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Equipment: Carl Gustav

Characteristics:

M2 CARL GUSTAV The M2 Carl Gustav is the primary section level anti-tank recoilless rifle used by Canada's Land Force which employs two kinds of ammunition for the weapon. The primary round is the High Explosive Anti-Tank commonly referred to as HEAT. The HEAT round is used to destroy enemy main battle tanks. The effective range of this round of ammunition is 700 metres. The second round of ammunition employed is the High Explosive Dual Purpose Round (HEDP). This round was specifically designed to destroy bunkers and fortified positions. The effective range for this round is 500 metres.

The Carl Gustav is best served by a two man crew. One fires the recoilless rifle and the other carries ammunition and loads. The weapon is fitted with iron sights, and it is equipped with a 2 power optical sight with a 17 degree field of view. This is fitted with a temperature correction device, and luminous front and rear adaptors are available for night work.

The Carl Gustav can be fired from the standing, kneeling or prone positions. When fired on flat surfaces the weapon is supported by a flexible bipod immediately in front of the shoulder piece.

For training, the Carl Gustav can be used with a sub calibre training device (SCTD). The SCTD fires a 7.62 mm Tracer round especially designed to match the ballistics of the HEAT round. This will permit training on the Carl Gustav on a conventional rifle range and it helps reduce the cost of training.

 

M3 LIGHTWEIGHT CARL GUSTAV The MS Lightweight Carl Gustav is a lightweight version of the M2 recoilless rifle. The weapon is built on a steel liner which carries the rifling and is covered with a carbon fibre winding. The venturi is made of steel. All external parts are made of aluminum or plastic. The M3 will accept and fire all existing types of Carl Gustav ammunition, without any change in performance. The weapon complete weighs 9 kg.

 

M2

M3

Recoilless rifle length:

113 cm

107 cm

Recoilless rifle weight:

14.2 kg

8.5kg

Recoilless rifle mount:

0.8kg

0.5kg

Weight of HEAT round:

3.5kg

3.5kg

TOTAL WEIGHT:

18.5kg

12.5kg

Entered service in M-2 1965 M-3 1991

Quantity in Service: 1,431

Notes:

Last updated: Jul-99

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