- Side
- Ukraine
Ukrainian forces, including the 95th Air Assault Brigade, have used SPG-9M "Spys" recoilless guns for direct and indirect fire against Russian infantry positions and light armored vehicles.
Role detailsInfantry Weapons
SPG-9
Also known as
- Kopye
- SPG-9 Kopye
- 6G6
- Spys
The SPG-9 is a Soviet 73 mm tripod-mounted recoilless gun, known in some references as Kopye, that fires rocket-assisted HEAT and HE-fragmentation projectiles from a crew-served launcher. Accepted into Soviet service in 1962 and exported widely, it was designed as an anti-armor weapon but still appears in conflicts as a flexible direct- and indirect-fire support system.
Role in Conflicts
Opposition forces in Dara'a used SPG-9 recoilless guns during the 2017 Manshiyah battle, including attacks on government positions and a reported strike that destroyed a 23 mm cannon.
Role details- Side
- Hezbollah
- Role in conflict
- Recovered crew-served anti-armor weapon
Israeli reporting on weapons seized during the post-October 2023 border war documented Iranian-marked SPG-9 recoilless cannons among Hezbollah weapons recovered in southern Lebanon.
- Role in conflict
- Truck-mounted direct-fire support
Lake Chad basin weapons reporting lists SPG-9 recoilless guns among materiel in service with or recovered from Boko Haram factions, while later analysis of ISWAP propaganda described SPG-9(M) guns on light trucks and likely SPG-9 materiel looted during a 2021 Bama-area attack.
- Role in conflict
- Probable insurgent crew-served fire support
Small Arms Survey's 2012 review cited Somalia footage assessed by an explosive ordnance specialist as probably showing an SPG-9, while explicitly noting that poor image quality prevented confirmation.
Ammunition Families
Public references consistently describe the SPG-9 as a two-round system: a HEAT projectile for armor and a fragmentation projectile for personnel and area fire.
| Round | Typical role | Reader note |
|---|---|---|
| PG-9 HEAT-FS | Anti-armor direct fire | The Small Arms Survey and U.S. Army reference both identify the SPG-9 family as firing rocket-assisted HEAT ammunition. |
| OG-9 HE-fragmentation | Personnel and area fire | The same sources note fragmentation ammunition and indirect-fire use out to roughly 4.5 km. |
Profile / Specs
Profile
- Origin
- Soviet Union
- Built in
- Soviet UnionBulgariaRomania
- Type
- 73 mm tripod-mounted recoilless gun
- Service note
- 1960s Cold War design; still in service in the 2014 Russia-Ukraine War
- Designer
- TsKIB SOO; Silin and Alekseev
- Designed
- Late 1950s
- Produced
- 1962-present
Specifications
- Caliber
- 73 mm smoothbore
- Crew
- 2 operators minimum; 4 recommended
- Weight
- 47.5 kg gun plus 12 kg tripod
- Ammunition
- PG-9 HEAT-FS and OG-9 HE-fragmentation rocket-assisted projectiles
- Rate of fire
- 5-6 rounds per minute
- Effective direct fire range
- 800 m
- Indirect fire range
- About 1.3 km with HEAT-FS and up to about 4.5 km with HE-fragmentation
- Sighting
- Optical sight, with night-sight fit possible on some launchers
- Mounting
- Tripod-mounted for infantry use; can also be pedestal-mounted on vehicles or vessels
Mounting And Field Use
The SPG-9 is portable only as a crew-served system: references describe a tripod infantry launcher that can be moved short distances by its crew, while modern conflict imagery and reporting show the same weapon adapted to buggies and light trucks.
| Configuration | Documented context | Reader note |
|---|---|---|
| Infantry tripod | Baseline launcher | WeaponSystems.net describes the SPG-9 as tripod-mounted for infantry use, with a crew of two required and four recommended. |
| Buggy mount | 2014 Russia-Ukraine War | A Ukrainian Armed Forces image on Wikimedia Commons shows an SPG-9 firing from a buggy in November 2022. |
| Light-truck mount | 2009 Boko Haram Insurgency | HumAngle reporting on ISWAP transport capacity described SPG-9(M) recoilless guns carried on light trucks. |
Variants
SPG-9 references use a mixture of Soviet GRAU indexes, sight or mounting configurations, and national-production names. The main cataloged family members are the improved SPG-9M, airborne SPG-9D, Romanian AG-9, and Bulgarian ATGL or SPG-9DNM close derivatives.
| Variant | Configuration | Designation notes |
|---|---|---|
| SPG-9M | Improved launcher | WeaponSystems.net lists the SPG-9M as an improved 1971 launcher associated with OG-9 series HE-fragmentation ammunition. Sources: 73mm SPG-9 |
| SPG-9D | Airborne configuration | WeaponSystems.net records the SPG-9D under GRAU index 6G7, distinguishing it from the baseline 6G6 and improved 6G13 entries. Sources: 73mm SPG-9 |
| AG-9 | Romanian production | Small Arms Survey identifies the RomArm AG-9 as a Romanian close derivative of the SPG-9 family. Sources: SPG-9 (& Close Derivatives) |
| ATGL | Bulgarian close derivative | Small Arms Survey lists Arsenal ATGL as a Bulgarian SPG-9 close derivative, and WeaponSystems.net records Bulgarian SPG-9DNM production naming. Sources: SPG-9 (& Close Derivatives), 73mm SPG-9 |
Timeline
SPG-9 Key Events
Accepted into Soviet service
The GICHD guide describes the SPG-9 Kopye recoilless gun as an early-1960s weapon, and the catalog's reference entry records 1962 as the service year.
Sources: Explosive Ordnance Guide for Ukraine, 73mm SPG-9
Documented in the battle for Manshiyah
Bellingcat's photo review of the Manshiyah fighting in Dara'a shows opposition forces using SPG-9 recoilless guns against government positions.
Sources: The Battle for Manshiyah: A Victory in 100 Pictures
Mounted on a Ukrainian buggy
A General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces photo on Wikimedia Commons shows a Ukrainian buggy firing a mounted SPG-9 during the 2014 Russia-Ukraine War.
Sources: UA buggy SPG-9 01.jpg
Media
SPG-9 Images
Related Weapon Systems
Sources
SPG-9 KopyePublisher: U.S. Army ODIN | Note: Supports baseline identification of the SPG-9 as a Soviet 73 mm tripod-mounted recoilless gun. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Explosive Ordnance Guide for UkrainePublisher: GICHD | Note: Supports the SPG-9 Kopye name, early-1960s dating, and background context for the recoilless gun. | Accessed: 2026-06-27SPG-9 (& Close Derivatives)Publisher: Small Arms Survey | Note: Supports weapon identification, close-derivative names, anti-armor role, 73 mm ammunition, night-sight context, and indirect-fire range context. | Accessed: 2026-06-3073mm SPG-9Publisher: WeaponSystems.net | Note: Supports development, producer countries, service entry, variant designations, crew, weight, mounting, sighting, ammunition, rate of fire, and range data. | Accessed: 2026-06-30They Do "Impossible" With This Weapon: the Ukrainian Military Told How Destroy Russians With the "Spear"Publisher: Defense Express | Note: Supports 2014 Russia-Ukraine War direct use: SPG-9M recoilless guns used by Ukrainian forces, including the 95th Air Assault Brigade, against Russian infantry positions and light armored vehicles. | Accessed: 2026-06-20The Battle for Manshiyah: A Victory in 100 PicturesPublisher: Bellingcat | Note: Supports 2011 Syrian Civil War direct use: SPG-9 recoilless guns used by opposition forces in Dara'a to target government positions and a 23 mm cannon. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Tzrifin Base Exhibition Reveals Hamas and Hezbollah ArmsPublisher: The Jerusalem Post | Note: Supports 2023 Israel-Hezbollah Conflict direct use: SPG-9 recoilless cannons fielded by Hezbollah and recovered from southern Lebanon weapons positions during the border war. | Accessed: 2026-06-20The Management of Lethal Materiel in Conflict SettingsPublisher: International Peace Information Service | Note: Supports 2009 Boko Haram Insurgency direct use: SPG-9 recoilless guns fielded by or recovered from Boko Haram factions in the Lake Chad basin after 2015. | Accessed: 2026-06-21Lake Chad: A Large Part Of Insurgents' Weaponry Are From Regional State ArsenalsPublisher: HumAngle | Note: Supports 2009 Boko Haram Insurgency direct use: ISWAP used and looted weapons in the Bama area, including what HumAngle identified as likely SPG-9 recoilless gun materiel. | Accessed: 2026-06-21ISWAP's Transport Inventory, Engineering Capacities Feeding Its Campaign Of TerrorPublisher: HumAngle | Note: Supports 2009 Boko Haram Insurgency direct use: SPG-9(M) recoilless guns fielded by ISWAP on light trucks in propaganda material from the Lake Chad insurgency. | Accessed: 2026-06-21SPG-9 Russian Recoilless RiflePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance and CC BY-SA 2.0 licensing for the primary SPG-9 image. | Accessed: 2026-06-20UA buggy SPG-9 01.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance and documented 2014 Russia-Ukraine War use: a 29 November 2022 Ukrainian Armed Forces photo shows a buggy firing a mounted SPG-9. | Accessed: 2026-06-27Surveying the Battlefield: Illicit Arms in Afghanistan, Iraq, and SomaliaPublisher: Small Arms Survey | Note: Supports 1991 Somali Civil War post-2006 al-Shabaab phase direct conflict-use context: Somalia insurgent footage was assessed by an explosive ordnance specialist as probably showing an SPG-9, though image quality prevented confirmation. | Accessed: 2026-06-30