AFV Club 35002 US Army M730A1 Chaparral

The MIM-72 or M730 Chaparral is an American mobile anti-aircraft system developed during the Cold War. The first prototypes of the vehicle were created in 1965, and serial production started in 1967. The M730 Chaparral is armed with four AIM-9 Sidewinder missile launchers.

The M730 Chaparral was developed to complement the M163 Vulcan artillery air defense system. In order to shorten the design work and facilitate subsequent servicing, the chassis of the M113 transporter, already used in the US Army, was used, which was appropriately modified to meet the needs of the new weapon system. The M730 Chaparral was a short-range air defense system with an effective shot range of up to 9,000 meters against a target flying at an altitude of 25 to 4,000 meters. The system underwent many modernizations, the most important of which took place in the 1980s, when the FIM-92 Stinger missiles and new guidance systems began to be used in the M730. The vehicle then changed its designation to MIM-72G. The M730 Chaparral system has been delivered to several foreign recipients, including Chile, Egypt, Israel and Taiwan. It was eventually withdrawn from the US Army by 1998.