PF-97
type of anti-tank, anti-personnel, and thermobaric weapon
The PF-97 (Chinese: 97式93毫米火箭筒, lit. 'Type 97 93 millimetre rocket launcher') is a Chinese, 93 mm (3.7 in) portable, disposable, unguided, shoulder-launched, rocket launcher.
History
Originally a Chinese licensed copy of the Russian RPO-A Shmel thermobaric rocket launcher, the PF-97 was later developed into the PF-11 (Type 11) rocket launcher system with weight reduction, newer construction, and multiple types of warheads.
The PF-97 was developed as a replacement for flamethrowers and FHJ-84 incendiary rockets in the PLA service. It sits between the smaller caliber DZJ-08 and larger PF-98 recoilless weapons.
Description
The PF-97 is a Chinese copy of the Russian RPO-A Shmel. In 1992, China bought the manufacturing license of the RPO-A from KBP Instrument Design Bureau. A local version was developed in 1996, which was then certified in 1997. It entered serial production in 2000. The PF-97 (RPO-A) has a larger explosive filler compared to the PF-89's thermobaric variant, ensuring adequate lethality. However, the rocket launcher system weighs 12 kg (26 lb) due to the explosives, which is significantly heavier than other disposable rocket systems in the PLA service.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “PF-97” as type of anti-tank, anti-personnel, and thermobaric weapon. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
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Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 17, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q48928024. The first chronological checks are 1992, 1996, 1997 and 2000.
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This entry incorporates text from “PF-97” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.