Technical Overview of Small Arms

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Technical Overview of Small Arms

• Name
• Organisation
• Location, Event, Date

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• SALW Definitions and Weapons Classifications

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What are SALW ?

• SALW are generally classified as firearms that
  are easily portable by an individual or by a
  weapons crew. These weapons are up to 100mm in
  calibre according to UN guidelines.

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SALW Definition (UN)

• Small arms are those designed for personal use
  and light weapons are those designed for use by
  several persons serving as a crew.

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SALW Definition (UN)

• Small Arms
• Revolvers and self-loading pistols
• Rifles and carbines
• Sub-machine-guns
• Assault rifles
• Light machine-guns

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SALW Definition (UN)

• Light Weapons
• Heavy machine guns
• Hand held, under-barrel and mounted grenade
  launchers
• Portable anti-aircraft guns
• Portable anti-tank guns and recoilless rifles
• Portable launchers of anti-tank missile and
  rocket systems
• Portable launchers of anti-aircraft missile
  systems
• Mortars of calibres of less than 100 mm

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SALW Definition (UN)

• Ammunition and explosives
• Cartridges (rounds) for small arms
• Shells and missiles for light weapons
• Anti-personnel and anti-tank grenades
• Landmines
• Mobile containers with missiles or shells for
  single-action anti-aircraft and anti-tank systems
• Explosives

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SEESACs SALW Definition

• All lethal conventional munitions that can be
  carried by an individual combatant or a light
  vehicle, that also do not require a substantial
  logistic and maintenance capability.

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SALW Basic Groups Small Arms

• Handguns
• Submachine guns
• Rifles
• Shotguns
• Mortars

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Hand Guns

• Handguns are classified as weapons that are
  designed to be highly portable, concealable and
  fired by the individual with one or two hands
• Handguns are chambered for pistol ammunition, in
  most cases between .22 and .45 caliber
• Handguns are sub-divided into two groups
  REVOLVERS and PISTOLS

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Revolvers

• Revolvers are designed to fire pistol rounds
  from a revolving cylinder. The weapon can be
  activated by simply pulling the trigger (Double
  Action) or by manually cocking the hammer and
  pulling the trigger (Single Action)

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Pistols

• Pistols are handguns that fire pistol
  ammunition, fed by a magazine usually contained
  in the handgrip of the weapon. Pistols utilise
  the recoil impulse of a fired round to extract
  and eject the expended cartridge and chamber the
  next round for subsequent firing. Pistols are
  usually semi-automatic, but some are capable of
  full-automatic fire.

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Sub-machine Guns (SMG)

• Submachine guns are weapons that are chambered
  for pistol cartridges, but have longer barrels
  and a larger magazine capacity
• Submachine guns are capable of full-automatic or
  semi-automatic fire
• They usually work on the blow-back principle.
  Submachine guns can fire from an open or a closed
  bolt

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Rifles

• Are long guns that fire major-caliber (rifle)
  ammunition
• Rifles are sub-divided into five groups
• Bolt action
• Repeater (Lever or Pump)
• Semi-automatic
• Automatic
• Assault

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Bolt Action Rifles

• Operate by manually turning the bolt to chamber a
  round. Upon discharging the chambered round, the
  user turns the bolt to eject the expended
  cartridge and to chamber a new round

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Repeating Rifles

• Utilize a manual lever or a pump to chamber,
  fire, eject and re-chamber a new round for
  consequent firing. They are normally chambered
  for intermediate power rifle cartridges

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Semi-Automatic Rifles

• Use the recoil impulse or the gas of a fired
  round to complete the firing sequence. One round
  is discharged with each pull of the trigger.
  Semi-automatic rifles are usually fed by
  detachable box magazines or by internal
  magazines. They are usually chambered to fire
  medium- power rifle rounds

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Automatic Rifles and Machine Guns

• Are crew-served weapons that are capable of a
  high rate of sustained fire
• They utilise major caliber rifle ammunition
• They use the gas from an expended round to
  complete the firing sequence
• They are belt or magazine fed. Some can
  utilise both

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Assault Rifles

• Are rifles capable of select fire
• Are usually magazine fed
• Fire medium-power rifle cartridges
• Use the gas of an expended round to complete
  the firing sequence
• Allows the individual soldier to deliver a high
  rate of accurate fire to ranges of up to 400
  metres
• Have most most likely been the highest source
  of human war casualties since 1944

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Shotguns

• Shotguns are smooth-bore weapons that send
  multiple projectiles towards the intended target
  with every round fired. Shotguns can be lever,
  single shot, pump, lever,semi-automatic or
  automatic. Shotguns are extremely lethal at short
  range

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Mortars

• Mortars are indirect-fire weapons that are
  designed to propel an explosive device over
  obstacles or terrain that prevents engaging a
  target with direct fire
• Mortars are crew-served weapons that usually
  range from 60mm to 120 mm in calibre

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Man-Portable Rocket Launchers

• Are divided into two sub-groups
• Anti-Aircraft
• Anti-Tank

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Anti-Tank Rocket Launchers

• Are designed so that the individual infantryman
  can effectively destroy tanks and light-skinned
  vehicles
• They are usually between 66mm- 85mm in calibre
• Are unguided
• Utilise HEAT ammunition
• Are effective to a range of 200 meters

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Anti-Tank Missiles

• Are usually wire-guided and are between 90- 120mm
• Medium ATk Missiles are usually effective to
  1,000 metres
• Heavy ATk Missiles are usually effective to a
  range of 2,000 to 2,500 metres

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Anti-Aircraft Missiles

• Are highly portable systems weighing
  approximately 10 kg
• Most employ passive infrared or radar guided
  tracking systems
• Are capable of shooting down an aircraft to an
  altitude of 3,500 m with a lateral range of 8km
• Are Fire and Forget weapons systems
• Can reach speeds of Mach 2 before intercepting
  its target

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Hand Grenades

• There are many types of hand grenades, designed
  for different applications. Some examples are
• Fragmentation
• Incendiary
• Smoke
• High Explosive Anti-Tank (HEAT)
• Flash-bang
• Chemical

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Characteristics of Hand Grenades

• Their employment range is short usually under
  50 metres, although they can be rifle projected
• Their effective killing radius is small usually
  5 metres, with a potential casualty radius of 25
  metres
• Their delay element permits safe throwing

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• Questions ?