Type 69 RPG

Norinco

Industry	Defense manufacturing
Founded	1950s
Headquarters	China
Products	Firearms, rocket-propelled grenades, military equipment

The Type 69 85mm RPG (), manufactured by Norinco, represents a Chinese adaptation of the Soviet-designed RPG-7. Introduced in 1972, it became a primary individual anti-tank weapon within the PLA. During the 1980s and 1990s, advancements in grenade munitions were made to meet changing combat requirements. Eventually, the Type 69 RPG was superseded by more modern Chinese anti-tank weapons such as the Type 89 and Type 08.

History

In the early 1950s, China obtained the Soviet RPG-2 85mm anti-tank launcher and started producing a domestic version named Type 56 by 1956. However, the rapid development of main battle tanks (MBTs) during the early 1960s, highlighted by encounters in the 1969 Sino-Soviet border conflict, revealed that the Type 56 could not effectively penetrate newer Soviet armor like that of the T-62. This shortcoming created an urgent demand for a more capable individual anti-tank weapon.

The Chinese began reverse-engineering the RPG-7 in the early 1960s, with demonstrations presented to PLA officials by 1964. The resulting Chinese model, designated Type 69, received official approval in 1970 and was introduced into PLA service by the mid-1970s. It was deployed during the 1979 Sino-Vietnam border clashes, where it provided platoon-level support against personnel and obstacles, earning commendations from frontline soldiers.

Beyond domestic use, the Type 69 saw extensive exportation, including covert deliveries to the Mujahideen in Afghanistan amid China-CIA collaboration against Soviet forces during the 1980s.

Status

Production of the original Type 69 RPG ended in the mid-1980s following Norinco’s release of an upgraded variant known as the Type 69-I. As operational demands evolved, this system has been gradually phased out in favor of newer platforms like the PF-89 80mm anti-tank grenade launcher.

Ammunition

Although the launcher’s design has remained mostly consistent since its inception in the 1970s, several grenade types have been introduced to improve performance:

Type 69 high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT): The initial grenade issued with the Type 69; now withdrawn from PLA inventory.

Type 69-I hollow charge HEAT: Developed during the 1980s, featuring enhanced armor penetration capabilities.

Type 69-II HEAT: Further upgraded to defeat contemporary armored vehicles equipped with reactive armor plating.

Type 69-III HEAT: Incorporates improvements such as extended range and superior armor penetration.

Type 84 HEAT: A lighter warhead designed in the 1980s compatible with both Type 69 and Type 69-I launchers; engineered for improved long-distance accuracy and wind resistance.

Type 69 75mm airburst anti-personnel high-explosive (HE): Intended for use against fortified enemy positions by detonating approximately two meters above ground and dispersing roughly 800 steel balls within a lethal radius of about fifteen meters.

HE/HEAT: Combines anti-armor and anti-personnel effects by scattering approximately 1,500 fragments over a radius of twenty meters while maintaining tank-busting capability.

Anti-personnel high-explosive incendiary (HEI): Tailored for jungle and mountainous environments; disperses around 900 steel balls alongside up to 3,000 incendiary pellets over a fifteen-meter radius.

Tandem-warhead anti-tank grenade: Developed in the 1990s specifically to defeat explosive reactive armor; primarily effective against lighter armored vehicles such as APCs and AFVs.

Illumination grenade: Features a small parachute allowing it to remain suspended mid-air; effective illumination range is approximately 600 meters when equipped with a braking ring and up to 1,500 meters without it.

Operators

• : Employed by the Chilean army in 1978, currently out of service.
• • People's Liberation Army Ground Force
  • People's Armed Police

• Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda

• • Tigray Defense Forces
  • Oromo Liberation Army
• : Only old inventory remains, not actively used.
• • Lebanese Communist Party/Popular Guard
• Libyan National Army
• : In service with the Armed Forces of Malta
• : Delivered to FRELIMO during the Independence War
• • People's Defense Force
• Ogaden National Liberation Front
• : Utilized by both the Pakistan Army and paramilitary units.
• : By October 2019, 60 units had been delivered.
• : Deployed by Rwandan peacekeeping forces in Darfur.
• • Hizbul Islam
• : Used by the South Sudan Democratic Movement
• : Captured Type 69s were operated by Spetsnaz in Afghanistan
• : Limited deployment within Thahan Phran
• : Allegedly employed by Ukrainian troops since 2023.
• : Fielded by the People's Army of Vietnam and Viet Cong.

See also

• Yasin – An RPG designed by Hamas.
• Bazalt – Russian producer of RPG-7 and RPG-29 launchers.
• PSRL-1
• PF-89 and DZJ-08 – Chinese-developed next-generation portable rocket launcher and recoilless gun, successors to the Type 69.

External links

• Sino Defence overview of the Type 69