When we say "flamethrower", we usually mean a soldier with a metal tank behind his back and a pipe in his hands, from which directional streams of flame are pulled. However, this image is somewhat outdated; in the mid-80s, the Soviet Army received a new type of weapon - the manual rocket flamethrower RPO “Bumblebee”, which our soldiers in Afghanistan immediately called “shaitan pipe”.
The fighting in the Afghan mountains had its own characteristics: the enemy often used ground folds, caves and crevices as shelters. From far from always the enemy could be reached there with the help of small arms or grenade launchers. Standard backpack (or jet) flame-throwers did not fit too well either - their range does not exceed 70-75 meters. I needed another solution.
The RPM Bumblebee flamethrower is very similar in design and operation to a conventional rocket launcher. The main difference is its rocket, or rather, the contents of its warhead. The flamethrower projectile works on the principle of thermobaric ammunition, after the explosion a fire cloud is formed, which reliably burns out all life in a radius of several tens of meters. The blast wave of thermobaric ammunition spreads along the ground, flows into each recess and cover. It is impossible to hide from it in a dugout or a trench.
This is a classic assault weapon.
In terms of its high-explosive effect, the 93-mm rocket projectile of the RPO Bumblebee flamethrower is not inferior to the usual 122-mm ammunition. Initially, flamethrowers entered service with the chemical defense forces, and later they equipped the usual infantry units.
RPO "Bumblebee" - a highly effective weapon, surpassing all such systems that exist today in the world. Therefore, these flamethrowers are in great demand abroad.
Description of construction
The nature of hostilities in the context of modern local conflicts has changed significantly. Fighters often have to fight in small maneuver groups without the support of the main forces in close contact with the enemy. In this case, the soldiers have to rely only on portable weapons. More and more often, clashes occur in populated areas or on rough terrain, where the effectiveness of armored vehicles and artillery is sharply reduced.
In such conditions, a flamethrower is an indispensable weapon. However, the classic flamethrower has a lot of disadvantages, which significantly limit its use.
The classic knapsack flamethrower is a volumetric tank with fire mixture, carried by a fighter on his back and a tube through which the mixture under pressure is taken outside. The advantage of this weapon is simplicity, a significant area of damage and a strong psychological effect on the enemy.
However, there are downsides. The tank is too big and heavy, which deprives the flamethrower of maneuverability, because of the small distance of the defeat, the fighter needs to approach the enemy almost closely, which is very difficult. However, the worst thing is that the backpack flamethrower is a danger not only for the enemy, but also for its own soldiers.
The RPM Bumblebee flamethrower is devoid of all of the above disadvantages, and its characteristics make it possible to effectively use it against an adversary who is in shelters or even inside lightly armored vehicles.
Development of the "Bumblebee" began in 1984, its predecessor was the rocket infantry flamethrower RPO "Lynx", which did not have a thermobaric projectile. At the present moment, several modifications of the flamethrower have been created, the latter of which have a much smaller mass with a significant increase in the effectiveness of the action and the firing range.
The RPM "Bumblebee" infantry flamethrower consists of a plastic container pipe into which the missile is placed. The launch tube is disposable, with sights, two handles and a trigger mechanism attached to it.
The container is used to store the ammunition, directing it to the target and firing a shot. This is a pipe with flanges, it has a belt for wearing comfort, as well as knots for connecting two pipes to a bag. The simplest optical sight with a scale graduated by 600 meters, a folding pistol grip and a holding handle located on the front edge of the pipe are fixed on the container.
Inside the container is an ammunition, which is an aluminum capsule filled with a special mixture and the engine connected to the capsule with a collet.
The engine of a grenade is a powder, it consists of a charge, a chamber and an igniter.
The pomegranate capsule is equipped with stabilizers, which are opened after it flies out of the container.
The main ammunition infantry flamethrower RPO "Bumblebee" is a volume-detonating. In front of the capsule is a shaped charge, allowing the grenade to break through minor obstacles. Then, using a small charge to detonate, an aerosol cloud is formed, which is ignited by the detonator. In terms of its effectiveness, fire mixture exceeds ordinary solid explosives, although the effect of a volumetric explosion ammunition has its own characteristics.
The volume of guaranteed damage when a grenade capsule is triggered is 80 m³, it is especially effective in a confined space.
The distance of the most effective sighting shooting RPO "Bumblebee" is 200-300 meters, but the range of the grenade is much longer (from the "Bumblebee-M" to 1.7 km).
Flamethrower Modifications
Since the creation of this weapon, it has been modernized several times. In addition, several modifications of the flamethrower were originally developed, which differed in the type of ammunition. Here are the main modifications of "Bumblebee" that exist today:
RPO-A - the main and most common modification of the weapon, equipped with a thermobaric grenade. It is used to defeat the enemy in shelters, perfectly suited for combat operations in populated areas, and can be used to defeat pillboxes and lightly armored vehicles.
RPO-Z is a flamethrower modification equipped with an incendiary grenade. It is used to create fires on enemy positions, in buildings, in warehouses and other enemy objects.
RPO-D - modification of the "Bumblebee" with a smoke grenade. Used to create smoke screens and "smoking out" the enemy from cover.
MPO-A. A shortened version of the RPO-A, designed specifically for the conduct of hostilities in urban environments. It can be equipped with incendiary and smoke grenades.
"Bumblebee-M" (RPO-M or PDM-A) - the most modern modification of the flamethrower, developed at the beginning of the zero years. The weight of the flamethrower is reduced to 8.8 kg, significantly increased the power of the ammunition. On the "Bumblebee-M" you can set the sight of night vision. Has been in service with the Russian army since 2004.
Performance characteristics
Below are the performance characteristics of the RPO-A Bumblebee.
| Caliber | 93 mm |
| Length | 920 mm |
| Weight | 11 kg |
| Sighting range | 600 meters, grenade departure speed 125 m / s |
| Maximum firing range | 1 thousand meters |
| The number of volleys | Disposable |
