The L16 81mm mortar is a British and Canadian standard mortar used by the Canadian Army, British Army, and many other armed forces. It originated as a joint design by the UK and Canada. The version produced and used by Australia is named the F2 81mm Mortar; the U.S. armed forces version is the M252.
| L16 81mm mortar | |
|---|---|
 81mm mortar L16 | |
| Type | Mortar |
| Place of origin | United Kingdom Canada |
| Service history | |
| Used by | See Users |
| Wars |
|
| Production history | |
| Designer | Royal Armament Research and Development Establishment, Fort Halstead (barrel and bipod) |
| Designed | 1956 |
| Manufacturer | Royal Ordnance (barrel and bipod) |
| Produced | 1965 |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 35.3 kg (78 lb) |
| Barrel length | 1,280 millimetres (50 in) |
| Crew | 3 |
| Shell weight | 4.2 kilograms (9.3 lb) (L3682).[1] |
| Calibre | 81 millimetres (3.2 in) |
| Action | muzzle loading |
| Breech | none |
| Recoil | baseplate and spring buffered mounting clamp |
| Rate of fire | 15 rpm, 1–12 rpm sustained, 20 rpm for short periods |
| Muzzle velocity | 225 m/s (740 ft/s) |
| Effective firing range | HE: 100–5,675 m (109–6,206 yd) Smoke: 100–5,675 m (109–6,206 yd) Illumination: 400–4,800 m (437–5,249 yd) |
| Maximum firing range | 5,650 m (6,180 yd) |
| Feed system | Manual |
| Sights | Optical (C2) with Trilux illumination |
Description
editIt was introduced in 1965–66, replacing the Ordnance ML 3 inch Mortar in UK service, where it is used by the British Army, the Royal Marines and the RAF Regiment.
In UK armoured/mechanised infantry battalions, the L16 mortar is mounted in an FV 432 AFV (six[2] per battalion mortar platoon). British army light role infantry battalions and the Royal Marines may transport their mortars in BvS 10 vehicles (the replacement for the Bv 206). Otherwise, it is carried disassembled in three loads, (barrel, baseplate and bipod with sights, each approximately 11 kg), normally carried by a vehicle or helicopter and assembled for firing from the ground.
The weapon can be man-packed by the mortar detachment, in which case the ammunition would be carried by other soldiers of the battalion. In addition to their normal equipment, each soldier would carry four bombs in a pair of two-bomb plastic containers (known as greenies in the British Army).
Operators
edit
Current operators
edit
Australia: known as 'F2 81mm mortar'[3]
Austria[4]
Belize[4]
Brazil[4]
Canada[4]
Estonia
Guyana[4]
India[4]
Japan[4]
Kenya[4]
Malawi[4]
Malaysia[4]
Netherlands: L16A2[5]
New Zealand: L16A2[6]
Nigeria[4]
Norway[4]
Oman[4]
Portugal[4]
Qatar[4]
Saudi Arabia[7]
Syria[citation needed]
Thailand[4]
United Arab Emirates[4]
United Kingdom
United States: M252 mortar[4]
Yemen[4]
Former operators
edit
Gallery
edit-
View down the smoothbore barrel of the L16 mortar. -
L16 baseplate. -
L16 C2 sight. -
Video of L16 81mm mortar fired by JGSDF soldiers during Orient Shield 2012
References
edit- ^ "81mm Mortar". Retrieved 4 November 2014.
- ^ Rinaldi, Richard A. (August 2002). "Modern British TOE's" (PDF). Orbat.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 December 2012. Retrieved 27 February 2013.
- ^ "Mortar – 81 mm" (PDF). defence.gov.au. Defence unexploded ordnance website: ordnance information sheet. March 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Berrigan, Frida; Ciarrocca, Michelle (November 2000). "Report: Profiling the Small Arms Industry - World Policy Institute - Research Project". World Policy Institute. Archived from the original on 23 August 2018. Retrieved 29 August 2018.
- ^ "Mortieren (60-, 81- en 120mm)". Defensie.nl. Ministerie van Defensie. Archived from the original on 16 March 2018. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
- ^ "L16A2, 81mm Mortar". New Zealand Defence Force. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
- ^ Rottman, Gordon L. (1993). Armies of the Gulf War. Elite 45. Osprey Publishing. p. 30. ISBN 9781855322776.
External links
edit
- "81 mm mortar". British Army.