Infantry Weapons

Rifle grenades

Rifle grenades are muzzle- or launcher-fired grenades that let ordinary riflemen project explosive, smoke, signal, or anti-armor payloads farther than hand-thrown grenades. In the Battle of Marawi, reporting on Philippine Joint Task Force tactics described rifle-grenade fire as part of slow urban clearing attacks, while post-battle recovery reports also listed rifle grenades among weapons recovered from the former main battle area.

Battle of MarawiPhilippine government forces

Conflict side: Philippine government forces
Built by: Various manufacturers
Built in: Multiple countries

Rifle grenades, Rifle-launched grenade munition, Infantry Weapons

Image source: Energa and other rifle grenades.jpg

Profile

Type: Rifle-launched grenade munition
Conflict side: Philippine government forces
Origin: Multiple countries
Service note: World War I to present, with modern bullet-trap and spigot-launched variants still in limited service

portable anti-tank strike

Service History

In service: Used where compatible rifles, muzzle adapters, or 22 mm spigot launchers are retained
Used by: Philippine government forces
Wars: Battle of Marawi

Production History

Designer: Multiple designers
Designed: Early 20th century, with later postwar and modern designs
Built by: Various manufacturers
Built in: Multiple countries
Unit cost: Varies by munition type and manufacturer
Produced: World War I to present for different designs
Number built: Not centrally reported across all rifle-grenade families
Variants: Fragmentation rifle grenades, High-explosive anti-tank rifle grenades, Smoke and signal rifle grenades, Bullet-trap and shoot-through rifle grenades

Specifications

Launch method: Fired from a rifle-mounted cup, spigot, muzzle device, or adapter; older types often used blanks, while bullet-trap and shoot-through designs can use ball ammunition.
Typical payloads: High explosive, fragmentation, smoke, signal, illumination, and anti-tank warheads depending on model.
Launcher interface: Many postwar designs use a 22 mm muzzle/spigot standard or a dedicated rifle adapter.
Range class: Short-range infantry fire-support munition; model-specific examples range from roughly 100 m to several hundred meters.
Crew: One rifleman

Conflict Usage

Battle of Marawi: Side: Philippine government forcesRole: Close-range explosive fire for urban clearingstrike
Philippine Joint Task Force marines, army, and police tactical units were described using rifle-grenade fire with mortars and small arms while advancing through Marawi's built-up districts; a Philippine News Agency report separately documented recovered rifle grenades in the main battle area believed to have come from Maute-group materiel.

Rifle grenades Images

Rifle grenades, Rifle-launched grenade munition, Infantry Weapons - view 1 — Source: Energa and other rifle grenades.jpg

Rifle grenades, Rifle-launched grenade munition, Infantry Weapons - view 2 — Source: M31HEAT-RifleGrenade.jpg

Rifle grenades, Rifle-launched grenade munition, Infantry Weapons - view 3 — Source: M31HEAT-M14rifle.jpg

Rifle grenades, Rifle-launched grenade munition, Infantry Weapons - view 4 — Source: M31HEATcutaway.jpg

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Sources

The Battle of Marawi, one year onPublisher: The Strategist / Australian Strategic Policy Institute | Note: Supports Battle of Marawi direct conflict use: rifle grenades were used by Philippine Joint Task Force marines, army, and police tactical units during the slow urban advance through Marawi. | Accessed: 2026-06-21 Marawi clearing operations yield high-powered weaponsPublisher: Philippine News Agency | Note: Supports Battle of Marawi recovered-materiel context: rifle grenades were recovered by Philippine forces from the main battle area and believed to have been fielded by IS-aligned Maute-group fighters. | Accessed: 2026-06-21 GrenadesPublisher: National WWI Museum and Memorial | Note: Supports background on rifle grenades as rifle-launched munitions carrying high explosive, smoke, signals, messages, and later anti-tank payloads. | Accessed: 2026-06-21 40 mm HE RFL BTU 35 M262 Rifle GrenadePublisher: CAT-UXO | Note: Supports modern rifle-grenade specification context for bullet-trap munitions launched from standard 5.56 mm or 7.62 mm military rifles with 22 mm muzzle interfaces. | Accessed: 2026-06-21 Energa and other rifle grenades.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Image provenance for a comparison image of several rifle grenades; the file page lists the author and CC BY-SA 4.0 / GFDL licensing. | Accessed: 2026-06-21 M31HEAT-RifleGrenade.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Image provenance for a U.S. Marine firing an M31 HEAT rifle grenade; the file page identifies the government manual source and public-domain status. | Accessed: 2026-06-21 M31HEAT-M14rifle.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Image provenance for an M31 HEAT rifle grenade mounted on an M14 rifle; the file page cites a U.S. Army field manual and public-domain status. | Accessed: 2026-06-21 M31HEATcutaway.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Image provenance for a cutaway of an M31 HEAT rifle grenade; the file page cites a U.S. Army field manual and public-domain status. | Accessed: 2026-06-21