NSV machine gun

NSV
NSV heavy machine gun
TypeHeavy machine gun
Place of originSoviet Union
Service history
In service1971–present
Used bySee Users
WarsSoviet–Afghan War
First Nagorno-Karabakh War
Gulf War
Afghan Civil War
War in Afghanistan
Lebanese Civil War
Iraq War
Russo-Georgian War
Syrian Civil War
Iraqi Civil War (2014–2017)
Russo-Ukrainian War[1]
Yemeni Civil War (2015–present)
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
Production history
DesignerG.I. Nikitin, Y.М. Sokolov, V.I. Volkov
DesignedCentral Design Bureau of Sports and Hunting Weaponry, Tula, 1969
Manufacturer"Metallist", Uralsk, Kazakh SSR
Produced1971–present
VariantsNSVT
Specifications
Mass25 kg (55.12 lb) (gun only)
41 kg (90.39 lb) on tripod
11 kg (24.25 lb) (50-round belt)
Length1,560 mm (61.4 in)

Cartridge12.7×108mm

12.7×99mm NATO

(For Polish WKM-B)
Caliber12.7 mm
ActionGas-operated
Rate of fire700–800 rounds/min
Muzzle velocity845 m/s (2,772 ft/s)
Effective firing range1500 m vs. air (maximum)
2000 m vs. ground targets
Feed system50-round belt
SightsIron sights

The NSV Utyos (Cyrillic: НСВ, initialism for Никитин-Соколов-Волков, Nikitin-Sokolov-Volkov; Russian: Утёс, lit.'Cliff'), is a Soviet heavy machine gun chambered in 12.7×108mm. It is named after the designers, G. I. Nikitin, Y. М. Sokolov and V. I. Volkov. It was designed to replace the DShK machine gun and was adopted by the Soviet Army in 1971.

The NSV was manufactured at the Metallist plant in Uralsk, Kazakh SSR, Soviet Union. The vehicle-mounted NSVT variant is used on the T-72[2] T-64[3] and T-80[4] battle tanks. Like many Soviet weapons, the NSV was also licence produced by Yugoslavia as the M87. Following the break-up of the Soviet Union, Russia began development on the Kord heavy machine gun, while Belarus, Poland, Bulgaria, Ukraine and Vietnam all introduced their own copies of the NSV.

NSVT machine gun mounted on an Iraqi T-72 tank

The NSV weighs 25 kg (55 lb), has a rate of fire of 700–800 rounds per minute, and an effective range from 1,500 m (1,600 yd) to 2,000 m (2,200 yd) against airborne and ground targets, respectively. A loaded ammunition belt with 50 rounds weighs 11 kg (24 lb).[5]

  1. ^ UKRAINE HOT NEWS (8 April 2015). "NSV 12.7mm caliber heavy machine gun. Donetsk today". Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved 7 October 2018 – via YouTube.
  2. ^ "T72 Tank Characteristics". Archived from the original on 2017-10-19. Retrieved 2017-06-26.
  3. ^ "T64 Tank". Archived from the original on 2016-07-15. Retrieved 2017-06-26.
  4. ^ "T80 Tank Characteristics". Archived from the original on 2017-02-14. Retrieved 2017-06-26.
  5. ^ "12.7 ITKK 96". Finnish Army. Archived from the original on 2016-07-07. Retrieved 2016-06-27.