages-uniforms/usa.htm}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Douglas VC-47A Skytrain DC-3 |work=Aircraft |publisher=March field |url-status=dead |url=http://www.marchfield.org/vc47a.htm |access-date=November 19, 2008 |archive-date=December 3, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081203114143/http://www.marchfield.org/vc47a.htm}}</ref>
During the war, Bazookas were lend-leased to the United Kingdom, Brazil, Canada, China, and [[Free French]] forces as well as the [[Soviet Union]]. Some were supplied to French ''[[Maquis (World War II)|maquis]]'' and [[Yugoslav partisans]].{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=38}}
====Korean War====
[[File:Bazooka rocket.jpg|thumbnail|A 3.5 inch Bazooka rocket—loader training projectile|right]]
The success of the more powerful German ''Panzerschreck'' caused the Bazooka to be completely redesigned at the close of World War II. A larger, 3.5&nbsp;in (89&nbsp;mm) model was adopted, the M20 "Super Bazooka". Though bearing a superficial resemblance to the ''Panzerschreck'', the M20 had a greater effective range, penetrating capability and was nearly 20% lighter than its German counterpart. The M20 weighed 14.3 pounds (6.5&nbsp;kg) and fired a hollow shaped-charge 9&nbsp;lb (4&nbsp;kg) M28A2 HEAT rocket when used in an anti-tank role. It was also operated by a two-man team and had a rate of fire of six shots per minute. As with its predecessor, the M20 could also fire rockets with either practice (M29A2) or WP smoke (T127E3/M30) warheads. Having learned from experience of the sensitivity of the Bazooka and its ammunition to moisture and harsh environments, the ammunition for the new weapon was packaged in moisture-resistant packaging, and the M20's field manual contained extensive instructions on launcher lubrication and maintenance, as well as storage of rocket ammunition.<ref>{{Citation |publisher=Department of the Army |type=technical manual |title=TM 9-297, 3.5-inch Rocket Launchers M20 and M20B1 |date=August 10, 1950 |pages=31–35, 86–88}}.</ref><ref>{{Citation |publisher=Department of the Army |type=technical manual |title=TM 9-1055-201-12, Launcher, Rocket, 3.5-in M20A1 and M20A1 B1 |place=Washington, DC |date=August 1968 |page=39}}.</ref> When prepared for shipment from the arsenal, the weapon was protected by antifungal coatings over all electrical contacts, in addition to a [[cosmoline]] coating in the hand-operated magneto that ignited the rocket. Upon issue, these coatings were removed with solvent to ready the M20 for actual firing. However, budget cutbacks initiated by Secretary of Defense [[Louis A. Johnson]] in the years following World War II effectively canceled the intended widespread issue of the M20, and initial U.S. forces deploying to Korea were armed solely with the M9/M9A1 2.36-in. launcher and old stockpiled World War II inventories of M6A3 rocket ammunition.
At the outbreak of the [[Korean War]], the South Korean military had 1,958 M9A1 rocket launchers that were given from the U.S. Forces Korea during withdrawal in 1948 to 1949, and they were the only anti-tank firearms that the Korean military had secured in sufficient quantities. The South Korean military actively operated rocket launchers against North Korean armor. However, the 2.36-inch rocket launcher failed to show its power against the front armor of [[T-34-85]], which was the biggest threat. The South Korean military responded by firing rockets into the side, rear, or track through ambushes, but they did not have much effect.<ref name="Korean War : Weapons of the United Nations">{{Cite book |last=Bak |first=Dongchan |url=http://medcmd.mil.kr/user/imhc/upload/pblictn/PBLICTNEBOOK_202105270240172800.pdf |title=Korean War : Weapons of the United Nations |publisher=Ministry of Defense Institute for Military History |date=March 2021 |isbn=979-11-5598-079-8 |location=Republic of Korea |pages=66–70 |language=Korean |access-date=June 27, 2022 |archive-date=September 20, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920170621/http://medcmd.mil.kr/user/imhc/upload/pblictn/PBLICTNEBOOK_202105270240172800.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>
At the same time, the U.S. military dispatched its first troops to the Korean Peninsula without trusting reports that a 2.36-inch rocket could not destroy North Korean tanks. On July 5, 1950, during the [[Battle of Osan]], [[Battle of Osan#Task Force Smith|Task Force Smith]] tried to stop North Korean tanks with 2.36-inch rocket launchers and 75&nbsp;mm recoilless rifles but was overrun by 33 T-34-85s. One of the North Korean T-34s received a total of 22 shots on the side and rear at about 10 meters in distance, but survived the attack.<ref>{{Citation |last=Fukumitsu |first=Keith K |title=No More Task Force Smiths |journal=Professional Bulletin |publisher=Army |place=US |url=http://www.quartermaster.army.mil/oqmg/professional_bulletin/1996/Spring/tfsmith.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081011100243/http://www.quartermaster.army.mil/oqmg/professional_bulletin/1996/Spring/tfsmith.html |archive-date=October 11, 2008 |url-status=dead}}.</ref><ref>{{Citation |title=[[Talk:Battle of Osan#Task Force Smiths letter to President Reagan|To President Reagan on failure of 2.36 inch Bazooka]] |author=former members of Task Force Smith |year=1985 |type=letter}}.</ref><ref name="Korean War : Weapons of the United Nations"/>
On July 8, Colonel [[Robert R. Martin]], commander of the [[34th Infantry Regiment (United States)|34th Regiment]] of the [[24th Infantry Division (United States)|U.S. 24th Infantry Division]], was killed while operating a 2.36-inch rocket launcher to prevent North Korean tanks from advancing.<ref name="Korean War : Weapons of the United Nations"/> Additionally, ordnance authorities received numerous combat reports regarding the failure of the M6A3 warhead to properly detonate upon impact, eventually traced to inventories of rocket ammunition that had deteriorated from numerous years of storage in humid or salt air environments. Therefore, the U.S. Army immediately airlifted a small number of available M20 Super Bazookas from the U.S. mainland after learning that it needed more powerful rockets. The rockets were deployed during the [[Battle of Taejon]] on July 18, and proved their power by destroying a number of North Korean tanks that entered the city on July 20. As a result, the U.S. Army rushed to secure more M20 rockets and was able to hold more than 900 Super Bazookas during the [[Battle of Pusan Perimeter]]. The South Korean military also began receiving the M20 in early August, and successfully destroyed four tanks with M20s during their first usage on 9 August.<ref>{{Citation |last=Blair |first=Clay |title=The Forgotten War: America in Korea, 1950–1953 |place=Annapolis, MD |publisher=Naval Institute Press |year=2003 |isbn=1-59114-075-7}}.</ref><ref name="Korean War : Weapons of the United Nations"/>
Large numbers of 2.36-inch bazookas that were captured during the [[Chinese Civil War]] were also employed by the Chinese forces against the American Sherman and Patton tanks,<ref name=appleman17_18>{{cite book |last=Appleman |first=Roy |year=1989 |title=Disaster in Korea: The Chinese Confront MacArthur |publisher=Texas A and M University |series=Military History |volume=11 |location=College Station, Texas |isbn=978-1-60344-128-5 |pages=17–18, 118, 188, 120, 190}}</ref> and the Chinese later reverse engineered and produced a copy of the M20 designated the ''Type 51''.<ref>{{Citation |first=Denis HR |last=Archer |publisher=Jane |title=Infantry Weapons |year=1976 |page=572 |isbn=0-531-03255-8}}.</ref> It is considered that the Communist-used bazookas destroyed more tanks than the UN Bazookas did.<ref name="Korea">{{cite book|last=Rottman|first=Gordon L.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NpOp2OO1-DAC&pg=PA199|title=Korean War Order of Battle: United States, United Nations, and Communist Ground, Naval, and Air Forces, 1950–1953|date=December 2002|publisher=Praeger|isbn=978-0-275-97835-8|page=199}}</ref>
====Vietnam War====
The M20 was used in the early stages of the war in Vietnam by the U.S. Marines before gradually being phased out by the mid-1960s in favor of the [[M67 recoilless rifle]] and later, the [[M72 LAW]] rocket. The U.S. Army also used it in lesser quantity. While occasions to destroy enemy armored vehicles proved exceedingly rare, it was employed against enemy fortifications and emplacements with success.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=69}} The M20 remained in service with South Vietnamese and indigenous forces until the late 1960s.<ref name="Vietnam">{{cite encyclopedia|title=Rockets and Rocket Launchers|first=David T. |last=Zabecki|encyclopedia=The Encyclopedia of the Vietnam War: A Political, Social, and Military History |edition=2nd|editor-first= Spencer C.|editor-last= Tucker|isbn=978-1-85109-960-3|date=May 2011|page=987 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qh5lffww-KsC}}</ref>
The Vietnam People's Army also developed their own Bazooka under the management of [[Tran Dai Nghia]]. It was successfully test-fired in 1947.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Kỷ niệm 100 năm ngày sinh của cố GS. VS Trần Đại Nghĩa (100th birth anniversary of the late Professor. VS Tran Dai Nghia)|date=September 13, 2013|language=vi|publisher=Báo điện tử Quân đội nhân dân (People's Army Newspaper Online) |url=http://www.qdnd.vn/qdndsite/vi-vn/75/72/10/52/52/262192/Default.aspx |url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130925204601/http://www.qdnd.vn/qdndsite/vi-vn/75/72/10/52/52/262192/Default.aspx |archive-date=September 25, 2013}}</ref><ref name="Phunutoday">{{Cite news |title=Chuyện chưa kể về Giáo sư Viện sĩ Trần Đại Nghĩa (The Untold Story of Academician Prof. Tran Dai Nghia)|date=January 24, 2012 |language=vi |work=Phunutoday |url=http://phunutoday.vn/blog-nguoi-noi-tieng/chuyen-chua-ke-ve-giao-su-vien-si-tran-dai-nghia-10708.html}}</ref> The anti-French [[Viet Minh]] received Chinese Type 51 bazookas. They were used by the [[Viet Cong]] as late as 1964.<ref name="Vietnam"/>
====Other conflicts====
The [[Portuguese Armed Forces]] used quantities of M9A1 and M20 rocket launchers in their overseas provinces in Africa against Marxist guerrilla forces during the [[Portuguese Overseas War]].{{citation needed|date=October 2018}} The French Army also used the M9A1 and M20A1 launchers in various campaigns in [[Indochina]],{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=70}} [[Korea]],<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Le bataillon de Corée (1950/1953)|url=http://fr.1001mags.com/parution/gazette-des-armes/numero-227-novembre-1992/page-14-15-texte-integral|first=Michel|last=Rossi|issue=227|date=November 1992|pages=10–15|magazine=La Gazette des Armes|language=fr|access-date=December 11, 2018|archive-date=May 21, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210521133504/http://fr.1001mags.com/parution/gazette-des-armes/numero-227-novembre-1992/page-14-15-texte-integral|url-status=dead}}</ref> and [[Algeria]]. The M20A1 was replaced in the 1970s by the [[LRAC F1]].{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=70}} [[Commonwealth of Nations|Commonwealth]] armies also used the M20 and M20A1 under the name '''M20 Mk I''' and '''M20 Mk II'''. They were used until their replacement by the [[Carl Gustaf 8.4cm recoilless rifle|Carl Gustav L14A1]]. For instance, British Army used Super Bazookas during the [[Operation Vantage]].{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}} The [[Argentine Army]] fielded M20s during the [[Falklands War]].<ref>{{cite book|title=Argentine Forces in the Falklands|series=Men-at-Arms 250|author=Nick van der Bijl |date=July 30, 1992|isbn=9781855322271 |publisher=Osprey Publishing|page=14}}</ref>
==Variants==
=== Rocket launcher, M1 "Bazooka" <span class="anchor" id="M1 Bazooka"></span><span class="anchor" id="M1"></span>===
* First issued June 14, 1942; designed by Capt. L.A. Skinner
* Used the M6 HEAT and M7 training practice rockets (60&nbsp;mm warhead)
* Can penetrate up to 3&nbsp;inches (76&nbsp;mm) of armor{{Citation needed|date=November 2010}}
* Velocity of {{convert|265|ft/s|m/s mph|abbr=on}}
* Overall length: {{convert|54 |in|m|abbr=on}}.
* Weight (unloaded): {{convert|18|lb|abbr=on}}.
===Rocket launcher, M1A1 "Bazooka"===
<!-- [[M1A1]] links here -->
* Improved electrical system
* Simplified design
* Used the M6A1 HEAT and M7A1 practice rockets
* Forward hand grip removed
* Contact box removed
* Supplanted the M1 in production beginning in July 1943
* Overall length: {{convert|54.5|in}}
* Weight (unloaded): {{convert|13.26|lb}}
=== Rocket launcher, M9 "Bazooka" <span class="anchor" id="M9 Bazooka"></span><span class="anchor" id="M9"></span>===
* Battery ignition replaced by trigger [[magneto (electrical)|magneto]]
* Could be disassembled into two halves for easier carrying<ref>{{Citation |first=Julio S |last=Guzmán |title=Armas Modernas de Infantería |date=April 1953 |language=es}}</ref>
* Metal instead of wooden furniture
* Uses the improved M6A3 HEAT, M7A3 practice, and M10 bursting smoke (white phosphorus) rockets (weight: 3.4&nbsp;lbs., velocity: 265 feet per second)
* Could penetrate up to 4&nbsp;inches (102&nbsp;mm) of armor
* Supplanted the M1A1 in production beginning in October 1943
* Overall length: {{convert|61|in}} fixed / {{convert|31.5|in}} disassembled
* Weight (unloaded): {{convert|15.14|lb}}
=== Rocket launcher, M9A1 "Bazooka" <span class="anchor" id="M9A1 Bazooka"></span><span class="anchor" id="M9A1"></span>===
An optical reflector sight replaced the iron sights beginning in September 1944.{{sfn|Zaloga|2016|p={{page needed|date=July 2022}}}} The M9A1 supplanted the M9 in production beginning in June 1944. It has an improved coupling mechanism for the launch tube; the overall length is {{convert|61.1|in|m|abbr=on}} and {{convert|31.5|in|abbr=on}} when folded. Unloaded weight is {{convert|15.87|lb|abbr=on}}.
===Rocket launcher, M18 "Bazooka"===
* Experimental version of the M9A1 made from aluminum alloy
* Ordered in late summer 1945, canceled at war's end
* Weight (unloaded): {{convert|10.5|lb}}
=== Rocket launcher, M20 "Super Bazooka" <span class="anchor" id="M20"></span>===
[[File:M20-bazooka-batey-haosef-1.jpg|right|thumb|Super Bazooka (mislabeled "SAM-7 shoulder-launched anti-aircraft missile, Russian made") in [[Batey ha-Osef Museum]], Tel-Aviv, Israel]]
* Larger, 3.5 in (88.9&nbsp;mm) caliber, and larger warhead
* Could penetrate up to 11&nbsp;inches (280&nbsp;mm) of armor
* Extended range by about 150&nbsp;m
* Originally a larger version of the M9A1, designated M20 in late 1944
* Entered active service just before the start of the Korean War
=== Rocket launcher, M20A1 "Super Bazooka" <span class="anchor" id="M20A1 Bazooka"></span><span class="anchor" id="M20A1 Super Bazooka"></span><span class="anchor" id="M20A1"></span>===
* Product improved variant with improved connector latch assembly, entering production in 1952<ref>{{Citation |url=http://www.billricca.com/pubs/contactor_latch_assembly_standardized.jpg |format=[[JPEG]] |journal=Preventative Maintenance Monthly |date=November 1952 |publisher=William "Bill" Ricca |title=Contactor latch assembly standardized |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070926093931/http://www.billricca.com/pubs/contactor_latch_assembly_standardized.jpg |archive-date=September 26, 2007}}.</ref>
* Improved version of the M20
===Rocket launcher, M20B1 "Super Bazooka"===
* Lightweight version with barrels made of cast aluminum, other components simplified
* Used as a supplement to the M20
===Rocket launcher, M20A1B1 "Super Bazooka"===
* M20B1 upgraded with M20A1 improvements
===Rocket launcher, M25 "Three-shot Bazooka"===
* Experimental tripod mounted rocket launcher with overhead magazine circa 1955<ref>{{Citation |publisher=Jane |title=Military Review |volume=4 |page=81 |isbn=0-7106-0334-7 |date=April 1, 1985}}.</ref>
===RL-83 Blindicide===
{{unreferenced section|date=April 2021}}
* [[RL-83 Blindicide]]: An improved "bazooka" design of Belgian origin. Used by Belgian forces during the [[Congo Crisis]] and by the Swiss, Mexican and Israeli armies and various other armed forces.
* The Blindicide is not a direct derivative of the M20 design, being smaller caliber (83&nbsp;mm not 88.9&nbsp;mm). The aluminum launch tube is externally reinforced with glass reinforced plastic.
* The launch tube can be folded to just over half the opened length which makes it far easier to carry into combat
* The Blindicide rocket has another major difference from the "super bazooka" in that it is mechanically fired with a percussion cap system, the launcher having a simple mechanical hammer with a firing pin, that is cocked by the loader. There are two safety levers, one on the aimer's pistol grip, and another at the rear of the launch tube for the protection of the loader.
* Because no electrical connection had to be made between rocket and launcher, reload time is faster than for the "super bazooka" and a good team can fire off six rockets per minute.
* Blindicide rockets were designed to spin in flight, with six of the rocket's exhaust ports being angled to impart spin. While spinning the rocket has improved accuracy, centrifugal forces acting on the explosive jet tend to spread the jet, reducing the thickness of armor that it can penetrate.
===3.5 in Hydroar M20A1B1 rocket launcher===
* Brazil, manufactured by Hydroar SA—improved 3.5 M20A1B1. A hand grip with solid state firing circuit powered by two AA cells replaced the U.S.-designed hand grip with magneto trigger.{{Sfn|Jane |1996|p=300}}
===88.9 mm Instalaza M65===
* Developed by [[Instalaza]] for use by the [[Spanish Army]], the M65 is an improved version of the M20 "super bazooka". It uses an improved ignition method and new ammunition types.<ref>{{cite web |title=Spain – M65 Anti-Tank Rocket Launcher |url=http://www.tanks.net/anti-tank-weapons/spain-m65-anti-tank-rocket-launcher.html |publisher=Tanks.Net |access-date=June 23, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140302160520/http://www.tanks.net/anti-tank-weapons/spain-m65-anti-tank-rocket-launcher.html |archive-date=March 2, 2014}}</ref> The available ammunitions used were the CHM65 (HEAT), MB66 (dual-purpose), and FIM66 (smoke) shells.{{Citation needed|date=November 2018}} Older versions were designated M53 and M58.{{sfn|Wiener |1987|p=480}}
==Specifications==
===M1===
* Length: 54 in (137&nbsp;cm)
* Caliber: 2.36 in (60&nbsp;mm)
* Weight: 13&nbsp;lb (5.9&nbsp;kg)
* Warhead: M6 or M6A2 shaped charge (3.5&nbsp;lb, 1.59&nbsp;kg)
* Range
** Maximum: 400 yards (370 m)
** Effective: (claimed) 150 yards (140 m)
* Crew: 2, operator and loader
===M1A1===
* Length: 54 in (137&nbsp;cm)
* Caliber: 2.36 in (60&nbsp;mm)
* Weight: 12.75&nbsp;lb (5.8&nbsp;kg)
* Warhead: M6A1 shaped charge (3.5&nbsp;lb, 1.59&nbsp;kg)
* Range
** Maximum: 400 yards (370 m)
** Effective: (claimed) 150 yards (140 m)
* Crew: 2, operator and loader
===M9/M9A1===
* Length: 61 in (155&nbsp;cm)
* Caliber: 2.36 in (60&nbsp;mm)
* Weight: 14.3&nbsp;lb (6.5&nbsp;kg)
* Warhead: M6A3 shaped charge (3.5&nbsp;lb, 1.59&nbsp;kg)
* Range
** Maximum: 400–500 yards (370–460 m)
** Effective: (claimed) 120 yards (110 m)
* Crew: 2, operator and loader (M9 and M9A1)
===M20A1/A1B1===
* Length (when assembled for firing): 60 in (1,524&nbsp;mm)
* Caliber: 3.5 in (90&nbsp;mm)
* Weight (unloaded): M20A1: 14.3&nbsp;lb (6.5&nbsp;kg); M20A1B1: 13&nbsp;lb (5.9&nbsp;kg)
* Warhead: M28A2 HEAT (9&nbsp;lb) or T127E3/M30 WP (8.96&nbsp;lb)
* Range
** Maximum: 1000 yd (913 m)
** Effective (stationary target/moving target): 300 yd (270 m) / 200 yd (180 m)
* Crew: 2, operator and loader
==Users==
{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
* {{flag|Argentina}}: Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}} Used until at least the [[Falklands War]],<ref>{{cite web |title=3.5 inch Rocket Launcher [Argentinian] |url=https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/30036046 |publisher=[[Imperial War Museum]] |access-date=5 June 2023 |quote=Captured from the Argentine forces during the Falklands Conflict, 1982.}}</ref> replaced by [[AT4]].
* {{flag|Australia}}: Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}}<ref>{{cite web |title=Out in the Cold: Australia's involvement in the Korean War - 3.5-inch M20 rocket launcher (bazooka) |url=https://www.awm.gov.au/visit/exhibitions/korea/weapons/m20 |publisher=[[Australian War Memorial]] |access-date=5 June 2023 |date=21 July 2022}}</ref>
* {{flag|Austria}}: Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}}
* {{flag|Belgium}}: RL-83.{{sfn|Wiener|1987|p=478}}
* {{flag|Bolivia}}: Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}}
* {{flag|Brazil}}: Bazooka<ref>{{cite book|last1=Maximiano|first1= Cesar|last2=Bonalume|first2= Ricardo N. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6q6HCwAAQBAJ |title=Brazilian Expeditionary Force in World War II |publisher=[[Osprey Publishing]] |year= 2011 |isbn=978-1-8490-8483-3 |series=Men at Arms |volume=465 |page=45}}</ref> and Super Bazooka.{{Sfn|Jane |1996|p=300}}
* {{flag|Canada|1921}}: Bazooka{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=38}} and Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}}<ref>{{cite book |title=Canadian Army Manual of Training (CAMT) 7-12, Infantry Platoon Weapons, 3.5-Inch Rocket Launcher (All Arms) |year=1955 |publisher=[[Canadian Army]]}}</ref>
* {{flag|Chile}}: Super Bazooka.<ref name="gander2002">{{cite book |editor1-first=Terry J.|editor1-last=Gander|editor2-first=Charles Q. |editor2-last=Cutshaw|title=Jane's Infantry Weapons 2001/2002 |date=2001 |edition=27th |publisher=Jane's Information Group |location=Coulsdon |isbn=9780710623171}}</ref>
* {{flag|Cuba}}: Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}} During the [[Bay of Pigs Invasion]], the anti-Castrist [[Brigade 2506]] used 2.36 in bazookas against [[Fidel Castro|Castro]]'s [[T-34]]s.<ref name="Cuba">{{cite book |last=de Quesada |first=Alejandro |date=January 10, 2009 |title=The Bay of Pigs: Cuba 1961 |series=Elite 166 |isbn=9781846033230 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EE-1CwAAQBAJ |pages=41, 60}}</ref>
* {{flag|El Salvador}}: Super Bazooka.<ref name="gander2002"/>
* {{flag|France}}: Bazooka{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=38}} and Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=70}}
* {{flag|Greece}}: Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Wiener|1987|p=308}}
* {{flag|Guatemala}}: Super Bazooka.<ref name="gander2002"/>
* {{flag|Guinea-Bissau}}: Super Bazooka.<ref name="gander2002"/>
* {{flag|Indonesia}}: Super Bazooka.<ref name="gander2002"/>
* {{flag|India}}: Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}}
* {{flagicon image|Flag of Iraq (1924–1959).svg}} [[Kingdom of Iraq|Iraq]]: Super Bazooka.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jul/26/iraq-revolution-ousts-monarchy-1958|title=Military coup in Iraq ousts monarchy – archive, 1958|work=The Guardian|date=July 26, 2017}}</ref>
* {{flag|Israel}}: M20A1.<ref name="israel">{{cite book|author= David Campbell|others=illustrated by Johnny Shumate|title= Israeli Soldier vs Syrian Soldier : Golan Heights 1967–73|series=Combat 18|year= 2016|publisher=[[Osprey Publishing]]|page=78|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_7MODAAAQBAJ|isbn=9781472813305}}</ref>
* {{flagicon image|Flag of Ireland.svg|23px}} [[Provisional Irish Republican Army]]: M20 Super Bazooka, first used in 1971.<ref>Oppenheimer, A. R. (2009). ''IRA: The Bombs and The Bullets. A History of Deadly Ingenuity''. Irish Academic Press, chapter 4. {{ISBN|978-0-7165-2895-1}}</ref><ref>"Second IRA rocket fails to explode", ''Belfast Telegraph'', 29 September 1971.</ref><ref>"New menace in the IRA armoury", ''Daily Mirror'', 15 July 1972.</ref>
* {{flag|Italy}}: M20A1 and RL-83 variants.{{sfn|Wiener|1987|p=300}}
* {{flag|Japan}}: [[Japan Ground Self Defence Force|JGSDF]] used Super Bazookas,{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}} replaced by the [[Carl gustav recoilless rifle|Carl Gustav recoilless rifle]]s.
* {{flag|Liberia}}: Super Bazooka.<ref name="gander2002"/>
* {{flag|Luxembourg}}: Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}}
* {{flag|Malaysia}}: Super Bazooka.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Defence Capabilities of Small States: Singapore and Taiwan's Responses to Strategic Desperation|first=Shang-su |last=Wu|series=Critical Studies of the Asia-Pacific |year=2016|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan UK|isbn=978-1-137-49716-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mzwGDAAAQBAJ&pg=PT90|page=90}}</ref>
* {{flag|Malawi}}: Super Bazooka.<ref name="gander2002"/>
* {{flag|Mexico}}<ref>{{cite news |last=Malkin|first=Elisabeth|date=October 1, 2018|title=50 Years After a Student Massacre, Mexico Reflects on Democracy|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/01/world/americas/mexico-tlatelolco-massacre.html|work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref>
* {{flag|Morocco}}: M20 Super Bazooka.<ref>{{cite book|last=Cordesman|first=Anthony|author-link=Anthony Cordesman|year=2016|title=After The Storm: The Changing Military Balance in the Middle East|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |isbn=978-1-4742-9257-3|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E3fqDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA112|page=112}}</ref>
* {{flag|Myanmar}}: M9A1 and M20 Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}}
* {{flag|Nazi Germany}}: Used captured M1s as ''6 cm Raketenpanzerbüchse 788 (a)''{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=4}}
* {{flag|Netherlands}}: The M9A1 was used for a short period of time by the Dutch Army as the ''Raketwerper 2.36 inch''. It served from the beginning of the 1950s to the end of the 1960s with the ''Landmacht'' as an instructional weapon, with the ''Troepenmacht in Suriname'' (TRIS, troop force in Surinam, part of the ''Landmacht''), and the ''Nederlands Detachement Verenigde Naties'' (N.D.V.N.), Dutch Detachment United Nations in 1950–1951 during the Korean War.{{sfn|Talens|1994|page=392}} During the Korean War, the 2.36-inch bazooka was replaced by the 3.5-inch M20. Although it replaced the M9A1 in 1951 with the N.D.V.N., the weapon was not introduced into the ''Landmacht'' until 1954. The M20 and M20B1 were later replaced by the 66&nbsp;mm LAW in 1968, but the bazooka remained in inventory for reservists, mobilisation, and other non-priority uses until 1989.{{sfn|Talens|1994|page=394}}
* {{flag|Nigeria}}: M20 Super Bazooka.<ref name="auto">{{cite book|last=Jowett|first=Philip|title=Modern African Wars (5): The Nigerian-Biafran War 1967–70|year=2016|publisher=[[Osprey Publishing]] Press|location=Oxford|isbn=978-1472816092|page=20}}</ref>
* {{flag|Norway}}: Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Wiener|1987|p=269}}
* {{flag|Pakistan}}: Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}}
* {{flag|Paraguay}}{{Citation needed|date=November 2018}}
* {{flag|People's Republic of China}}: Large numbers of 2.36-inch and 3.5-inch Bazookas were captured by the Chinese communists during the Chinese Civil War<ref name="appleman17_18"/> and Korean War.<ref name="Korea"/> China also copied the 3.5-inch as the Type 51<ref name="SAS 2002">{{cite book|author=Small Arms Survey|author-link=Small Arms Survey|title=Small Arms Survey 2002: Counting the Human Cost |url=http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/publications/by-type/yearbook/small-arms-survey-2002.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110303125311/http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/publications/by-type/yearbook/small-arms-survey-2002.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=March 3, 2011 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|year=2015|page=71|chapter=Red Flags and Buicks: Global Firearms Stockpiles|chapter-url=http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/A-Yearbook/2002/en/Small-Arms-Survey-2002-Chapter-02-EN.pdf}}</ref>—with a projectile 90&nbsp;mm in diameter. The Type 51 can fire captured 3.5-inch projectiles (i.e. 90&nbsp;mm), but 3.5-inch Super Bazookas cannot load projectiles made for the Type 51.
* {{flag|Philippines|1936}}: Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}}
* {{flag|Portugal}}: Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}}
* {{flag|Republic of China}}: Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=70}}
* {{flag|Rhodesia}}: Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}}<ref>{{cite book|page=22|title=Rhodesian Light Infantryman: 1961–1980|author=Neil Grant|year=2015|publisher=Osprey Publishing|isbn=978-1472809629}}</ref>
* {{flag|Sierra Leone}}: Super Bazooka.<ref name="gander2002"/>
* {{flag|South Africa|1928}}: Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}}
* {{flag|Republic of Korea}}: The [[Republic of Korea Armed Forces|armed forces]] received 1,958 M9A1s before the [[Korean War]], and 609 M9A1s and 4,907 M20s were in service by the end of the war.<ref name="Korean War : Weapons of the United Nations"/>
* {{flag|South Vietnam}}: M9A1 and M20A1 variants.<ref>{{cite book|author=Gordon L. Rottman|title=Army of the Republic of Vietnam 1955–75|date=2010|publisher=[[Osprey Publishing]]|isbn=9781849081818|volume=Men-at-Arms 458|page=7}}</ref>
* {{flag|Soviet Union}}: Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=38}}
* {{flag|Spain}}: M20 Bazooka and improved designs (M53, M58 and M65).{{sfn|Wiener|1987|p=337}}
* {{flag|Sweden}}: Super bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}}
* {{flag|Thailand}}: Super Bazooka{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}} as ''คจตถ. 3.5 นิ้ว'' in the Royal Thai Army, replaced by the [[Type 69 RPG]].
* {{flag|Tunisia}}: Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}}
* {{flag|Turkey}}: Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}}
* {{flag|United Kingdom}}: Bazooka{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=38}} and Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}}<ref>{{cite web |author1=[[Central Office of Information]] |title=3.5-inch Rocket launcher 'Bazooka' and crew, Devon and Dorset Regiment, 1960 (c) |url=https://collection.nam.ac.uk/detail.php?q=searchType%3Dsimple%26simpleText%3Damerican%26themeID%3D%26resultsDisplay%3Dgrid%26page%3D9&pos=16&total=525&page=9&acc=1992-10-144-350 |publisher=[[National Army Museum]] |access-date=5 June 2023 |date=c. 1960}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=[[War Office]] |title = WO Code No. 8774, Infantry Training Volume I, Pamphlet No. 9, Part II 3.5-Inch Rocket Launcher|year= 1953}}</ref> Used with both domestically manufactured ammunition and U.S. ammunition.<ref>{{cite book|author=[[War Office]] |title = WO Code No. 8774, Infantry Training Volume I, Pamphlet No. 9, Part II 3.5-Inch Rocket Launcher|page=14|year= 1953}}</ref> Replaced by the [[Carl Gustaf 8.4 cm recoilless rifle|Carl Gustav M2]] (L14A1) during the 1960s.<ref>{{cite web |title=ROYAL MARINES DEMONSTRATE ARMY'S NEW ANTI-TANK GUN. AUGUST 1963, LITTLE ADEN, ROYAL MARINES OF 45 COMMANDO WERE DEMONSTRATING (ON BEHALF OF THE WAR OFFICE) TO SENIOR OFFICERS OF MIDDLE EAST COMMAND, ONE OF THE BRITISH ARMY'S NEW ANTI-TANK WEAPONS, THE 84MM PLATOON ANTI-TANK GUN (CARL GUSTAV). SWEDISH DESIGNED, THE CARL GUSTAV HAS GREATER ACCURACY, FASTER RATE OF FIRE AND MORE RELIABLE DISCHARGE THAN THE 3.5 INCH ROCKET LAUNCHER. |url=https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205164730 |publisher=[[Imperial War Museum]] |access-date=5 June 2023}}</ref>
* {{flag|United States|1912}}: Bazooka{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=38}} replaced by the [[M72 LAW]].
* {{flag|Vietnam}}: Type 51 Bazooka, used by Viet Minh and Viet Cong.<ref name="Vietnam"/>
* {{flag|West Germany}}: Super Bazooka.{{sfn|Rottman|2012|p=71}}
* {{flag|Yugoslavia}}: M20 and M20A1B1<ref>{{cite web |title=Yugoslav military equipment and its sources |url=https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP79T00429A001100010022-0.pdf |publisher=[[CIA]] |access-date=10 November 2024}}</ref>
{{div col end}}
==See also==
* [[List of U.S. Army weapons by supply catalog designation]] (Group B)
== Citations ==
{{Reflist|30em|refs=
<ref name="MC 2008">{{Citation |publisher=Military Channel |title=[[Weaponology]] |type=programme |contribution=[[Grenade]]s through [[Rocket-propelled grenade|RPGs]] |date=November 18, 2008}}</ref>
}}
== Sources ==
* {{Citation |last=Dunlap |first=Roy F. |title=Ordnance Went Up Front |publisher=Samworth Press |year=1948}}.
* {{Citation |last1=Green |first1=Michael |last2=Green |first2=Gladys |title=Weapons of Patton's Armies |publisher=Zenith Imprint Press |year=2000 |isbn=978-0-7603-0821-9}}
* {{cite book |editor-last=Hoffman |editor-first=Jon T. |date=2011 |title=A History of Innovation: U.S. Army Adaptation in War and Peace |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=42Mh23JI8dQC&pg=PA73|publisher= Military Bookshop |isbn= 978-1-7803-9289-9}}
* {{Citation |publisher=Jane's |title=Jane's Infantry Weapons 1995–1996 |ref={{SfnRef |Jane |1996}}}}
* {{Citation |first1=Brooks E |last1=Kleber |first2=Dale |last2=Birdsell |title=The Chemical Warfare Service: Chemicals in Combat |chapter=XIV. The Flame Thrower in the Pacific: Guadalcanal to the Marshall Islands |publisher=Office of the Chief of Military History, Department of the Army |place=Washington, D.C. |chapter-url=http://www.history.army.mil/books/wwii/chemsincmbt/ch14.htm |date=December 12, 2001 |orig-year=1966 |edition=online |access-date=August 3, 2012 |archive-date=May 24, 2024 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240524090756/https://www.webcitation.org/5gP5cFYhK?url=http://www.history.army.mil/books/wwii/chemsincmbt/ch14.htm |url-status=dead}}
* {{cite book |last=Mayo |first=Lida |date=1968 |title=The Ordnance Department: on Beachhead and Battlefront |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hI5AAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA31 |location=Washington, D.C. |publisher=Office of the Chief of Military History, Department of the Army}}
* {{cite book |last=Rottman |first=Gordon L. |date=2012 |title=The Bazooka |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Dae6CwAAQBAJ |publisher=Osprey Publishing |isbn=978-1-8490-8801-5}}<!-- {{cite book|last=Rottman|first=Gordon L. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Dae6CwAAQBAJ&pg=PA16|title=The Bazooka|page=16|year=2012|publisher=[[Bloomsbury Publishing]]|via=Google Books|isbn=978-1-8490-8802-2|access-date=December 15, 2017}} -->
* {{cite book |last=Talens |first=Martien |date=1994 |title=De ransel op de rug, deel 2 |language=nl |location=Breda |publisher=Brabantia Nostra |isbn=978-9-0694-9032-8}}
* {{cite book|title=The armies of the NATO nations: Organization, concept of war, weapons and equipment |series=Truppendienst Handbooks|volume=3|year=1987|first=Friedrich|last=Wiener|publisher=Herold Publishers |location=Vienna}}
* {{cite book |last=Zaloga |first=Steven J. |year=2016 |title=Bazooka Vs Panzer: Battle of the Bulge 1944 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |isbn=978-1-4728-1250-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JswhDQAAQBAJ}}
* {{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fScDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA68 |title=How the Bazooka Team Stops Them |date=December 1943 |magazine=[[Popular Science]]}} Article on early M1 Bazooka with rare photos.
* {{cite web |url=http://www.designation-systems.net/dusrm/app4/m6rocket.html |title=Anti-Tank Rocket M6 Bazooka}}
* {{cite book |url=http://www.90thidpg.us/Equipment/Weapons/ |title=90th Infantry Division Preservation Group}} Page on Bazookas and equipment.
* {{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7iwDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA98 |title=New GI Weapons |magazine=Popular Science |date=October 1950 |pages=98–99}}
==External links==
{{Commons}}
*[https://smallarmsreview.com/bazooka-part-i-captain-skinners-tube-launched-tank-error/ BAZOOKA! Part I: Captain Skinner’s Tube-launched Tank Error] Small Arms Review
{{U.S. WW2 rockets}}
{{US Army missiles}}
{{WWIIUSInfWeaponsNav}}
{{WWIIChineseInfantryWeapons}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:American inventions]]
[[Category:Anti-tank rockets of the United States]]
[[Category:Anti-tank weapons]]
[[Category:Brands that became generic]]
[[Category:Weapons and ammunition introduced in 1942]]
[[Category:Weapons of the Philippine Army]]
[[Category:World War II infantry weapons of the United States]]
[[Category:World War II infantry weapons of Brazil]]