Basic Information
A mortar small and light enough to be carried and operated by one man - although some designs classified as light have stretched this definition and almost all ignore the weight of ammunition in the naming. Generally of less than or equal to 60mm bore.
The light mortar was at its most popular in WW2, where all powers deployed a light mortar of some description, usually at company level or below as a general support weapon, and occasionally attached them to anti-tank or machine gun units for use in laying smoke and illumination. Since then the growing popularity of the grenade launcher has undermined their niche on the battlefield and they are becoming increasingly rare.
Sources
Game and Story Use
- Available for Soldier class players in Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory as hard to use but very effective support weapon when used from behind cover.