Types
There are two kinds of shoulder launched weapons. The first is the recoilless gun, which is essentially an open tube. When fired the reaction gases (with a momentum equal to the projectile) expelled out of the back of the weapon compensate the force exerted on the projectile.
The other type uses rocket propelled projectiles; these typically also use a small recoilless charge or compressed gas system to get the projectile out of the barrel and to a distance where the operator will not be hurt by the rocket's backblast; when the rocket ignites at a safe distance, it further accelerates the projectile or at least keeps it from decelerating in its trajectory.
Shoulder launched weapons may be guided or unguided.
Missiles can either have a disposable launcher (e.g. M72), or a reusable launcher (RPG-7).
Read more about this topic: Shoulder-fired Missile
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