A stun grenade is a type of non-lethal weapon, the main purpose of which is to inflict fragmentation damage or light and sound damage to a person. Such ammunition is in service with all special services, the army, as well as law enforcement agencies. Mainly used to temporarily disable the enemy by stunning with a loud sound and blinding. Sometimes rubber buckshot is used to cause damage to the soft tissues of the human body.
Briefly about the design
All modern flashlights are equipped with pyrotechnics. The case is most often made of metal. During the explosion, it does not burst, therefore, does not form fragments. The housing has many small openings for the exit of gases. In addition, sometimes light and sound grenades are made from cardboard and plastic. This material has high kinetic energy and is ideal for such ammunition, since like metal it does not give life-threatening fragments. To ensure a traumatic effect, some grenades are equipped with rubber buckshot. After the explosion of the enemy, it not only blinds and stuns, but also additionally injures. We can say that the stun grenade is used where you need to take the offender alive.
Damaging effects on humans
As noted above, the main impact of stun grenades is stunning and blinding the enemy. Thus, the offender will not be able to resist for some time. The closer the face was to the center of the explosion, the longer the disorientation effect will last. Conditionally damaging factors can be divided into two types:
- Psychophysiological. This includes blinding, which in most cases lasts from 20 to 30 seconds. It is also the sound of an explosion, which leads to complete hearing loss for 3-4 hours.
- Mechanical effects. Overpressure is the main factor that causes damage to the inner ear in a person. However, this happens very rarely: of the total mass - about 1% of cases. If overpressure affects children, the risk of damage is slightly greater. In addition, it is worth highlighting mechanical injuries and bruises. Often, everything ends with subcutaneous hematomas or soft tissue damage.
About the effect of disorientation and mortality in the explosion
It is impossible not to say a few words that in addition to blinding and stunning, the enemy is often completely lost in space. In most cases, the offender is lost for a time from several seconds to several minutes, which depends on many factors. For example, the best effect of disorientation can be obtained in a dark confined space. In addition, if a grenade explodes in the air, for example, between a target and a solid object (wall), then the duration of the effect increases. Also an important role is played by the type of ammunition.
As for the death due to the explosion of a supersonic grenade, it all depends on the circumstances. If in the immediate vicinity of the explosion there will be a large number of small objects (nuts, nails, bolts), then the risk of serious damage increases several times. In addition, some types of grenades have a sufficiently large power, and people with a weak heart can not stand it and get a heart attack.
What types of grenades are there?
Light and sound ammunition can conditionally be divided into several large groups:
- Hand grenade is the most common type of light-sound ammunition. To activate such a weapon, it is necessary to activate the safety-starting mechanism. Then, using a hand throw, the grenade is delivered closer to the offender.
- Grenade launchers. For this kind of shooting, manual or underbarrel grenade launchers are most often used . The caliber of the projectile is usually 40-50 mm.
- Rifle ammunition. They are currently used in Western countries. So, the 12 mm caliber and 23x81 mm - “Stars” for the carbine are especially popular.
- For civil defense. There are ammunition that is designed for use in traumatic weapons for civilians for self-defense.
Thunder grenade "Dawn"
When conducting assault operations on the territory of the Russian Federation and a number of other countries, they use the Zarya grenade, as well as the Zarya-2 modification. The diameter of the product is 64 mm, and the length with a grate igniter is 130 mm. If you use a universal fuse, then the length is 120 mm, and the mass is about 400 grams. The sound pressure in the effective range is 172 dB, and the flash brightness is about 30 million candelas. As noted above, the Zarya grenade has been upgraded to Zarya 2. A fuse was replaced, which did not provide the required safety. The affected area is 10 meters. This type of hand-held ammunition is fireproof. The greatest efficiency is achieved when used in confined spaces, vehicles, etc. In addition, there are no fragments from the grenade, buckshot is not provided.
A bit about smoke grenades
To mask individual firing points, blind the enemy, simulate a fire, etc., hand smoke grenades are used. The most common in the Russian Federation are RGD-2, which were created back in the Soviet Union. In most cases, a cardboard case is provided and the fuse is a match. The munition booster time is approximately 15 seconds, and the burning time is a little more than a minute. Quite often, a smoke grenade is used to indicate the helicopter landing site, as well as to indicate the strength of the wind and its direction. About 5-15 seconds after the tan, the device may explode. People within a radius of one meter may get burns. There are modifications with the addition of tear gas to smoke the enemy.
Where and when are light and sound grenades used
Currently, this type of ammunition is most often used by law enforcement agencies. For example, if you need to disperse a crowd of aggressively minded people, then a light and sound grenade is the best way to suppress effective resistance. Most of the operations to free the hostages, as well as to take the offender alive, involve the use of blinding and deafening agents. This also includes a smoke grenade, which can be used to take prisoners out of a building, etc. Often, light grenades are used to create optimal conditions for firing small arms during anti-terror operations by special forces.
Conclusion
Light and sound grenades are very effective weapons, especially if you need to save the life of the enemy. To date, the Russian Federation has developed several ammunition of this type. For example, the “Torch” is a 6-cell grenade. After the explosion, it throws out 6 elements, the luminous intensity of each of which is 10 million cd at a sound pressure of about 145 dB. The Fakel has a rather large radius of action - 20 meters. For example, the Fakel-S modification is completely fireproof and extremely effective in small rooms. It can be used in a car, airplane or helicopter.
That's all that can be said as a whole about what a stun grenade is. You can see the photo of the ammunition in this article.