M47 Dragon Anti Tank Guided Missile
The M47 Dragon (developmental designation FGM-77) is an American shoulder-fired, man-portable anti-tank missile system.
The M47 Dragon has since been phased out in US service, in favor of the newer FGM-148 Javelin system.
It used a wire-guidance system in concert with a high explosive anti-tank warhead and was capable of defeating armored vehicles, fortified bunkers, main battle tanks, and other hard targets. While it was primarily created to defeat the Soviet Union's T-55, T-62, and T-72 tanks, it has since seen action up into the current era including the Gulf War. The U.S. Armed Forces officially retired the weapon in the late 1990s - however stocks of the weapon remain in arsenals.
In use by the U. S. Army, the U.S. Marine Corps, as well as many foreign militaries, the design was first fielded in 1975. The effective range of the Dragon was about 1000 meters, with the rocket traveling 100 meters per second, guided by an infrared sight. The operator had to remain kneeling and had to guide the missile into its target, which exposed him to enemy fire.
