To answer this it is convenient to examine two aspects: the lethality of the bomb itself, and the convenience and accuracy of the PIAT as a weapon.

Most infantry man-portable hollow-charge anti-tank weapons were of limited effectiveness. They relied on striking the armour in a fairly ideal manner, and all were inherently inaccurate. Their huge benefit was that they gave infantry under attack by armour an option, and thus reduced the likelihood of panic and retreat that almost inevitably follows when soldiers realise they are powerless against whatever's attacking them.

Although the PIAT had a theoretical accurate range of around 100 yards, it was notoriously inaccurate even compared to other weapons of its type. It relied on a heavy steel rod to strike a detonator in the base of the bomb, which flung it forward. It had no barrel and did not spin the bomb. There was a case of a (very brave) soldier in Italy who placed the PIAT directly against the tank he was attacking to be sure of hitting it.

Ian Hogg quotes an armour penetration figure of four inches, but effectively the PIAT could penetrate almost any tank in the German armour if the bomb hit it squarely.

One big advantage of the PIAT over its peers was that high explosive and smoke ammunition was available for it, so it was versatile and was often mounted on Universal Carriers and light armoured cars. It could also be used within buildings, as there was no backblast. This was crucial, for example, at Arnhem Brige when Colonel Frost's paras destroyed a column of the 10th SS Panzer Division's recce regiment.

The real drawback of the PIAT was its weight and the problems associated with its mechanism. It used a powerful spring for its action, and the detonation of a round was supposed to re-cock the weapon. If it failed, as its regularly did, re-cocking the spring required a man to stand upright, put his feet on the shoulder pad, and pull the weapon upward using all his bodily strength. This was not always an easy maneuver in the heat of combat!

Although not as convenient or lethal as weapons like the Bazooka or Panzerfaust, the PIAT did appear a few years earlier. It was also cheap to make, so it was there when the British Army needed it.

To relate a couple of combat incidents involving PIATs:

In late July 1944 British troops where trying to take the village of Chenedolle (I have had the pleasure of visiting this quiet rural hamlet). It was defended by German armour. Rifle Brigade infantry formed 'PIAT gangs' and moved among the houses stalking the 'Panthers' (actually a Tiger and PzIVs) defending the place. They managed two hits on a Tiger but failed to penetrate the armour, but the tank nevertheless retreated out of the village.

Very nearby is a farm called Les Grands Bonfaits: it sits atop a small hill, and both it and Chenedolle's value was associated with their position near a major intersection which was soon to become a major thoroughfare for the retreating German Army in Normandy.

Having put a troop of Shermans onto the objective, but unable to command the roads directly because of the likelihood of being outgunned, some officers set off on foot to locate German armour. A Panther was soon found. "Company Sergeant Harrison set off on a Panther hunt... creeping to effective range, he loosed a bomb which hit the Panther's sloping front armour with a dull clang, and bounced harmlessly off. The tank crew.... promptly reversed some distance, then exited the Panther and stood outside the tank, looking around and talking in anxious whispers. Harrison renewed his hunt, but as he prepared a second shot, a bramble snared the front of the PIAT and the bomb dropped out of its cradle. 'That made me hopping mad', Harrison recalled: '... so I stamped five yards down the road, yanked the brushwood out of the way, shoved the PIAT through the hedge and pulled the blasted trigger'. The bomb went off like a clap of thunder, the Panther was destroyed and the crew were not seen again.'

Sources: Ian Hogg in Land Power (articles published in other Salamander Publishing books).

Ian Dalglish, Operation Bluecoat, Pen and Sword.