China's LG5 personal grenade launcher first appeared in the hands of Saudi soldiers on the Yemeni battlefield.

Sulaiman Aldoosari's account on November 3 posted on Twitter pictures and videos of Saudi soldiers using a Chinese-made Norinco LG5 grenade launcher. This is the first time the weapon has been deployed in a country outside of China, the first time Beijing's grenade launcher has been used on the actual battlefield.

"The gun is often described as a 'sniper grenade launcher' and looks like weapons only appeared in Hollywood movies," military expert Joseph Trevithick said.

It is unclear when the weapons were used by the Saudi military, but unnamed sources said Northern China Industrial Group (NORINCO) in February 2018 received an order to produce launchers. pomegranate for "a Middle Eastern customer".

LG5 is an export version of the QLU-11 shoulder grenade launcher introduced by NORINCO in 2011. The Chinese military version uses 35x32 mm ammunition, while the LG5 model shoots 40x53 mm grenades according to American standards. QLU-11 and LG5 both use drum-shaped magazine which can hold 3-7 rounds of 35 mm or 5-15 rounds of 40 mm.

Chinese sniper grenade launchers are fitted with kickstands to increase shooting stability, similar to regular heavy sniper rifles. The QLU-11 weighs only about 13.3 kg, while a sniper rifle uses 12.7 mm bullets with a weight of about 14 kg.

"It is possible that the LG5 export is heavier, and has more impact on guns and gunner than the domestic variant because of the large size of the ammunition. However, the Saudi soldiers in the video do not take too much effort to place. guns on combat positions, showing that it is relatively light, "Trevithick added.

The LG5 uses a breech brake mechanism and power grip to reduce recoil, as well as reduce the volume of weapons.

The US military does not currently have a personal grenade launcher that uses 40x53 mm ammunition, it is only available on heavy automatic grenade launchers mounted on tripods or motor vehicles. US forces and its allies only carry individual rotary grenade launchers using low-speed 40x46 mm bullets.

"There is not much information about this weapon. It seems that NORINCO took the idea of developing QLU-11 / LG5 from the US Army's XM109 sniper rifle project in the late 1990s. future gas using 25 mm bullets such as XM109 and XM29 OICW will soon be terminated, "Trevithick commented.

40x53 mm grenades have a variety of warheads, such as high-explosive multiple-use warheads (HEDPs) to combat infantry and light armored vehicles, as well as airborne munitions to destroy targets lurking in solid fortifications. This allowed Saudi troops to effectively counter Houthi rebels in Yemen, using unarmed civilian forces and often taking advantage of complex mountainous terrain to ambush the enemy.

China once offered LG5 with a viewfinder system that combines a ballistic computer and laser rangefinder to increase accuracy. However, the LG5 version of Saudi Arabia uses only the conventional optical viewfinder.

"LG5 can equip small units, operating in complex mountainous environments not suitable for large-sized grenade launchers mounted on motor vehicles. It also provides superior firepower compared to other types of launchers. a grenade usually mounted under an infantry gun, "Trevithick added, contending that China could find more orders if the weapon performed well in the war in Yemen.