MANPADS

Military abbreviation · Weapon and Military Equipment

MANPADS
Stands forMan-portable air-defense system
CategoriesMilitary

MANPADS stands for Man-portable air-defense system, a weapon and military equipment abbreviation.

Shoulder-fired surface-to-air missile carried and launched by one person or a small team against low-flying aircraft and helicopters, such as the US Stinger and Russia's Igla.

Example: Officials worry that stolen MANPADS could be used against airliners.

Usage notes

US-supplied Stingers helped Afghan mujahideen fight Soviet helicopters in the 1980s. MANPADS mostly use infrared seekers. International efforts aim to control their proliferation because of the threat to civil aviation. Pronounced "MAN-pads."

More weapon and military equipment abbreviations

  • JSTARS – Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System
  • KC – Tanker-cargo aircraft
  • LAV – Light Armored Vehicle
  • LAW – Light Anti-Tank Weapon
  • LGB – Laser-guided bomb
  • LMG – Light machine gun
  • MBT – Main battle tank
  • MG – Machine gun
  • MIRV – Multiple independently targetable reentry vehicle
  • MLRS – Multiple Launch Rocket System
  • MOAB – Massive Ordnance Air Blast
  • MOP – Massive Ordnance Penetrator

See all 77 weapon and military equipment abbreviations →

Edited by the AbbreviationList.com team. Spotted an error or a missing meaning? Contact us.