British and Canadian troops in Italy have been using an odd-looking, pipelike weapon vaguely reminiscent of the U.S. bazooka, and performing much the same function as a shattering short-range buster of tanks, armored cars or pillboxes.
Last week the gadget came off the secret list. It is the Piat (Projector, Infantry, Anti-Tank) and it fires a 2.75-lb. bomb which explodes on impact with a violence sufficient to penetrate four inches of tempered armor plate. But the Piat does not employ the bazooka's rocket principle. Its projectile, like a mortar shell, is propelled by the explosion of a cartridge in the base....
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