MATADOR Israeli 90mm Man-Portable Anti-Tank Recoilless Gun

MATADOR

Recoilless Gun

Spotted an error? Sign in to suggest an edit.

Basic Information

Name

MATADOR Israeli 90mm Man-Portable Anti-Tank Recoilless Gun

Designation

MATADOR

Alternate Designation

MATADOR

Equipment Type

Recoilless Gun

Manufacturer

Dynamit Nobel Defence

Date of Introduction

2000

Description

MATADOR Israeli 90mm Man-Portable Anti-Tank Recoilless Gun is an updated version of the German-Singaporean Armbrust design and operates on the same principles. The development of this weapon began in 2000 and the MATADOR will eventually replace the German-Singaporean Armbrust Light Anti-tank Weapon, which has been in service since the 1980s. The MATADOR was developed jointly by the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) and the Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA), in collaboration with Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Dynamit Nobel Defence (DND) joint team. The MATADOR is among the lightest in its class. The warhead is effective against both vehicle armor and brick walls. The weapon has little backblast, making it safe for operation in confined spaces. The MATADOR is supposed to be capable of defeating the armor of the most known armored personnel carriers and light tanks in the world. The dual-capability warhead, when acting in the delay mode, creates an opening greater than 450 mm (18 in) in diameter in a double brick wall, and acts as an anti-personnel weapon against those behind the wall, offering an unconventional means of entry when fighting in built-up areas. The MATADOR's projectile is claimed to be insensitive to wind due to its propulsion system, which results in a highly accurate weapon system.

Ground Specifications

Crew 1

Main Weapon 90 mm recoilless gun

Range 0.5 km

Variants

MATADOR-MP Multi-purpose weapon with a warhead effective against a wide variety of ground targets, from light armoured vehicles to fortified positions and urban walls. As with the initial MATADOR, this is achieved with a dual-mode fuse, which has been improved on the MATADOR-MP such that it now automatically discriminates between hard and soft targets rather than requiring the operator to manually make the selection. A dedicated targeting device, mounted on its Picatinny rail, incorporates a reflex sight and laser rangefinder to provide a high hit probability.

MATADOR-WB Specialised wall-breaching weapon, featuring an Explosively-Formed Ring (EFR) warhead that breaches a man-sized hole, between 75 cm (30 in) to 100 cm (39 in) across, in typical urban walls.

MATADOR-AS Anti-structure weapon with an advanced tandem warhead that can also be set between two modes. The anti-emplacement mode uses an enhanced blast effect to defeat structures and fortifications, while the penetrating/mouse-holing mode defeats light armoured vehicles and creates mouseholes in urban walls.MATADOR-AS has been ordered by the British Army, and is slated for service entry in 2009.

System

Alternative Designation MATADOR

Type Recoilless Gun

Manufacturer Dynamit Nobel Defence

Crew 1 ea

Caliber 90 mm

Air to Surface Capable No

Surface to Air Capable Yes

Muzzle Velocity 150 m/s

Effective Firing Range 500 m

Feed System Disposable

Warhead The warhead can be used in both High Explosive Anti-Tank (HEAT) and High Explosive Squash Head (HESH) modes against armor and walls or other fortifications respectively. Selection is done by extending a "probe" (most likely a fuse extender) for HEAT mode and leaving the "probe" retracted for HESH mode.

Countermass System Similar to the Armbrust, the countermass counteracts the recoil of the weapon upon firing. The countermass consists of shredded plastic, which is launched out of the rear of the weapon when it is fired. This plastic is rapidly slowed by air resistance, allowing the weapon to be fired safely within an enclosed space. In addition, the positioning of the countermass takes into consideration the centre of gravity of the weapon to ensure good balance for better accuracy.

Grip The MATADOR series is equipped with a folding vertical grip, pistol grip, and shoulder rest. These are folded for transport to reduce the risk of snagging.

Dimensions

Length 1 m

Width 90 mm

Height INA

Weight, Combat 8.9 kg

Sights

Sighting System The launcher is aimed using a 1.5× magnification optical sight. The MIL-STD-1913 rail can be used for the mounting of night sight.

Image Sources

Notes https://guns.fandom.com/wiki/MATADOR; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:IDF-Matador-02.jpg; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MATADOR ;

Details

Country of Origin Israel

Category Recoilless Guns

Land > Infantry Weapons > Recoilless Guns

Classification

Domain

Ground

Equipment Status

Active

Dimensions

Length

1 m

Width

0.09 m

Height

—

Weight

8.9 kg

Operators (9)

Germany

United Kingdom

Israel

Ukraine

Mexico

Saudi Arabia

Singapore

Slovenia

Vietnam

Something went wrong. Please reload the page. Reload