Rifle Grenade General Service

The Rifle Grenade General Service (RGGS) was a rifle grenade family of Israeli design in service with the British Armed Forces from 1996 onwards.[1] The RGGS superseded the L74A1 and L75A1 rifle grenades, these being the Luchaire 40mm in AC and AP/AV configurations respectively. The RGGS family consisted of the L85A1 High Explosive Rifle Grenade (deep bronze green with a brown explosives indicator band and yellow markings), the L86A1 Practice Rifle Grenade (light blue with a brown explosives indicator band and white markings), and the reusable L87A1 Inert Practice Rifle Grenade (main body in light blue with white markings, fins and tail tube in white).[2]

As with its predecessors, the grenade's means of propulsion was of the bullet-trap type, the grenade being launched from the muzzle of the L85 rifle using standard 5.56mm ball ammunition (the L87A1 grenade used a special L1A1 ballistite cartridge, however). For greater accuracy, a dedicated prismatic sight (L15A1 Rifle Grenade Launcher Sight[2]) was attached to the rifle before firing.[1]

The grenade was phased out of service due to the introduction of the L17A2/L123A1 Underslung Grenade Launcher; this offered lower recoil, improved ease of use, reduced ammunition weight, and the ability to have a chambered grenade at the ready without affecting the ability to fire the L85 rifle in its own right.[3][4]