He carries the M79 40mm grenade launcher nicknamed "blooper" or "thumper" by the troops. The tactical use of the weapon required the gunner to be dedicated to the M79, and in order to use the weapon effectively the gunner needed to be encumbered by as little extra weight as possible. He therefore generally carried only a pistol as additional personal armament.
The M79 was a new type of infantry weapon and its ammunition was originally issued in special cotton bandoliers, each holding six rounds in two packs of three. The original issue of two bandoliers proved totally inadequate and grenadiers learned to take as many as possible in anything that would hold the rounds. In addition to the the bandoliers, he is wearing the grenade carrier vest which carried 24 rounds.
The M79 was designed to as a close support weapon for the infantry, and was intended to bridge the gap teh maximum throwing distance of a hand grenade, and the lowest range of supporting mortar fire.
For close range fighting the Army came up with two types M79 rounds. The first was a flechette round which housed about 45 small darts in a plstic casing and were issued on an experimental basis. Later this round was replaced by the M576 buckshot round. The M79 could also fire smoke grenades, CS gas, and flares. It kicked like a mule and was rarely fired from the shoulder as intended. In the hands of an experienced grenadier, the M79 was highly accurate up to 200 meters.
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