Original Item: Only one available. Totally inert and demilitarized according to BATF guidelines with hollow body and inert fuse. This is very good example of a very rare British WWII PIAT Anti-Tank Bomb Launcher HEAT (high explosive anti-tank) "Bomb" round. It has a lovely olive drab paint job, most likely applied post war, which is still in very good condition. We have seen many launchers repainted in a similar color, which is definitely better than the "Christmas Tree" green we sometimes see. Not available for Export.

This round is really in great shape, and the stamped production and British Ordnance markings can still be seen in many places through the paint. The round itself is maker marked and dated R.I. 44 on the side of the central post, followed by 1 in a Diamond, a marking we do not recognize. The fin assembly is also faintly dated 2 / 44 next to a maker mark. The top of the round unscrews, allowing the nose cone to be removed. Some of the internal components are missing, so the nose cone can be pushed down into the warhead, but is usually held in place by the fiber padding near the top.

This is a very rare deactivated HEAT type PIAT round, one of only a few that we have ever had, and it is definitely a very nice example! Ready to display!

The Projector, Infantry, Anti Tank (PIAT) was a British anti-tank weapon developed during the Second World War. The PIAT was designed in response to the British Army's need for a more effective hand-held infantry anti-tank weapon. It consisted of a steel tube, a trigger mechanism and firing spring, and was based on the spigot mortar system; instead of using a propellant to directly fire a round, the spring was cocked and tightened. When the trigger was pulled, it released the spring that pushed the spigot forward into the rear of the bomb. This detonated the propellant in the bomb itself, which was then thrown forward off the spigot. It possessed an effective range of approximately 100 yards (90 m).

This system meant that the PIAT had several advantages, which included a lack of muzzle smoke to reveal the position of the user, the ability to fire it from inside buildings, and an inexpensive barrel. The PIAT entered service in 1943, and was first used during the Allied invasion of Sicily that year; it remained in use with British and Commonwealth forces until the early 1950s, when it was replaced by the American bazooka. A large number of PIATs were supplied to the Soviet Union through Lend Lease, and it was also used by the French resistance and the Polish Underground. The Israeli Haganah used PIATs during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. Six members of the British and Commonwealth armed forces received Victoria Crosses whilst using the PIAT in combat.