Unofficial russian channels have published a video of tests with a man-portable launcher for S-8 unguided aircraft-borne missiles. Apparently, it was invented through the grassroots efforts of some russian engineers with access to a stock of S-8s, a water pipe, and plywood.
The recipe for its creation is quite simple: stuff an 80-mm rocket into the pipe, connect an electric fuse, make a protective screen shield for the gunner out of wooden boards — don't forget to cut an embrasure — and finally attach handles to hold the device. Perhaps it was more difficult to find a volunteer willing to shoot from it.
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The video would not be complete without the original sound accompaniment. Firstly, there's the cameraman, apparently, the designer of this launcher who encourages the gunner, assuring that the weapon is "absolutely safe." But he adds that at this stage, they only want to confirm how plausible is firing an S-8 from the shoulder, although "in principle, everything is ready" and they may only add "some refinements."
Then, a completely logical sequence of events occurs. After the rocket flies out of the tube on its solid-fuel engine, the hot gases hit the shield made of boards, the shield hits the test shooter in the face, and he is knocked away somewhere out of frame.
The only thing surprising is the reaction of the cameraman and creator of this product who silently continues filming the flight of the rocket itself. This may suggest that the result of the rocket launch was expected by everyone, except for the test subject himself.
For reference, the S-8 rocket in the most common version, the S-8KOM, has a launch weight of 11.2 kg and is equipped with an anti-tank-fragmentation warhead weighing 3.6 kg. In addition to being used from attack aircraft and helicopters, such 80mm rockets are quite actively used from improvised ground launchers as mini-MLRS. But russia became the first to document an attempt to launch it from the shoulder, which was never done even in quite remote African countries where these rockets are also in use.
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