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MG 81 | |
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Type | Machine gun |
Place of origin | Nazi Germany |
Service history | |
Used by | Nazi Germany |
Wars | World War II |
Production history | |
Variants | MG 81Z |
Specifications | |
Mass | 6.5 kg (14.33 lb) |
Length | 965 mm (38.0 in) (with flash hider) |
Barrel length | 475 mm (18.7 in) |
Cartridge | 7.92×57mm Mauser 7.62×51mm NATO (post-war) |
Caliber | 7,9 (7,92+0,04)[1] |
Action | Recoil-operated, gas assisted, open-bolt |
Rate of fire | 1,400–1,600 rounds/min |
Muzzle velocity | 705 m/s (2,310 ft/s) (sS ball ammunition) |
Feed system | Belt-fed |
The MG 81 is a German belt fed 7.92×57mm Mauser machine gun which was used in flexible installations in World War II Luftwaffe aircraft, in which capacity it replaced the older drum magazine-fed MG 15.
The MG 81 was developed by Mauser as a derivative of their successful MG 34 general-purpose machine gun. Development focus was to reduce production cost and time and to optimize the machine gun for use in aircraft. Developed in 1938/1939, it was in production from 1940 to 1945.