PIAT

Projector, Infantry, Anti Tank
PIAT at the Museum of Army Flying
Type	Anti-tank weapon
Place of origin	United Kingdom
Service history
In service	1943–1950
Used by	British Empire & Commonwealth
Wars	Second World War Indonesian National Revolution First Indochina War Malayan Emergency 1948 Arab–Israeli War Korean War
Production history
Designer	Major Millis Jefferis
Designed	1942
Manufacturer	Imperial Chemical Industries Ltd., various others.
Produced	August 1942[1]
No. built	115,000[2]
Specifications
Mass	32 lb (15 kg)[2]
Length	39 in (0.99 m)[2]
Calibre	83 mm (3.3 in)
Action	Spigot mortar
Muzzle velocity	250 ft/s (76 m/s)[2]
Effective firing range	115 yd (105 m)[3]
Maximum firing range	350 yd (320 m)[3]
Sights	Aperture sight
Filling	Shaped charge[4]
Detonation mechanism	Impact

The Projector, Infantry, Anti Tank (PIAT) Mk I was a British man-portable anti-tank weapon developed during the Second World War. The PIAT was designed in 1942 in response to the British Army's need for a more effective infantry anti-tank weapon and entered service in 1943.

The PIAT was based on the spigot mortar system, and projected (launched) a 2.5 pound (1.1 kg) shaped charge bomb using a cartridge in the tail of the projectile.^[5] It possessed an effective range of approximately 115 yards (105 m)^[3] in a direct fire anti-tank role, and 350 yards (320 m)^[3] in an indirect fire role. The PIAT had several advantages over other infantry anti-tank weapons of the period: it had greatly increased penetration power over the previous anti-tank rifles, it had no back-blast which might reveal the position of the user or accidentally injure friendly soldiers around the user, and it was simple in construction. However, the device also had some disadvantages: powerful recoil, a difficulty in cocking the weapon, and early problems with ammunition reliability.

The PIAT was first used during the Tunisian campaign in 1943, and remained in use with British and other Commonwealth forces until the early 1950s. PIATs were supplied to or obtained by other nations and forces, including the Soviet Union (through Lend Lease), the French resistance, the Polish Underground, and the Israeli Haganah (which used PIATs during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War). Six members of the British and other Commonwealth armed forces received Victoria Crosses for their use of the PIAT in combat.^[6]