--- title: "From shoot to BOOM! This is the deadly science behind the RPG" date: "2018-04-02" modified: "2020-10-22" authors: - name: "Blake Stilwell" job_title: "Editor-In-Chief, Air Force Veteran" link: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/authors/blake/" url: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/articles/from-shoot-to-boom-this-is-the-deadly-science-behind-the-rpg/" categories: - "Tactical" - "Weapons" --- # From shoot to BOOM! This is the deadly science behind the RPG ![]() What started as a way for Soviet ground troops to take out German tanks in World War II has since turned into a global weapons phenomenon: The rocket-propelled grenade. --- ![]() ### Related: [This is how the Sabot round turns enemies into a fine mist ]() While the original anti-tank technology was meant to have a one-off use, the modern RPG is a reloadable weapon, with a shaped-charge explosive used by militias and official military forces alike. "The Russians were extremely impressed by the panzerfaust," said Will Fowler, an explosives expert, in the video below. "It was the basis for their RPG-2 program which went on to the now-famous RPG-7." ![]() *With varying degrees of celebration.* When an RPG is fired, it leaves the barrel at 383 feet per second. An additional rocket fires and deploys stabilizing fins as the shell spins toward a target. ![]() The RPG's cone shape forms a jet of explosive energy outward when the shell strikes its target. That's where the weapons gets its armor-penetrating power. ![]() The RPG is a simple, cheap, and efficient system that can completely destroy a soft-skinned vehicle and can cause grievous harm to some up-armored ones. Troops who encounter an RPG round in combat are lucky to survive to tell the tale. "When I was in Iraq, the RPG was a deadly weapon," Staff Sgt. Matthew Bertles, a U.S. Army M240 gunner, told the show [Weaponology](). "An RPG struck my 240, blew me back, destroyed our vehicle, and injured me." Watch the history of the RPG in the video below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jw5mDO90tmY ## Author Blake Stilwell is We Are The Mighty's Editor-in-Chief, covering military news, entertainment, and history, along with veteran education, employment and entrepreneurship. He is a former U.S. Air Force combat cameraman with degrees in Graphic Design, Television and Film, International Relations, Public Relations, Business Management and Middle Eastern Affairs. After leaving the military, he began working in film and television production in New York and Los Angeles, work that included ABC News, NBC Olympics, and HBO Sports. He then spent two years in Washington with White House Communications, before joining the Near East Foundation. At NEF he served as an International Development Fellow, then Communications Officer, and finally, Media Officer for the Middle East and Africa. Based in the Palestinian Territory, he coordinated strategic communications between eight country offices, international media, and government and NGO partners. He began a career focused on writing and editing in 2015 with We Are The Mighty. He left in 2019 for Military.com, but returned as Editor-in-Chief in 2025. Blake’s work has been seen on CBS News, Fox News, CBC, The Chicago Tribune, Task & Purpose, Military Times, Recoil, Skillset, American History, and was shockingly even used in a Supreme Court argument. He is an avid traveler and small business owner in Ohio, where he spends most of his energy fixing up a very old house. ### Author social links [Facebook]() [Twitter]() [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]()