{{Short description|Type of Grenade launcher}} {{Use dmy dates|date=May 2024}} {{Infobox weapon | name = QLZ-87 (Type 87 Grenade Launcher) | image = Type 87 Grenade Launcher.jpg | image_size = 300 | caption = A Type 87 grenade launcher mounted on a tripod on display in Beijing | origin = China | type = Grenade launcher <!-- Type selection -->| is_ranged = yes <!-- Service history -->| service = | used_by = | wars = {{plainlist| * Chadian Civil War (2005–2010)<ref name="SAS 2014 p226">{{cite book|url=http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/A-Yearbook/2014/en/Small-Arms-Survey-2014-Highlights-EN.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140805164422/http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/A-Yearbook/2014/en/Small-Arms-Survey-2014-Highlights-EN.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=5 August 2014|chapter-url=http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/A-Yearbook/2014/en/Small-Arms-Survey-2014-Chapter-7-EN.pdf|chapter=Weapons tracing in Sudan and South Sudan|title=Small Arms Survey 2014: Women and guns|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2014|author=Small Arms Survey|author-link=Small Arms Survey|pages=226|ref={{harvid|Small Arms Survey 2014}}}}</ref> *Sudanese conflict in South Kordofan and Blue Nile<ref name="SAS 2014 p226"/> *Somali Civil War<ref name=":0"/> *Boko Haram insurgency<ref name="Savannah"/> *Syrian Civil War<ref name=":0"/> *Iraqi Civil War (2014–2017)<ref name="sadj29april16"/>}} <!-- Production history -->| designer = Xianfeng Machinery<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.xian-feng.net/index.htm |title=浙江先锋机械有限公司（国营第五三一六厂） |website=xian-feng.net |access-date=12 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100503004005/http://www.xian-feng.net/index.htm |archive-date=3 May 2010 |url-status=dead}}</ref> | design_date = 1982 | manufacturer = Norinco | unit_cost = | production_date = Late 1980s – present | number = | variants = <!-- General specifications --> | spec_label = | weight = 26 lb (12 kg) (base: optical scope & integral bipod, no magazine)<br />44 lb (20 kg) (including tripod mount) | length = 38 in (970 mm) | part_length = | width = | height = <!-- Ranged weapon specifications --> | cartridge = 35×32mmSR grenade | action = Air cooling, gas-operated (direct impingement) | rate = 480 rounds/min | velocity = {{convert|190|m/s|ft/s|abbr=on}} | range = {{convert|600|m|abbr=on}} | max_range = {{convert|1750|m|abbr=on}} (tripod-mounted) | feed = 6- or 15-round drum magazine | sights = Iron sights<br />3x magnification optic<br /> Optic mounting rail for night vision or thermal sight{{sfn|Yan|2014|p=15}} }}
The ''' QLZ-87'''{{sfn|Yan|2014|p=22}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://ndiastorage.blob.core.usgovcloudapi.net/ndia/2010/armament/WednesdayLandmarkBJuanjuanYang.pdf|access-date=28 April 2023|title=Grenade Launchers in China (Upper)|website=usgovcloudapi.net|date=15 May 2010|author=Juanjuan Yang|display-authors=et. al.|archive-date=6 August 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220806083229/https://ndiastorage.blob.core.usgovcloudapi.net/ndia/2010/armament/WednesdayLandmarkBJuanjuanYang.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://weaponsystems.net/weaponsystem/BB01+-+35x32mm+Type+87.html|title=35x32mm Type 87 – Weaponsystems.net|website=weaponsystems.net|access-date=29 August 2018|archive-date=29 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180829175247/http://weaponsystems.net/weaponsystem/BB01+-+35x32mm+Type+87.html|url-status=live}}</ref> (also known as '''Type 87'''{{sfn|Small Arms Survey 2014|p=240}}) is an air-cooled, gas operated 35×32mmSR automatic grenade launcher (AGL)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://modernfirearms.net/grenade/ch/qlz-7-w7-e.html|title=QLZ-87 / W87 – Modern Firearms|date=28 October 2010|website=modernfirearms.net|access-date=23 September 2017|archive-date=2 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171102014242/http://modernfirearms.net/grenade/ch/qlz-7-w7-e.html|url-status=live}}</ref> that is crew transportable ({{convert|12–20|kg|abbr=on}}) with limited amounts of ammunition.<ref name="Blasko2013">{{cite book|last=Blasko|first=Dennis J.|title=The Chinese Army Today: Tradition and Transformation for the 21st Century|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=G1SauJF3GqwC&pg=PA168|date=17 June 2013|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-136-51997-0|page=168|access-date=20 October 2016|archive-date=11 April 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240411003620/https://books.google.com/books?id=G1SauJF3GqwC&pg=PA168#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref> Unusual for handheld grenade launchers, the QLZ-87 fires high-velocity grenades of 35x32 mmSR caliber, which provides a longer range and flatter firing trajectory.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://weaponsystems.net/system/905-QLZ87 |title=QLZ87 |website=weaponsystems |access-date=1 July 2022 |archive-date=10 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220810042405/https://www.weaponsystems.net/system/905-QLZ87 |url-status=live }}</ref> It is the first ever indigenous automatic grenade launcher in China.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=2023-09-12 |title=首次公开！国产QLZ-87榴弹发射器的研制秘闻丨轻武专栏 |url=https://user.guancha.cn/main/content?id=1084945&s=fwzwyzzwzbt |website=Guancha}}</ref>
The QLZ-87 is being complemented by the QLZ-04, which is fed from a belt and thus is better suited to be mounted on tripods and vehicles.{{sfn|Yan|2014|p=18}}
==Development== <!-- COPYRIGHTED CONTENT REMOVED --> The Chinese began attempting to develop an automatic grenade launcher in 1982 at the East China Institute of engineering (Now Nanjing University of Science and Technology), though development fell short after four years. In September 1986, the PLA General Staff Department began a procurement program for automatic grenade launchers, launching a contest between the East China Institute of Technology (Previously the East China Institute of Engineering) in joint with Factory 5316 (Now Zhejiang Xianfeng Machinery Limited), Factory 9449, Factory 925 and Factory 996 against a union of Hunan based military industries comprising Factory 9596 (Now Zijiang Machinery Factory), Factory 343, Factory 948 and Factory 9624.<ref name=":1" />
The contract was won by the Hunan based military industries due to their contract being cheaper. Factory 9596 was in charge of developing the grenade launcher itself, Factory 343 was in charge of the anti-personnel ammunition, Factory 9624 was in charge of ammunition fuses, Factory 5618 developed the scope and Factory 9634 developed the primer.<ref name=":1" /> Meanwhile, the East China Institute of Technology, which lost the contract, began developing their own grenade launcher for foreign use, called the W87.<ref name=":1" />
During trials of the grenade launcher made in Hunan during December of 1988, a cook-off happened due to inexperience of the factory workers. Due to this, the Hunan factories and East China Institute of Technology decided to merge their projects and began jointly developing the QLZ-87 in 1990.<ref name=":1" />
The QLZ-87 entered service in February 1996, and was first seen publicly in 1997 in use with the HK garrison.<ref name=":1" /> thumb|QLZ-87 in bipod configuration
==Design== <!-- COPYRIGHTED CONTENT REMOVED --> thumb|QLZ-87 carried by Ugandan soldiers on the African Union mission It can fire a variety of 35 mm grenades stored in the 6-or 15-round cartridge drum. The Type 87 is described by NORINCO as "Mini Infantry Artillery". The two most common types of grenades are the 35x32SR DFS87 HE (High Explosive) and DFJ87 HEDP (High Explosive, Dual Purpose) variants.<ref name=":0"/> The HEDP 35 mm grenade pierces armour up to 80 mm thick and produces fragments to kill or wound personnel within 5 meters of the point of impact.<ref name=":0" /> The HE 35mm grenade has a stated fragmentation casualty radius of 10–11 meters.<ref name=":0" /> The Type 87 can fire on a tripod or by using the bipod fixed on the barrel. It can also be mounted on armored vehicles or helicopters. The launcher is capable of attacking low-flying air targets as well as targets on the ground.<ref name="weaponsystemsqlz87">[http://weaponsystems.net/weaponsystem/BB02%20-%20QLZ87.html QLZ87] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180222165025/http://weaponsystems.net/weaponsystem/BB02%20-%20QLZ87.html |date=22 February 2018 }} ''Weapon Systems''.</ref>
===Ammunition=== <!-- COPYRIGHTED CONTENT REMOVED --> The list of warhead types that are available for the 35×32mmSR Type 87:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://pewpewpew.work/china/gl/qlz87/qlz87.htm|title=QLZ-87|website=Guns' World|access-date=11 April 2021|archive-date=8 September 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190908040033/http://pewpewpew.work/china/gl/qlz87/qlz87.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> * '''DFS-87''' ({{zh|DFS-87杀伤弹}}): Anti-personnel fragmentation grenade with HE-Frag warhead. * '''DFJ-87''' ({{zh|DFJ-87破甲杀伤弹}}): Dual purpose, Armor-piercing grenade with HEAT warhead. * '''DFR-87''' ({{zh|DFR-87燃烧弹}}): Incendiary grenade. * '''DFN-87''' ({{zh|DFN-87杀伤燃烧弹}}): High-explosive fragmentation incendiary grenade. * '''DFD-87''' ({{zh|DFD-87烟雾弹}}): Smoke/marker grenade, with colored smoke.<ref>[http://weaponsystems.net/weaponsystem/BB01%20-%2035x32mm%20Type%2087.html 35×32mm Type 87] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180222165042/http://weaponsystems.net/weaponsystem/BB01%20-%2035x32mm%20Type%2087.html |date=22 February 2018 }} ''Weapon Systems''.</ref>
==Variants== * QLZ-87B/QLB-06:{{sfn|Yan|2014|p=22}} A newer handheld semi-automatic version of the QLZ-87.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://modernfirearms.net/grenade/ch/qlb-06-qlz-7b-e.html|title=QLB-06 / QLZ-87B – Modern Firearms|date=28 October 2010|website=modernfirearms.net|access-date=23 September 2017|archive-date=6 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170806150121/http://modernfirearms.net/grenade/ch/qlb-06-qlz-7b-e.html|url-status=live}}</ref> It features an aluminum receiver, redesigned action, new bipod, no tripod mount, and a conventional pistol grip and fire control. Weight is reduced to {{convert|9.1|kg|abbr=on}} and it is fed by a 4-round drum.{{sfn|Yan|2014|p=22}}
==Users== <!--READ FIRST: This section is for cited entries only. Please do not add entries into this list without a citation from a reliable source. All entries without a citation will be removed. Thank you.-->
thumb|Map with QLZ-87 users in blue
* {{flag|Afghanistan}}<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pcr685vTIfA] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220218011834/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pcr685vTIfA|date=18 February 2022}} ''Taliban Turns Insurgents into Commandos As It Builds 'Fully Capable' Army''. 20 January 2022.</ref> * {{flag|Bolivia}}<ref name=":0" /><ref name="sadj29april16">{{cite magazine|url=http://www.sadefensejournal.com/wp/?p=3533|title=Kurdish Forces with Chinese QLZ87 Automatic Grenade Launcher & M99 Anti-materiel Rifle|magazine=Small Arms Defense Journal|volume=8|issue=1|date=29 April 2016|first=Michael|last=Smallwood|access-date=22 February 2018|archive-date=22 February 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180222165013/http://www.sadefensejournal.com/wp/?p=3533|url-status=live}}</ref> * {{flag|China}}: People's Liberation Army Hong Kong garrison<ref name=":1" /> * {{flag|Ethiopia}}<ref name=":0" />: Some are locally made. * {{flag|Iraqi Kurdistan}}: Kurdish Peshmerga<ref name="sadj29april16" /> * {{flag|Namibia}}<ref name=":0" /> * {{flag|Niger}}<ref name="Savannah">{{Cite report|title=At the Crossroads of Sahelian Conflicts: Insecurity, Terrorism, and Arms Trafficking in Niger|author= Savannah de Tessières|isbn = 978-2-940548-48-4|publisher= Small Arms Survey|url = http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/U-Reports/SAS-SANA-Report-Niger.pdf|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180612184751/http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/U-Reports/SAS-SANA-Report-Niger.pdf|url-status = dead|archive-date = 12 June 2018|date = January 2018|page = 58}}</ref> * {{flag|Pakistan}}: Used by Pakistan Army.<ref name=":0">{{harvnb|Yan|2014|p=8}}</ref> * {{flag|Somalia}}: Some captured by the Shabaab.<ref name=":0" /> * {{flag|Sudan}}: Known to be made as "ABBA" by MIC.<ref>[http://www.sadefensejournal.com/wp/?p=4132 IDEX ABU 2017] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180123072923/http://www.sadefensejournal.com/wp/?p=4132 |date=23 January 2018 }} ''Small Arms Defense Journal''. 17 November 2017.</ref> The QLZ-87 is also used by Sudan-backed Chadian rebels and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North.<ref name=":0" /> * {{flag|Tanzania}}<ref name=":0" /> * {{flag|Uganda}}<ref name=":0" />
===Non-State Actors=== * {{flag|Hamas}}: Some allegedly seized from Hamas arms caches.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Swan |first1=Melanie |title=Hamas using 'massive' stockpile of Chinese weaponry in Gaza, says Israel |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2024/01/05/hamas-stockpile-chinese-weaponry-gaza-israel-investigates/ |work=The Telegraph |date=5 January 2024 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240105182833/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2024/01/05/hamas-stockpile-chinese-weaponry-gaza-israel-investigates/#selection-2633.0-2633.12 |archive-date=5 January 2024}}</ref> *{{flag|Syrian National Coalition}}<ref name=":0" />
==See also== *QLZ-04 *QLU-11, the replacement of the QLZ-87 *Type 91 grenade launcher *Comparison of automatic grenade launchers
'''International:''' *{{lwc|Milkor MGL}} *{{lwc|Neopup PAW-20}} *{{lwc|Mk 19 grenade launcher}} *{{lwc|Mk 47 Striker|Mk 47 Mod 0 Striker}} *{{lwc|AGS-17}} *{{lwc|AGS-30}} {{clear}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==Sources== * {{cite book|last1=Yan|first1=Timothy|title=The Chinese QLZ87 Automatic Grenade Launcher|date= August 2014|publisher=Armament Research Services Pty. Ltd.|isbn=9780992462420|series=Arms & Munitions Brief 1|url= http://www.armamentresearch.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Arms-and-Munitions-Brief-No.-1-QLZ-87-Automatic-Grenade-Launcher.pdf}}
==External links== {{Commons category|QLZ87}} *[https://web.archive.org/web/20080604070741/http://www.sinodefence.com/army/crewserved/type87grenade_35mm.asp sinodefence.com] {{Norinco|state=expanded}} {{Modern Chinese Infantry Weapons}}
Category:Cold War weapons of China Category:Grenade launchers of China Category:Automatic grenade launchers Category:Military equipment introduced in the 1980s Category:Norinco