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Rapier FSC Ground Based Air Defence System Lapel Pin (GBAD)

Military Remembrance Pins

  • £800


This is a lapel pin badge with two rear butterfly clasp fixings. 

The pin badge is made of high quality metals and is 45mm in length.

This Lapel pin depicts the Rapier GBAD

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Rapier is a surface-to-air missile developed for the British Army to replace their towed Bofors 40/L70 anti-aircraft guns. The system is unusual as it uses a manual optical guidance system, sending guidance commands to the missile in flight over a radio link. This results in a high level of accuracy, therefore a large warhead is not  required. Entering service in 1972, it eventually replaced all other anti-aircraft weapons in Army service; both the Bofors guns used against low-altitude targets and the Thunderbird missile used against longer-range and higher-altitude targets. As the expected air threat moved from medium-altitude strategic missions to low-altitude strikes, the fast reaction time and high maneuverability of the Rapier made it more effective than either of these weapons, replacing most of them by 1977.

Rapier was later selected by the RAF Regiment to replace their Bofors guns and Tigercat missiles. It also saw international sales. It remains one of the UK's primary air-defence weapons, and its deployment is expected to continue until 2020.