RP-3
Contents
Description
The RP-3, also known as the 60-pounder rocket due to their SAP warhead. Are rockets developed by the British during World War II. In the game, these are the backbone of many RAF's aircraft against ground and naval targets. They served honorably with the Beaufighters on anti-shipping and anti-submarine duties, they also served with the Typhoons and their swift high-speed strafes against German convoys of tanks and mechanized vehicles.
Ground-to-ground albeit limited, was also executed. By units such as the 1st Coldstream Guards during the crossing of the Rhine, in command of their Sherman "Tulips". The ground forces would generally use the RP-3 as a weapon for saturation bombardment and counter ambushes. Thanks to the explosive splash of the warhead, it was highly valued for this purpose.
The rockets were widely successful and remained in use long after the resolution of the WW2.
Vehicles equipped with this weapon
| Vehicles equipped with this weapon | |
|---|---|
| Fighters | |
| Blackburn | Firebrand TF Mk IV · Firecrest |
| Fairey | Firefly F Mk I · Firefly FR Mk V |
| Hawker | Hurricane Mk IIB/Trop · Hurricane Mk IV · Tempest Mk II · Tempest Mk V · Typhoon Mk Ib · Typhoon Mk Ib/L · Sea Fury FB 11 |
| Supermarine | Seafire FR 47 · Spitfire F Mk XVIIIe · Spitfire F Mk 22 · Spitfire F Mk 24 |
| Westland | Wyvern S4 |
| Twin-engine fighters | Beaufighter Mk X · Beaufighter Mk 21 · Hornet Mk.III · Mosquito FB Mk VI · Mosquito FB.Mk.26 |
| Jet fighters | |
| Gloster | Meteor F Mk 8 G.41K · Meteor F Mk.8 Reaper |
| de Havilland | Vampire F.B.5 · Vampire FB 52A · Venom FB.4 |
| Hawker | Sea Hawk FGA.6 · ◄Sea Hawk Mk.100 |
| Supermarine | Attacker FB 1 · Swift F.1 |
| Bombers | Brigand B 1 · Swordfish Mk II |
| Medium tanks | Cromwell V (RP-3) |
General info
The rocket is divided into two main components:
- The Semi Armor-Piercing HE warhead (152 mm) with 5.44 kg of TNT.
- The "3-inch" rocket propellent body, the "3 inch" designation referred to the diameter of the rocket motor tube (76 mm), is also shared with the analogous of the RP-3, the AP MK I and MK II referred to as the 25-pounder rockets due to their solid AP warhead.
The muzzle velocity of the rocket is: 350 m/s, this is enough to minimal corrections at close range but the trajectory drop is a noteworthy concern, especially at long range (+400m).
The warhead weight is: 27 kg, the rocket engine tube weight is: 37 kg.
Effective damage
With a fantastic penetration of 60mm at a really close distance (10 m), these rockets will create a lot of damage after penetration. If the target is too far away to obtain a successful penetration of the armor (1500m). The explosive air blast damage will cause a splash able to penetrate 44mm of armor in any direction.
The air blast of HE devastation was dreaded by the crews of light vehicles, half-tracks, and tank commanders; who at times preferred to abandon their vehicles during rocket attacks. This level of lethality can also be put to satisfactory use in War thunder against the great variety of light vehicles and medium tanks! Especially in low BR battles.
Comparison with analogues
Usage in battles
Describe situations when you would utilise this rocket in-game (vehicle, pillbox, base, etc)
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Great damage for light and medium tanks up to 5.0 BR
- Useful balance in Explosive mass, Armor penetration and Velocity
- Low weight allows for considerable amount of rocket payload
- Explosive warhead posses good HE damage post penetration
- 152mm of the warhead will cause major damage
Cons:
- They struggle to pierce heavy armor 5.0+ BR, notably Soviet sloped armor.
- Muzzle velocity is the less favourable aspect, a lot of correction is needed
- The 152mm of the warhead might detonate with non relevant objects.
History
Examine the history of the creation and combat usage of the weapon in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the weapon and adding a block "/History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Weapon-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />.
Media
Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.
See also
Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:
- reference to the article about the variant of the weapon;
- references to approximate analogues by other nations and research trees.
External links
Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:
- topic on the official game forum;
- encyclopedia page on the weapon;
- other literature.
