SEP Dard 120

120mm Shoulder-Fired, Reusable Anti-Tank Rocket Launcher

France | 1981

"The two-man SEP DARD 120 was designed as a portable, close-range anti-armor weapon to counter the latest Soviet tank designs."

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 05/25/2018 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

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The Cold War period (1947-1991) and the emergence of the Main Battle Tank (MBT) required army forces to field capable armor-defeating weapons. This was not lost on the French Army who was the victim of two World Wars on its soil (1914-1918 and then again in 1939-1945). As such, in 1978, work began on a new, all-modern 120mm caliber Rocket-Propelled Grenade (RPG) weapon capable of being fired from the shoulder of an infantryman. The Societe Europeenne de Propulsion (SEP) was charged with its development and subsequent manufacture of the new, portable tank-killer - the "DARD 120".

The DARD 120 went through several earlier, smaller-caliber iterations in the "DARD 90" and the "DARD AC1000" - which were built around a 90mm and 95mm caliber tube, respectively. The new system was adopted in 1981 and intended for close-to-medium ranges with the "sweet spot" being 985 feet. The weapon was designed with a crew of two in mind though it only took a single operator to fire it.

The DARD 120 chambered 4.72" armored-piercing, fin-stabilized rocket-propelled projectile out to a range of 1965 feet (blast diameter of 80 feet). The launch tube was transported in two major sections of which one featured the preloaded rocket and was disposable. The operator(s) joined the two sections together and the system was made ready-to-fire in minutes. For low-level light environments, Night-Vision (NV) equipment was an optional fitting over the standard-issue optical sights. The complete system weighed 31lb and had a 63" length. The grenade could defeat up to 820mm to 850mm of steel.

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Performance
Performance specifications presented assume optimal operating conditions for the SEP Dard 120. Information presented is strictly for general reference and should not be misconstrued as useful for hardware restoration or operation.

985 ft
300.2 m | 328.3 yds
Max.Eff.Range

5
Rounds-Per-Minute
Rate-of-Fire

920 ft/sec
280 m/sec
Muzzle Velocity

Physical
The physical qualities of the SEP Dard 120. Information presented is strictly for general reference and should not be misconstrued as useful for hardware restoration or operation.

1,600 mm
62.99 in
O/A Length

1,600 mm
62.99 in
Barrel Length

31.97 lb
14.50 kg
Weight

Trigger-Actuated; Single-Shot; Reusable Launch Tube
Action

120mm
Caliber(s)

Single-Shot; Reusable Launcher
Feed

Included Optics
Sights

Variants
Notable series variants as part of the SEP Dard 120 120mm Shoulder-Fired, Reusable Anti-Tank Rocket Launcher family line.

DARD 120 - Base Series Designation

Operators
Global customers who have evaluated and/or operated the SEP Dard 120. Nations are displayed by flag, each linked to their respective national small arms listing.

Contractor(s): Societe Europeenne de Propulsion (SEP) - France

[ France ]

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Going Further...
The SEP Dard 120 120mm Shoulder-Fired, Reusable Anti-Tank Rocket Launcher appears in the following collections:

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