KPV heavy machine gun

The KPV heavy machine gun (, an initialism for ) is a Soviet designed 14.5×114mm-caliber heavy machine gun, which first entered service as an infantry weapon in 1949. In the 1960s, the infantry version was taken out of production because it was too large and heavy. It was later redesigned for anti-aircraft use, as it showed excellent results as an AA gun against low flying aircraft, with a range of horizontally and vertically. It was used in the ZPU series of anti-aircraft guns. Its size and power also made it a useful light anti-armour weapon on the BTR series of vehicles and the BRDM-2 scout car.

Mechanics

The KPV was a heavy machine gun developed by S. V. Vladimirov. It was developed in 1944 and adopted in 1949. It combines the rate of fire of a heavy machine gun with the armor-piercing capabilities of antitank rifles and was designed to combat lightly armored targets, firepower and manpower of the enemy located behind light cover, as well as to be an anti-aircraft machine gun. The muzzle energy of the KPV reaches 31 kJ. For comparison, the 12.7 mm Browning M2HB machine gun has up to with a bullet traveling at manufactured by PMC, the 20 mm ShVAK aircraft mounted gun has about . It is one of the most powerful machine guns ever used by the Soviet and later Russian armed forces. The development of the machine gun began in 1944. The 14.5×114mm M41 cartridge can be used with high explosive incendiary - tracer (HEI-T) or armor-piercing incendiary (API) bullets. The KPV is air-cooled and fitted with a barrel with a hard chrome plated bore. It uses a short recoil operation system with gas assistance and a rotary bolt. It can be fed with the 40-round metallic belt from either the left or right side. The barrel can be removed by turning the prominent latch on the forward end of the receiver and pulling on the barrel's carrying handle.

Versions

KPVT

The version for use in armored vehicles is called the (). KPVT is used for armored vehicle installations, boats, movable and stationary mounts and various antiaircraft mounts. It features a shorter receiver and a heavier barrel jacket. The KPVT also uses a 50-round belt instead of the original 40-round belt. KPVTs are the primary armament of the wheeled BTR-60PB/70/80 series armored personnel carriers and BRDM-2 armored reconnaissance vehicles. It is intended for fighting against lightly armored targets, weapons systems and light shelters at the distances of up to , as well as air targets at distances up to .

The distance at which the bullet retains lethal force is . The maximum flight range of the bullet is .

Naval armament

The naval twin mount had several versions:
* 2M-5 was for motor torpedo boats.
* 2M-6 was a machine gun turret for armored gunboats.
* 2M-7 was for patrol and mine sweeping boats.

The single mount was called the "14.5 mm MTPU" (, an initialism for ). The 14.5 mm MTPU is intended for combat against armored surface, coast and air targets. It is mounted on decks of boats and can defeat surface and coast targets with a range of horizontally and vertically against low flying planes.

ZPU

The (, an initialism for ) is a towed anti-aircraft gun based on the KPV. It entered service with the Soviet Union in 1949 and is used by over 50 countries worldwide.
* ''ZPU-1'' single-barreled mount.
* ''ZPU-2'' twin-barreled mount.
* ''ZPU-4'' quadruple-barreled mount.

Mountain version

* ''ZGU-1'' single-barreled pack mount (, an initialism for ).

Remote weapon stations

The Emirati remote weapon station IGG-RWS14 uses the KPV machine gun.

Gallery

0706 - Moskau 2015 - Panzermuseum Kubinka (26400777035).jpg, SU-122-54 with a KPVT mounted on top of the hull and another in a coaxial mounting next to the main cannon
ZPU-1-batey-haosef-1.jpg, ZPU-1 single-barreled AA mount
ZPU-2-4658.jpg, ZPU-2 twin-barreled AA mount
Army Artillery pointing towards BDR headquarters.jpg, Bangladesh Army ZPU-4 quadruple-barreled AA mount
Iraqi Police gun-carriage.jpg, Iraq Police Dodge Ram gun truck with adapted KPV
Корабельная пулеметная установка 2М-5.JPG, 2M-5 naval machine gun mount
Торпедный катер ТКА-23 пр. 123К, памятник в г. Санкт-Петербурге.jpg, 2M-5 naval machine gun mount on a
Verkhnyaya Pyshma Tank Museum 2012 0121.jpg, 2M-7 naval machine gun mount (front view)
Verkhnyaya Pyshma Tank Museum 2012 0141.jpg, 2M-7 naval machine gun mount (rear view)
МТПУ 14,5 мм морская тумбовая пулемётная установка.jpg, 14.5 mm MTPU

Ammunition

* B-32 – Armor-piercing incendiary full metal jacket round with a tungsten-carbide core. Projectile weight is and muzzle velocity is . Armor penetration at is of rolled homogeneous armour (RHA) at 90 degrees.
* BZT – Armor-piercing incendiary tracer full metal jacket round with a steel core. Projectile weight is and muzzle velocity is . Tracer burns to at least .
* MDZ – High-explosive incendiary bullet of instant action. Projectile weight is .

These rounds are also produced in Bulgaria, China, Egypt, Poland, and Romania.

Operators

*
*
*
*
*
*
*
* : locally produced
*
*
*
* : ''Type 56'' (KPV) and ''Type 58'' (KPVT) machine guns, produced by Norinco
*
*
*
*
* (KPVT)
*
*
*
*  – Manufactured at Ordnance Factory Tiruchirappalli
*  – Iraqi armed forces
** Popular Mobilization Forces
**
*
*
*
* Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades
*
*
*
*
*  – Armed and Security Forces of Mali
*  – North Korean-made KPVs.
*
*
*
*
*
*
* : Used by the Pakistan Army.
*
*
* : KPV and KPVT built under license
*
*
*
* (KPVT)
* : Chinese QJG56 and Polish KPVT
* (KPVT)
*
*
*
** Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*

Former operators

*
*

See also

* List of Russian weaponry
* Weapons featured in the film '' 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi''

References

Further reading

*
*
*

External links

KPVT large-calibre tank machine-gun



Russian/Soviet KPV MACHINE GUN ON WHEELED MOUNT (MARKOV'S MOUNT) IN 14.5 x 114 calibre (M41/44) – Walk around photos

ZPU-2 - TWIN MOUNT 14.5MM ANTI-AIRCRAFT GUNS (Twin mount anti-aircraft 14.5mm KPV machine guns) – Walk around photos

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kpv Heavy Machine Gun
14.5×114mm machine guns
Heavy machine guns
Machine guns of the Soviet Union
Degtyarev Plant products
Weapons and ammunition introduced in 1949