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External images
External images
LAW 80 Brochure 1985
	LAW 80(1)
	LAW 80(2)
	LAW 80(3)
	LAW 80(4)

LAW 80
LAW 80
	Unextended LAW 80
Type	Rocket-propelled grenade (anti-tank, disposable)
Place of origin	United Kingdom
Service history
In service	1987–present
Used by	See § Users
Wars	Cold War; War on Terror;
Production history
Manufacturer	Hunting Engineering
Produced	1987–1993
No. built	c. 113,000
Specifications
Mass	9 kg (20 lb) loaded; 4.6 kg (10 lb) projectile;
Length	1.5 m (59 in) firing; 1 m (39 in) carrying;
Crew	1
Calibre	94 mm (3.7 in)
Effective firing range	20–500 m (66–1,640 ft)
Sights	×1 magnification telescopic sight
Warhead	HEAT
Detonation; mechanism	Contact fuze
Blast yield	600-700 rha mm
Propellant	HTPB
Launch; platform	Man-portable launcher

The LAW 80 (Light Anti-armour Weapon 80), regularly referred to as LAW 94 in British service, is a man-portable, disposable anti-tank weapon previously used by the British Army and a few other militaries.

Description

The weapon consists of an extendable launch tube with an integrated 9 mm (0.35 in) spotting rifle and 1× sight. The spotting rifle has five rounds of ammunition, and is ballistically matched to the rocket. The rounds it uses are quite unusual, consisting of a 9 mm tracer bullet loaded in a necked up 7.62mm NATO shell casing, with a .22 Hornet blank mounted in the base of the larger case, providing the propellant charge. Upon firing, the .22 cartridge case pushes out of the back of the 7.62 mm casing, unlocking the breech of the spotting rifle in a form of primer actuation.^[2]

To launch the rocket the firer removes the large protective end caps and extends the rear of the launch tube, opens the sight, and moves the arming lever to "armed". The weapon is then in spotting rifle mode. To fire the rocket, the firer moves a charge lever forward with his firing hand thumb. The rocket motor burns out before it leaves the launch tube, the resulting blast being directed rearwards from the launch tube. The rocket then coasts to the target, arming itself after it has passed a certain arming distance. The warhead is a HEAT shaped charge and could penetrate 700 mm (28 in) of rolled homogeneous armour at 90 degrees, as was taught to soldiers trained on the weapon system in the British Army, Royal Navy (Royal Marines) and RAF Regiment^{[citation needed]}. It was also taught that sloped, composite and reactive armour^{[citation needed]}, would reduce the penetration and would be an important factor when selecting the aiming point.

Specifications

Contractor: Hunting Engineering
Calibre: 94 mm
Launcher length:
- Firing mode: 1.5 m
- Carrying mode: 1 m
Weight:
- Carrying weight: 10 kg
- Shoulder weight: 9 kg
- Projectile weight: 4.6 kg
Dispersion: approx 1 mil
Warhead arming range: 10 to 20 m
Effective range: 20 to 500 m
Fuze:
- Type: Piezo-electric impact fuze, shrub and foliage proof
- Graze angle: ≤ 10°
Temperature range: −46 °C to +65 °C
Rear danger area: < 20 m
Shelf life: 10 years

Operators

Current operators

Past operators

United Kingdom: Initially adopted in the early 1990s, replacing the L14A1 84 mm Carl Gustav recoilless rifle and M72 Light Anti-Tank Weapon (Rocket 66mm HEAT L1A1), it was withdrawn on safety grounds in favour of the AT-4 CS and eventually the FGM-148 Javelin anti-tank missile and NLAW.^[6]

Addermine

Addermine is an acoustic sensor system which uses the LAW 80 as a kill mechanism to create an anti-armour off-route mine. It can also be command detonated from up to 200 m away, or 2 km via a laser optical link.^[7]

Notes

^ ^a ^b "LAW-80". WeaponSystems.net. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
^ "Cartridge of the Month". cartridgecollectors.org.
^ "Google Sites". sites.google.com. Archived from the original on 24 November 2016. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
^ Jones, Richard D. Jane's Infantry Weapons 2009/2010. Jane's Information Group; 35 edition (27 January 2009). ISBN 978-0-7106-2869-5.
^ "World Infantry Weapons: Sierra Leone". 2013. Archived from the original on 24 November 2016.
^ Owen, William F. (2007). "Light Anti-Armour Weapons: Anti-Everything?" (PDF). Asian Military Review. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 July 2011. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
^ Heyman, Charles (2008). The British Army: A Pocket Guide 2002-2003. Casemate Publishers. p. 128. ISBN 9781783378968.