Vespa 150 TAP: The Scooter With a Recoilless Rifle
In the 1950s, the French military looked at a Vespa motor scooter and thought: "What if we strapped a 75mm recoilless rifle to it?" The result was the Vespa 150 TAP, designed for French paratroopers who needed lightweight anti-armor capability after dropping into hostile territory. The M20 recoilless rifle was mounted on a reinforced frame, and the entire package (scooter, gun, ammunition) could be parachute-dropped from transport aircraft.
Approximately 800 units were produced and saw actual service with French Airborne forces, including during the Algerian War. The scooter wasn't meant to fire while riding, paratroopers would dismount, set up the rifle on a tripod, and use the Vespa for rapid repositioning between shots. At just 250 pounds fully loaded, it gave lightly equipped airborne troops a genuine anti-vehicle weapon they could move across rough terrain far faster than on foot. It looks absurd in photographs, but the concept was surprisingly practical for its era.
