Heavy Anti-Tank Launcher

A Heavy Anti-Tank Launcher (HAT) is a foot-mobile or vehicle-mounted guided missile launcher designed to destroy Tanks and all manner of other armored vehicles. This heavy weapon is crew-operated, whether carried by an Infantry unit or fixed to a Scout Car or similar vehicle.

The HAT launcher is a heavy tube with optical equipment and guidance systems built-in. When ready to fire, it is installed on a tripod or vehicle turret. The tripod version can be dismantled into two pieces that can be carried by Infantrymen, while the vehicle version can only be moved by moving the vehicle itself. All HAT launchers can be reloaded after firing.

HAT missiles are quite heavy, but can nevertheless be carried by hand. They carry a powerful HEAT or Tandem Warhead charge that is powerful enough to knock out a Tank with a single hit, in most cases. Any lighter target is pretty much guaranteed to be destroyed. Once the missile is fired, it must be guided either by wire or by laser, depending on the model. This allows good precision against moving targets, even at long range.

Due to the weight of the launcher and its missiles, as well as the complexity of its use, HAT launchers are carried and operated by a dedicated unit called a HAT Team, consisting of three members: A "Gunner" who carries the launcher itself and operates it in combat; A "Spotter" who carries the tripod and helps the Gunner find and hit targets; And a "Guard" who carries the missiles and provides defense for the unit. Any of these might also be the "Leader" of the unit, tasked mainly with maintaining communications. In motorized HAT teams where the launcher is mounted on a vehicle, the HAT unit does not need to carry around heavy equipment and therefore only has two members: A Gunner and a Driver.

HAT launchers are fairly rare in ShackTac, appearing only in Cooperative missions where the players are expected to come up against a major enemy armored force. They are slightly more commonly seen in defensive missions, especially Defense in Depth. Enemy-operated HAT has never been seen in ShackTac to date.

The difference between HAT and ATGM is minimal. For the most part, an ATGM is fired by heavier vehicles or Aircraft, and may have better guidance systems; whereas HAT refers to foot-mobile or light-vehicle-mounted launchers using wire guidance systems.

Design
The miniaturization of electronics during the second half of the 20th century eventually allowed adding a variety of different control systems to Infantry-carried weapons, while keeping them light enough to still be carried by hand. The same principle - coupled with advancements in rocketry - allowed the creation of missiles carrying similar electronic guidance equipment. The combination of these developments led to the creation of guided missile launchers that were light enough to be carried and utilized by a small team of infantrymen. The French were the first to reach an operational weapon in 1955, but it would be in the 1970s that such weapons became more commonplace on the battlefield, developed by a variety of other countries.

Most HAT launchers and missiles in service today feature a wire-guidance system (called "MCLOS") whereby the launcher operator controls the missile by joystick as it flies to the target. This requires knowing where the missile is, and where the target is, during the entire flight - and adjusting the missile's path as necessary. The commands are transferred to the missile by a thin wire stretching behind it as it flies. Though a difficult skill to learn, this allows a launcher operator to maneuver the missile around obstacles, and may allow them to hit the target even if it disappears from view for a moment or attempts to hide behind cover.

More advanced modern HAT launchers use different systems including SACLOS (laser guidance) or even fire-and-forget (computer guidance) missiles. These weapons make it even easier to hit a moving target at long range. The complexity of manufacturing such weapons, however, makes them less common on the battlefield at this stage.

No matter which system is used, range-to-target is pretty much irrelevant when firing HAT missiles (as opposed to how important it is for LAT and MAT unguided rockets). Instead, the Gunner must ensure that they have a good line-of-sight to the target, and that the line of sight can be maintained. Again, with the most advanced models (such as the Javelin homing missile) don't even require maintaining constant line-of-sight.

The missile itself typically carries a Tandem Warhead that is specifically designed to defeat modern tank armor, particularly "ERA" (explosive-reactive armor) that explodes outwards whenever it is hit, negating the penetrative strength of the warhead. The Tandem Warhead explodes twice: Once to trigger the ERA and dissipate its explosive force, and then a second HEAT charge to actually pierce the armor and destroy whatever is behind it. This setup has a very high chance of piercing the armor of any modern Tank, and will easily destroy anything lighter than a Tank including IFVs and APCs.

Additionally, a guided missile stands some chance of being able to shoot down slow-moving, low-flying Helicopters, and has been used in this manner several times in past ShackTac videos. A single hit is sufficient to completely destroy the aircraft, but requires good timing and excellent skill. Helicopters are best attacked by HAT when they are flying towards or away from the launcher, as this minimizes the need to accurately lead the target.

HAT launchers are light enough to be carried by hand, though additional crew are typically needed to carry a tripod for the weapon as well as additional missiles to launch. Alternatively, the HAT launcher may be installed on a light vehicle that can easily move from one firing position to another. Though these two mobility options lead to very different tactics, the weapon itself has largely the same capabilities.

HAT Team
Though the HAT launcher is light enough to be carried by a single player, extra missiles and a tripod to mount the weapon would easily over-encumber a player. Therefore, HAT launchers and their additional equipment are carried and used by a team of players known as a HAT Team.

Some HAT Teams are foot-mobile, moving together with other Infantry units to protect them against armored threats. Other HAT Teams are Motorized, using a vehicle to move around but then dismounting to fire. Finally, several videos show a HAT team using the TOW HMMWV which has a HAT launcher installed in its top turret, instead of a launcher carried by hand.

These three types of HAT Teams are structured somewhat differently. The differences are explained below.

Foot-Mobile HAT
The foot-mobile HAT Team is the basic HAT unit. It has three members, each of whom carries one part of the weapon: The launcher itself; a tripod for mounting it on the ground; and additional missiles to be reloaded into the weapon.

The three members of the team also have four different roles split between them:


 * HAT Gunner: Responsible for carrying firing the launcher.
 * Leader: Responsible for maintaining communications with Command to locate targets, moving the team to the proper position in order to defeat those targets, and arranging Resupply for the unit.
 * Spotter: Responsible for spotting the target using Binoculars. Also assists in determining damage caused to the target.
 * Guard: (optional) A Rifleman responsible for guarding the unit against Enemy Infantry, if encountered. Also acts as a Runner when resupplying.

For the most part, the Leader and Spotter are the same person, though the Gunner may act as a Leader instead. The Guard is an optional position that may or may not be manned at all. All members of the HAT Team carry missiles for the launchers, if possible, to maximize the number of times the launcher can fire before requiring resupply. A single MAT unit is likely to carry about 4-6 missiles in total. In case of Reupply, a standardized Resupply Crate for HAT will contain about half a dozen missiles as well as additional medical equipment and ammunition for personal weapons. One team-member also carries the tripod.

The HAT Team functions similarly to a Squad within the command hierarchy, though it has no subordinate units under it. For the most part, a HAT unit will take up a position over-watching one or more Squads, or a particular bottle-neck leading towards one or more Squads, and defeat any substantial armored threat approaching the area. HAT can be moved to the vicinity of a particular Squad or Squads in order to provide them closer support, though HAT is not designed for "hunting" enemy vehicles.

Motorized HAT
Since HAT equipment is so heavy, carrying it by foot can cause a HAT team to lag behind other Infantry and thus become a liability - or become useless of long stretches of time. Instead of hauling by foot, some HAT teams travel by light vehicles (especially a Scout Car or similar). Once they reach their intended firing position, they can dismount, assemble the weapon, and prepare to fire. When it is time to move again, the HAT team can quickly disassemble the weapon and re-mount into the vehicle.

The addition of a vehicle also grants the ability to carry a much larger number of missiles, stored in the vehicle's inventory. The vehicle does not become slower due to the extra weight, keeping the unit optimally mobile.

HAT Vehicle
In the ArmA 3 era, it is much more common to see HAT teams not only travel by vehicle, but actually use a vehicle-mounted HAT launcher. The only vehicle seen serving this purpose is the TOW HMMWV (though the SPG Technical -- not strictly a HAT launcher -- has also been seen serving a similar role).

With no need for a tripod, and with the vehicle itself carrying both the weapon and its ammunition, the structure of the HAT team is also radically different. Instead of three members, this type of HAT team has only two members: A Driver for the vehicle, and a Gunner for the weapon. The Gunner is typically also the unit's Leader.

This setup makes both movement and firing simpler and quicker, and allows the unit to switch firing positions with haste to tackle multiple threats coming from multiple different directions. The downside is that even a small vehicle like the HMMWV makes an easy target for enemy fire, and could be destroyed or rendered immobile very easily. Foot-mobile HAT, by comparison, makes for a hard-to-hit target that isn't likely to be rendered immobile at all.

Usage
Using a HAT launcher is very different to MAT or LAT, particularly due to the fact that the missile is manually guided to its target during flight. On the other hand, the fact that the launcher cannot simply be fired from one's shoulder makes the preparation stage somewhat longer and more involved.

Before a HAT launcher can be fired, it must be set up (unless mounted on a vehicle, in which case this step is not necessary). This is done in several steps:
 * 1) Locate a suitable position: The Gunner and/or Leader of the unit must find a suitable position offering a wide targeting arc; or otherwise a position that controls a bottle-neck through which enemy vehicles are likely to attack. This requires not only finding a general location to set up in, but a specific point where the weapon would be horizontal while also providing protection for the members of the unit.
 * 2) Set up a tripod: Whoever is carrying the tripod must set it up at the selected position.
 * 3) Set up the weapon: The Gunner places the weapon onto the tripod, and usually immediately uses it to check out the firing arc to confirm that it can cover all relevant approaches.
 * 4) Load the weapon: One of the team members loads a missile into the launcher, finally making it ready to fire.

Once these steps are completed, the unit will wait for reports of enemy armor, while also using Binoculars and the weapon's own magnified optics to seek such targets.

When a target is in sight, the Gunner must wait for the opportune moment to fire the missile. The target's range and movement is usually irrelevant to HAT, since the missile can easily track a target at any range and any speed. However the Gunner must make sure not to fire a missile at a target that is about to disappear behind cover. Additionally, targets within heavy wooded areas or other partial cover can be difficult to hit. Therefore, the Gunner will usually wait until the target is out in the open, or is otherwise exposed while near cover.

Once the Gunner decides to fire, they'll announce it to their other team members by calling out "Firing!" or a similar phrase. This calls the other team-members' attention, so that they can observe the impact and help determine whether the target has been disabled or destroyed.

Firing the missile is relatively simple. During flight, the missile constantly attempts to aim itself at wherever the Gunner points the launcher. It adjusts its flightpath as necessary to keep flying towards that aim-point. The Gunner can move the aimpoint freely while the missile is in the air, whether in order to track a moving target or to switch to another target altogether. Particularly skilled HAT Gunners can even cause the missile to swing around or between obstacles simply by moving the aimpoint. The missile does have a certain maximum maneuverability, but in most cases can make relatively sharp turns if necessary.

The missile will be observed in flight by the Gunner and Spotter so that they can observe the impact and determine whether another missile needs to be fired at the same target. Most HAT hits are fatal to any target, if they can hit it.

The launcher must be reloaded as soon as possible after firing. This is typically done by the Gunner themselves, if they are carrying any missiles. If another member of the team is carrying the missiles, they must be ready to do so instead. Extra missiles are typically dumped on the ground next to the launcher to speed up the process. With vehicle-mounted HAT launchers, the launcher can be automatically reloaded directly from the vehicle's internal inventory, where the missiles are stored.

When the team decides to move, it must first unload the launcher and dismantle it from the tripod. This makes quick maneuvers difficult if not impossible, which is the main reason why the team must find a good firing position before ever assembling the weapon. Naturally, there is no need to do this if the weapon is vehicle-mounted.

Models
The number of HAT models seen used in ShackTac is mostly limited to two: the TOW and the Javelin.

The TOW is an American weapon system that can be found either as a tripod-mounted weapon, or as a fixed feature on the TOW HMMWV. Both weapons are identical in terms of their performance when firing, and use the same missile. The TOW is technically available to Helicopters as well, but has never been used due to its relative weakness compared to the Hellfire ATGM and heavier AGMs.

The Javelin is a much more advanced, modern, shoulder-launched missile. The Gunner uses an on-board Thermal Imaging system in the launcher's optical sight to identify and "lock onto" targets. Once the missile is fired, it will automatically seek the infra-red signature of the selected target, tracking it if it moves, and proceed to attack it from above with a Tandem Warhead to ensure easy penetration and maximum damage. The Gunner does not need to continue tracking the target at all once the missile is in flight. Another important advantage of the Javelin missile is that it is ejected a short distance from the launcher before activating its main engine, significantly reducing Backblast and reducing the chance of the team's exact position being revealed to the enemy.

A very rare model is the M47 Dragon, which first (?) appeared in ShackTac in 2021. It is similar to the TOW in operation, but is a shoulder-launched weapon that does not require setting up before firing. Based on information from the video where this weapon was featured, there is no way to tell which version of the Dragon missile was used, and thus which warheads are available for this weapon. In Real Life, the Dragon launcher can use two types of HEAT and one type of Tandem Warhead missiles.

Though other HAT launcher models may be available through CUP or RHS, these have never been seen used in ShackTac. If you spot such a weapon being used, please add that information here.