The MG 17 was a 7.92 mm

machine gun A machine gun is a fully automatic, rifled autoloading firearm designed for sustained direct fire with rifle cartridges. Other automatic firearms such as automatic shotguns and automatic rifles (including assault rifles and battle rifles ...

produced by Rheinmetall-Borsig for use at fixed mountings in many

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German '' Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the '' Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabt ...

aircraft, typically as forward-firing offensive armament. The MG 17 was based on the older MG 30

light machine gun A light machine gun (LMG) is a light-weight machine gun designed to be operated by a single infantryman, with or without an assistant, as an infantry support weapon. LMGs firing cartridges of the same caliber as the other riflemen of the ...

, as was its defensive flexible-mount counterpart, the MG 15 machine gun.

History

A mainstay fixed machine gun in German built aircraft (many of which were sold to other countries) well before World War II, by 1940 it was starting to be replaced with heavier caliber machine gun and cannons. By 1945 very few if any aircraft mounted the MG 17. The MG 17 was installed in the Messerschmitt Bf 109, Messerschmitt Bf 110, Focke-Wulf Fw 190, Junkers Ju 87, Junkers Ju 88C Nightfighter, Heinkel He 111, Dornier Do 17/215 Nightfighter, Focke-Wulf Fw 189 and many other aircraft. Many MG 17s were later modified for infantry use, as the Luftwaffe replaced them with the heavier-calibre

MG 131 The MG 131 (shortened from German: ''Maschinengewehr'' 131, or "Machine gun 131") was a German 13 mm caliber machine gun developed in 1938 by Rheinmetall-Borsig and produced from 1940 to 1945. The MG 131 was designed for use at fixed, flexible or ...

, which replaced both the MG 15 in bomber defense applications and the MG 17 as the standard fighter's forward-firing offensive armament (unless the machine guns were replaced by autocannons, such as the MG 151/20, altogether). Official numbers of conversions was about 24,271 by January 1, 1944, although additional conversions may have been done as well. Modifications to the design included removal of the buttstock, switching from magazine to belt-fed ammunition, and from open-bolt operation to closed bolt operation, to allow it to be installed in synchronized applications, firing through the propeller arc. The MG 15 retained open bolt operation, but used 75 round saddle-type drum magazines, and likewise lost its buttstock, to fit better in the tight confines of an aircraft. The MG 30 was also the basis for the famed MG 34 and MG 42 designs; variants of the latter are still in service in certain areas.

Specifications

*Calibre: 7.9 +/- .04 mm *Cartridge: 7.92×57mm IS *Round weight: 35.5 grams (cartridge 24 grams, bullet 11.5 grams) *Muzzle velocity: from 885 m/s (Phosphor "B" round ) to 905 m/s (Armor Piercing Tracer "SmK L'spur" round) *Rate of fire: 1200 rpm Dimensions *Length: 1175 mm *Weight: 10.2 kg *Action: Recoil *Feed system: Belt magazine *Sights Remotely located, various types

History

Specifications

References

See also