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Originally Posted by jbour13
Looking at MAB32's post spurred a question that I never knew how to ask and receive an answer. Since this board has the knowledge it may not hurt to ask.
The rifle grenade is the poor man's mortar and could also be used in the direct fire mode. But my question is, can a 40mm or 60mm mortar be trigger fired (safely) as a direct fire weapon?
Last duty assignment was in an infantry bn and I was told this, but never found anyone to back up this claim. I just wonder if that is one of those things they teach 11C's in AIT that is not in the book.
One of the funnest things I got to experiance while assigned to the unit was hanging with the bn mortars (81's) and riding the baseplate to settle it. 
One way to keep a private occupied is ask him to count the rings on an 81mm mortar until he gets it right.  |
Small minds are easilly entertained.
The fun part is the look on their face when you have to define "rings" after he's counted it 4-5 times only to have you tell him there are none. I've never encountered a 40mm mortar. The infamous Japanese "knee mortar" of WWII fame was small calibre but I don't remember the exact diameter. There is "direct fire" then there is "direct lay" two completely different actions commonly confused by the uninitiated. Trigger fire (the old M19 and the new "don't remember the #", Brit mortar we've had for about 20 years) mortars can be used either way. Both have a small base plate specifically for "hip shoots" (shooting in a hurry - not shooting from the hip). Direct lay is a common mode of employment, direct fire is usually an act of desperation or stupidity (personal opinion). I'm talking about infantry use - the Navy PBRs have a different type of mortar that is designed to be direct fired. There's also a type of Russian(?) mortar that was clip fed (5 rounds) and mounted in a wheeled vehicle that is designed for direct fire. Never seen one in person. IIRC somebody posted a video clip of a test fire with it mounted in a HMMV sometime last year. HTH - Peregrino