AGS - 17 The AGS - 17 " Plamya " ( Russian : Пламя ; " Flame " ) is a Soviet - designed automatic grenade launcher currently in production in the Russian Federation and in service worldwide . Description . The AGS - 17 is a heavy infantry support weapon designed to operate from a tripod or it can be mounted on an installation or vehicle . The AGS - 17 fires 30 mm grenades in either direct or indirect fire to provide suppressive and lethal fire support against soft skinned or fortification targets . The weapon operates using a blowback mechanism to sustain operation . Rounds are fired through a rifled barrel which is removable ( to reduce barrel stress ) . Ammunition is held in a metal box and is linked . Standard boxes contain 30 rounds . The tripod is equipped with fine leveling gear for indirect fire trajectories . Development . Development of the AGS - 17 ( " Avtomatischeskyi Granatmyot Stankovyi " - Automatic Grenade launcher , Mounted ) , had been started in the USSR in 1967 by the OKB - 16 design bureau ( now known as the KBP Instrument Design Bureau , located in the city of Tula ) . Most probably its development was inspired by the Sino - Soviet border conflict of the late 1960s , as well as initial experience with several US automatic grenade launchers , learned from Vietnamese troops who were often on the receiving end of these weapons . It was thought that an automatic grenade launcher would be one of the most effective infantry support weapons against typical Chinese " human wave " attacks . This lightweight weapon was to provide infantry with close to medium range fire support against enemy personnel and unarmored targets like trucks , half - tracks , jeeps and sandbags - protected machine - gun nests . First prototypes of the new weapon entered trials in 1969 , mass production commenced in 1971 . Never used against the Chinese , the AGS - 17 was widely operated and well liked by Soviet troops in Afghanistan as a ground support weapon or as a vehicle weapon on improvised mounts installed on armored personnel carriers and trucks . At the same time , a special airborne version of the AG - 17 was developed for installation on Mi - 24 Hind gunship helicopters . It is still in use with the Russian army as a direct fire support weapon for infantry troops ; it is also installed in several vehicle mounts and turrets along with machine guns , guided rocket launchers and sighting equipment . A special airborne version , the AG - 17A , was installed on the door mounts of several Mil Mi - 8 Hip combat transport helicopters and on gun pods used in late model Mi - 24 Hind gunships ; this weapon had a thick aluminium jacket on the barrel and used a special mount and an electric remotely controlled trigger . It is being replaced by the AGS - 30 launcher , ( using the same ammunition , this weapon weighs only 16 kg unloaded on the tripod and has an upgraded blowback action ) . Ammunition . The AGS - 17 fires 30x29 caliber ( belted ) cartridges with a steel cartridge case . Two types of ammunition are commonly fired from the AGS - 17 . The VOG - 17M is the version of the original 30 mm grenade ammunition which is currently available and has a basic high explosive fragmentation warhead . The VOG - 30 is similar but contains a better explosive filling and an enhanced fragmentation design that greatly increases the effective blast radius . Bulgarian weapons manufacturer Arcus , produces AR - ROG hand grenades based on VOG - 17 cartridges and UZRGM ( Russian : УЗРГМ ) , which is also a Soviet design of fuse .