The 84mm Carl Gustav is a nice bit of kit but just as fearsome with back-blast as the SMAW from the sounds of things (over here we nicknamed it the Charlie Guts-ache for a few reasons but one is definitely the back-blast).
We were always warned that the BBDA needed to be absolutely free from objects because they would be thrown back and could become dangerous to people nearby and one 'tale' I was told was that an instructor had the glass face of his watch cracked because he was a little too close to the BBDA (whether that is true or a tale told to make us pay attention I don't know but I wouldn't be surprised if it's true).
One of my friends fired several rounds of Illum in quick succession on one night firing exercise. He said that due to firing the gun at an angle, the back-blast kicked up all the pebbles and sand and hit him and the loader in the legs. He said it felt like he was being sandblasted.
He also complained about the headache he suffered afterwards because while the concussion from one round firing can be shaken off, nine rounds in a few minutes tended to (in his words) "smack your head around a bit too much". He also mentioned he was left with a snotty nose and that it felt like someone had been trying to pull his brain out through his nose.
You wouldn't have to worry about that in normal use I think, you would fire a round or two then relocate but he was in a static position firing Illum in support so he had no time in between rounds to recover.
|