Tag archive

belt-fed Weapon Systems

Weapon systems and military equipment tagged belt-fed.

5 weapon systems

HK21 general-purpose machine gun, 7.62 mm general-purpose machine gun, Infantry Weapons

Infantry WeaponsHK21 general-purpose machine gun7.62 mm general-purpose machine gunSide: Boko Haram and ISWAPBuilt: Heckler & Koch / West Germany / GermanyThe HK21 is a Heckler & Koch belt-fed 7.62x51 mm NATO general-purpose machine gun derived from the G3 rifle family. In the Boko Haram Insurgency, Nigerian military reporting and ISWAP media analysis document HK21-pattern guns among weapons recovered from, or displayed by, Boko Haram and ISWAP forces, making it a small-unit fire-support weapon in the Lake Chad conflict archive.

PKM/PK, 7.62 mm general-purpose machine gun, Infantry Weapons

Infantry WeaponsPKM/PK7.62 mm general-purpose machine gunSide: Ukraine / Houthi-Saleh forces / Islamic State / Boko Haram and ISWAP / Hamas / Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) / Rebel and jihadist armed groups / United States and Afghan government forces / Iraqi government and coalition forcesBuilt: Kovrov Mechanical Plant / Various manufacturers / Soviet Union, Russia, and licensed-production countriesThe PK and lighter PKM are Soviet-designed, belt-fed 7.62x54R general-purpose machine guns used from bipods, tripods, vehicles, and improvised mounts. Their low weight for the class, non-disintegrating belt feed, quick-change barrel concept, and wide Warsaw Pact distribution make the family a common infantry fire-support weapon in recent conflicts, including the Russia-Ukraine War, Yemeni Civil War, Boko Haram Insurgency, and Israel-Hamas War.

PKP Pecheneg, 7.62 mm general-purpose machine gun, Infantry Weapons

Infantry WeaponsPKP Pecheneg7.62 mm general-purpose machine gunSide: Russia / Ukraine / Syrian government and alliesBuilt: TsNIITochMash / Degtyaryov Plant / RussiaThe PKP Pecheneg is a Russian 7.62x54mmR belt-fed machine gun derived from the PKM but built around a heavier forced-air-cooled barrel and forward bipod for sustained squad fire. It remains a Russian infantry support weapon and has also appeared in Ukraine, including separatist use reported during the Donbas phase of the war and later Ukrainian use of captured examples.

Type 80/PKM-T80 general-purpose machine gun, 7.62×54mmR general-purpose machine gun, Infantry Weapons

Infantry WeaponsType 80/PKM-T80 general-purpose machine gun7.62×54mmR general-purpose machine gunSide: Islamic State / HamasBuilt: NORINCO / ChinaThe Type 80, also encountered as the M80 export designation, is a Chinese PKM-pattern, belt-fed 7.62×54mmR general-purpose machine gun. Conflict Armament Research documented Chinese M80 machine guns captured from Islamic State forces in Syria in 2014, while AP and The Times of Israel later reported Type 80 weapons with Hamas fighters in Gaza.

FN MAG general-purpose machine gun, 7.62x51mm NATO general-purpose machine gun, Infantry Weapons

Infantry WeaponsFN MAG general-purpose machine gun7.62x51mm NATO general-purpose machine gunSide: Boko Haram and ISWAP / U.S.-led coalition and partner forces / United States and Afghan government forcesBuilt: FN Herstal / BelgiumThe FN MAG is a Belgian belt-fed 7.62x51mm NATO general-purpose machine gun designed and originally manufactured by FN Herstal. In the Boko Haram Insurgency archive, it is represented through a 2021 report of Boko Haram deserters near Bama surrendering weapons that included an FN MAG, evidence of the gun's presence in insurgent small-arms stocks rather than a documented state transfer.