GP-25

"GP-30" redirects here. For the locomotive, see EMD GP30.

The GP-25 Kostyor ("Bonfire"), GP-30 Obuvka ("Shoe") and GP-34 are a family of Russian 40 mm under-barrel muzzleloaded grenade launchers for the AK family of assault rifles.^[3] The acronym GP stands for Granatomyot Podstvolnyj,^[3] "under-barrel grenade launcher" in Russian, and was adopted by Soviet forces in 1978.

GP-25 grenade launcher
Type	Grenade launcher
Place of origin	Soviet Union
Service history
In service	1978–present
Used by	See Users
Wars	Afghan conflict Soviet–Afghan War War in Afghanistan Transnistria war First Chechen war Second Chechen War Russo-Georgian War Syrian Civil War Russo-Ukrainian War War in Donbas[1] Russian invasion of Ukraine Yemeni Civil War Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen Houthi–Saudi Arabian conflict
Production history
Designer	TsKIB SOO
Designed	1966–1978
Manufacturer	Kalashnikov Concern STC Delta Arsenal AD Zastava Arms
Produced	1978–present
Variants	GP-30, GP-30M, GP-34
Specifications
Mass	1.5 kg (3.31 lb) (GP-25) 1.3 kg (2.9 lb) (GP-30) 1.4 kg (3.1 lb) (GP-34)[2]
Length	323 mm (12.7 in) (GP-25) 275 mm (10.8 in) (GP-30) 315 mm (12.4 in) (GP-34)[2]
Barrel length	120 mm (4.7 in)
Cartridge	40 mm internal propellant caseless ammunition (CL)
Caliber	40 mm
Action	Closed system, single-shot
Rate of fire	20 rounds/min area suppression[2] 5–6 rounds/min aimed shots[2]
Muzzle velocity	76.5 m/s (251 ft/s)[2]
Effective firing range	Sights adjustable 100 to 400 meters[2]
Feed system	Muzzleloader
Sights	Notched quadrant sight

Development

An AK-74 equipped with an airsoft replica of the GP-25 grenade launcher.

The development of a grenade launcher for the AKM assault rifle began in 1966 at the Central Design and Research Bureau of Sporting and Hunting Arms (TsKIB SOO). Development continued into the 1970s, and in 1978 it was accepted into service.^[3] The initial version was designated the BG-15 Mukha ("Fly"), and was mounted under the barrel of the AK-74 assault rifle. The main production version, the GP-25, has a different aiming system. The GP-30 was made lighter and the aiming system was redesigned and moved to the right.^[4]

GP grenade launchers are similar in appearance and fire the same Russian 40mm caliber ammunition. At the top of the barrel is the mounting hardware to attach the weapon to the underside of a rifle barrel, from which it is designed to fire. The GP barrel has a useful life of about 400 rounds.^[5]

The GP-30 first entered service in 1989,^[3] and is intended for use with the AK-100 series of assault rifles. The GP-30M is a grenade launcher of simplified model, consisting of a shorter 40mm rifled barrel in front of a basic trigger mechanism with minimal hand grip.

The current Izhmash-made version, the GP-34, has a further-redesigned sighting system located to the right side of the weapon and features the following advantages:

• Reliability: It is designed and tested specifically for the Kalashnikov assault rifles, fits such assault rifles directly without any adaptors or hand guard dismantling.^[6]
• Improved safety: The design prevents a round from moving within or falling out of the barrel, even if the muzzle is pointed down. The GP-34 features an additional mechanism (firing pin safety lever) to improve safety during loading.^[6]

Variants

• 
  GP-25.
• 
  GP-30M.
• 
  GP-34.

• ГП-25 (GP-25), GRAU index: 6Г15 (6G15), nickname «Костёр» (Kostyor, "Bonfire")
• ГП-30 (GP-30), GRAU index: 6Г21 (6G21), nickname «Обувка» (Obuvka, "Shoe")
• ГП-34 (GP-34), GRAU index: 6Г34 (6G34)

Use

Spetsnaz with GP grenade launcher under an AKM rifle, 45th Spetsnaz Brigade.

A grenade is first loaded from the muzzle, the weapon is aimed, and then the double-action trigger is pulled to fire. This fires the percussion cap at the base of the grenade which activates the nitrocellulose propellant inside the grenade body.^[7] The hot, expanding gas from the propellant is forced through openings in the base of the grenade that move it along the barrel and, at the same time, force the driving band to fit into the twelve grooves of the rifle. The rifling provides stabilizing rotation to the projectile.^[7] The grenade has a range of up to 400m.^[8]

• 
  GP-25 sighting system.
• 
  GP-25 seen from the front.
• 
  Explanation on the use of the GP-25.

Ammunition

An Afghan National Army soldier armed with a GP-25/30 on patrol in Kunar province, Khas Kunar district of Afghanistan, July 1, 2009.

GP grenade launchers fire multiple 40mm VOG-25 high-explosive fragmentation grenades, with a total range of 400 meters and an effective range of 150m.^[3][4] These Russian-Soviet 40 mm grenades are not compatible with Western 40x46mm grenades.^[3] Originally, the main grenade was the VOG-15 (7P17) fragmentation grenade, which has a lethal radius of six meters. Ammunition for the muzzle-loading GP-25 consists of a single piece containing propellant and charge, as opposed to the more traditional two-piece case and projectile design of comparable US 40x46mm ammunition used in breech-loading grenade launchers, such as the M203. This integral "caseless" design – with the propellant and primer contained in the base of the grenade – provides for when the grenade is fired nothing is left in the barrel, so the operator can load the next grenade.^[4]

A bouncing grenade, the VOG-25P, is also available. On impact, a small charge in the nose of the grenade explodes; this raises the grenade 50cm to 1.5m in the air, before an impact delay fuse causes it to detonate.^[4] The VOG-25P also has a lethal radius of six meters. The new generation VOG-M and VOG-PM ammunition, with an increased effectiveness of no less than 1.5 times, are now serially available.^[9]

Internal view of the 40mm VOG-25 (7P17) grenade from the GP-25 grenade launcher.

Smoke grenades are also available. The original GRD-40 grenade was replaced by a series of grenades designed for use at different ranges. These are the GRD-50, GRD-100 and GRD-200 intended for use at 50, 100 and 200 meters respectively. They are capable of producing a 20 cubic meter cloud of smoke that lasts for one minute in winds of up to five meters per second. A tear gas grenade called Gvozd ("Nail") and a stick grenade are also available.^[7]

Ammunition data

Version	Fuse arming range	Fuse self-destruction time	Weight	Charge
VOG-25	10–40 m (33–130 ft)	14–19 s	250 g (0.55 lb)	48 g of A-IX-1 explosive
VOG-25P	10–40 m (33–130 ft)	14–19 s	278 g (0.61 lb)	37 g of TNT
GRD-50/100/200	10–40 m (33–130 ft)	14–19 s	265 g	90 g

Users

A group of British officers participating in a Russian field day at the WGF HQ camp in Zossen-Wuensdorf, Germany, 1992. Here Colonel Pugachov, CO 69th Guards Motor Rifle Regiment, is preparing a British officer for firing the GP 25/30 grenade launcher mounted on an AK-74.

•  Angola^{[citation needed]}
•  Algeria^[10]
•  Botswana^[11]
•  Bulgaria: Made under license by Arsenal AD as the UBGL^[12] and the UBGL-1.^[13]
•  Burundi^[14]
•  Congo-Kinshasa^{[citation needed]}
•  Cyprus^{[citation needed]}
•  Georgia: Made by STC Delta.^[15][16]
•  Greece: Used for the AK-74M.^{[citation needed]}
•  India^[17]
•  Indonesia: Mobile Brigade Corps^[18]
•  Iran : Used by IRGC
•  Lithuania: Lithuanian Armed Forces^[19]
•  North Korea^[17][20]
•  Pakistan^{[citation needed]}
•  Russia^[17]
•  Serbia: Made under license by Zastava Arms as the PBG – 40 mm^[21] and the PBG 40 mm M70.^[22]
•  North Macedonia
•  Syria: Uses both GP-25s and GP-30Ms.^[23]
•  Ukraine^[17]
•  Vietnam^{[citation needed]}

See also

• BS-1 Tishina
• QLG-10
• RGM-40 Kastet grenade launcher is a stand-alone version of GP-30 grenade launcher
• Wz. 1974 Pallad grenade launcher

References

1. "Ukraine War 1 Hour of Amazing Firefights". YouTube. Archived from the original on October 18, 2018. Retrieved September 14, 2017.
2. "Официальный сайт группы предприятий "ИЖМАШ"". Archived from the original on July 28, 2012. Retrieved October 20, 2012. |Izhmash GP-34 Specifications
3. Rottman, Gordon L. (2011). The AK-47: Kalashnikov-series assault rifles. Weapon 8. Oxford: Osprey Publishing. p. 28. ISBN 978-1-84908-835-0. OCLC 651902408.
4. Popenker, Maxim (October 28, 2010). "GP-25 and GP-30". Modern Firearms. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
5. "GP-25 KASTYOR Under-barrel Grenade Launcher". Armaco JSC, Bulgaria. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
6. "40 mm underbarrel grenade launcher GP-34". Izmash. Archived from the original on July 28, 2012. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
7. "GP-25 / GP-30 GL Single-Shot 40mm Muzzle-Loaded Grenade Launcher Specifications and Pictures". Military Factory. Retrieved April 13, 2024.
8. TAB (March 5, 2023). "Standalone Grenade Launcher". The Armourers Bench. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
9. RIA News (November 10, 2016). "Юрий Набоков: гранатомет "Балкан" могут принять на вооружение в 2017 году" [Yuri Nabokov: the Balkan grenade launcher may be put into service in 2017]. RIA Novosti (in Russian). Retrieved April 12, 2024.
10. "GP-25 Kostyer: 40 mm underbarrel grenade launcher". Military Today. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
11. Tiger, Grey. "World Infantry Weapons: Botswana". World Inventory. Archived from the original on November 24, 2016. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
12. Arsenal Corporation. "Arsenal 40 mm Underbarrel Grenade Launcher UBGL". Arsenal BG. Archived from the original on October 8, 2014. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
13. Arsenal Corporation. "Arsenal 40 mm Underbarrel Grenade Launcher UBGL-1". Arsenal BG. Archived from the original on November 29, 2014. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
14. Vircoulon, Thierry (October 2, 2015). "Insights from the Burundian Crisis (I): An Army Divided and Losing its Way". International Crisis Group. Archived from the original on May 21, 2017. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
15. Chiteishvili, Otar. "40 mm under barrel grenade launcher GP-25". STC Delta. Archived from the original on June 13, 2015. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
16. Ministry of Defense of Georgia. "Industrial Parade". Ministry of Defense of Georgia. Archived from the original on January 7, 2014. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
17. Jones, Richard D. Jane's Infantry Weapons 2009/2010. Jane's Information Group; 35 edition (January 27, 2009). ISBN 978-0-7106-2869-5.
18. Bagas, Marc (September 6, 2020). "Guns of Nusantara: The AK-101 and 102 in BRIMOB Service". Conflict Freelancers. Archived from the original on May 23, 2021. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
19. "Lietuvos kariuomenė :: Ginkluotė ir karinė technika » Granatsvaidžiai ir prieštankiniai ginklai". Archived from the original on November 9, 2014. Retrieved November 15, 2014.
20. US Department of Defense (May 1997). "North Korea Country Handbook" (PDF). Marine Corps Intelligence Activity: A-76 (248). Archived (PDF) from the original on March 4, 2016.
21. Zastava Arms. "Underbarrel grenade launcher PBG-40 mm". Zastava Arms. Archived from the original on October 27, 2014. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
22. Zastava Arms. "Underbarrel grenade launcher PBG 40 mm M70". Zastava Arms. Archived from the original on October 28, 2014. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
23. Mitzer, Stijn; Oliemans, Joost (February 19, 2015). "From Russia with Love, Syria's AK-74Ms". Oryx. Archived from the original on February 6, 2019. Retrieved April 12, 2024.

Bibliography

• Koll, Christian (2009). Soviet Cannon: A Comprehensive Study of Soviet Arms and Ammunition in Calibres 12.7mm to 57mm. Linz, Austria: Christian Koll. p. 397. ISBN 978-3-200-01445-9. OCLC 424511896.
• Rottman, Gordon L. (2011). The AK-47: Kalashnikov-series assault rifles. Weapon 8. Oxford: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84908-835-0. OCLC 651902408.

External links

• Modern Firearms
• Technical data, instructional images and diagrams of the GP-25 (in Russian)
• Differences between GP-25, GP-30, GP-30M and GP-34 (in Russian)
• How the GP-25 works