The L10 Ranger anti-personnel mine was a United Kingdom anti-personnel blast mine. It was used from the 1970s until stocks were destroyed in accordance with the Ottawa Treaty.
| L10 Ranger anti-personnel mine | |
|---|---|
 L10 Ranger anti-personnel mine & arming key | |
| Type | Anti-personnel mine |
| Place of origin | United Kingdom |
| Service history | |
| Used by | United Kingdom |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 136 grams (4.8 oz) |
| Height | 30 millimetres (1.2 in) |
| Diameter | 60 millimetres (2.4 in) |
| Filling | phlegmatized RDX |
| Filling weight | 109 grams (3.8 oz) |
It was designed to be used in conjunction with the L9 bar mine anti-tank mine, to make anti-tank minefields more difficult for enemy sappers to clear by hand. An FV432 would be fitted with a plough through which bar mines would be laid. A firing frame which held 18 clips of 4 barrels each would be fitted to the top of the vehicle. Each barrel contained 18 Ranger mines, for a total of 1,296 mines. The frame could fire in any direction (although mines were not usually fired over the front of the vehicle). As each section of the anti-tank minefield was completed, several of the barrels would be fired. A small propelling charge would launch the mines, scattering them 50 to 250 metres (160 to 820 ft) behind or to the side of the mine-laying vehicle. The act of launching the mine from the tube would release a spring-loaded safety catch and start a timer which would arm the mine after 30 seconds.
The mine was roughly the size of a tin of shoe polish, made of plastic and coloured olive green. There was enough metal in their fuze to make them detectable.[1] Two inert training versions were available. One was bright orange to allow it to be easily spotted and recovered; the other was made from bio-degradable compressed peat.
The Ranger mine laying system could also be fitted to a four-tonne truck, Stalwart high mobility load carrier or the combat support boat
The mines were supplied by Thorn EMI and most[i] were supplied before 1986.[2] In June 1998, stocks of 1,110,000 mines were held.[2]
In accordance with treaties banning the use of anti-personnel mines, the UK has destroyed all its stocks of L10s as of March 1999.[2]
References
edit
- ^ Possibly all
- ^ Ordata entry on the L10 mine
- ^ a b c "United Kingdom". International Campaign to Ban Landmines. Landmine Monitor. Archived from the original on 2007-03-20.
- Brassey's Essential Guide To Anti-Personnel Landmines, Eddie Banks
- Jane's Mines and Mine Clearance 2006-2006
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