Profile
- Origin
- Multiple countries
- Built by
- Various manufacturers
- Type
- Belt-fed general-purpose / vehicle-mounted 7.62 mm machine gun class
- Service note
- 20th century to present
- Produced
- 20th century to present, depending on model
Infantry Weapons
7.62 mm machine gun
Also known as
- 7.62mm machine gun
- 7.62 mm GPMG
- 7.62mm GPMG
- 7.62 mm general-purpose machine gun
- 7.62mm general-purpose machine gun
- 7.62 mm medium machine gun
- 7.62mm medium machine gun
- 7.62 mm vehicle machine gun
- 7.62mm vehicle machine gun
Full-power 7.62 mm belt-fed machine guns appear in ground, tripod, coaxial, pintle, door-gun, vessel, and remote-weapon-station roles rather than as one fixed model. Documented relationships here connect generic 7.62 mm machine-gun fits with FN MAG/M240, PK/PKM, M60, MG3, L7A2, C6/C6A1, and platform records where sources identify the exact mounting or family context.
Profile / Specs
Specifications
- Caliber
- 7.62 mm class, commonly 7.62x51 mm NATO or other full-power 7.62 mm rifle cartridges depending on model
- Operation
- Typically belt-fed automatic fire
- Representative cartridges
- FN MAG/M240, M60, L7A2, and C6/C6A1 families use 7.62x51 mm NATO; PK/PKM-family guns use 7.62x54R
- Mounting
- Bipod, tripod, pintle, coaxial, roof mount, door mount, vessel mount, helicopter mount, or remote weapon station depending on platform and weapon family
- Role
- Sustained infantry fire support, vehicle self-protection, coaxial armament, and flexible aircraft or vessel armament
- Feed
- Disintegrating or non-disintegrating belts depending on weapon family
Variants
Representative 7.62 mm machine-gun families and national service designations help separate generic mounting references from model-specific records.
| Variant | Configuration | Designation notes |
|---|---|---|
 | 7.62x51 mm NATO general-purpose machine gun family | FN Herstal identifies the FN MAG as its original 7.62x51 mm general-purpose machine gun; the U.S. Army documents M240B, M240L, and M240H ground and vehicle-related variants. Sources: FN MAG®, M240B/L/H 7.62mm Medium Machine Gun |
 | 7.62x54R general-purpose and vehicle-gun family | Small Arms Survey identifies PK and PKM as close variants and describes PKT/PKD vehicle branches with heavier barrels and without the infantry bipod or pistol-grip trigger assembly. |
 | U.S. 7.62x51 mm NATO general-purpose machine gun family | U.S. Ordnance lists the M60E6 as a 7.62x51 mm NATO M60-family weapon and the M60D as a mounted configuration for boats, vehicles, and helicopter door-gun positions. |
| MG3 | German 7.62 mm general-purpose and vehicle machine gun | Bundeswehr material describes the MG3 as a 7.62 mm machine gun used from bipods, vehicle ring or free mounts, armored-vehicle installations, weapon stations, and helicopters. Sources: Das Maschinengewehr MG3 |
| L7A2 GPMG | British 7.62x51 mm belt-fed GPMG designation | The British Army describes the L7A2 GPMG as a 7.62x51 mm belt-fed general-purpose machine gun used as a light weapon and in sustained-fire roles. Sources: General Purpose Machine Gun |
| C6 / C6A1 | Canadian 7.62 mm medium machine-gun designation | Canada's army equipment page describes the C6 7.62-mm medium machine gun as a fully automatic, air-cooled, generally belt-fed weapon used across Canadian Armed Forces operations. |
Carrier Patrol Vessels
The Confiance-class secondary weapon stations can receive 7.62 mm machine guns.
| Compatible item | Item type | Compatibility evidence |
|---|---|---|
 | Offshore patrol vessel class | Army Recognition says the La Confiance-class secondary weapon stations can receive a choice of 7.62 mm machine guns. Sources: French Navy Guyana-based Light Patrol Vessel PLG La Confiance is now on active duty |
Fired By Helicopters
Leonardo lists the AW109 TrekkerM with two door-mounted 7.62 mm pintle machine guns.
| Firing weapon | Weapon type | Firing evidence |
|---|---|---|
 | Armed helicopter | Leonardo lists the AW109 TrekkerM with two door-mounted 7.62 mm pintle machine guns. Sources: AW109 TrekkerM brochure |
Mounted Platforms
This support page links the 7.62 mm machine gun class to vehicle and vessel examples that mount it on the roof or in a turret. Royal Navy reporting shows the class used as boat armament aboard Archer-class patrol vessels. The Félix Éboué class is documented with 7.62 mm machine guns in its armament fit. The BMP-1KSh command vehicle carries a PK-pattern 7.62 mm machine gun for self-protection. The Cougar MRAP can be fitted with a roof-mounted 7.62 mm machine gun. Defense Update also describes the Eitan's lighter turret fit with a 7.62 mm machine gun.
| Carrier | Carrier type | Carriage evidence |
|---|---|---|
 | Offshore patrol vessel | Naval News says the Félix Éboué class will include 7.62 mm machine guns in its armament fit. Sources: Video: French Navy's New POM OPV for the Indo-Pacific | Naval News |
 | Armored personnel carrier | Army Guide says Fahd variants can mount 7.62 mm machine guns, including the Fahd 240 APC and command-post configurations. Sources: Army Guide Fahd |
 | Armored personnel carrier / internal security vehicle | Al Defaiya says the Al-Jawad roof can be fitted with an open-top or armored turret armed with a 7.62 mm machine gun. Sources: Jordan Delivers Al-Jawad Armored Vehicles to Palestinian Security Forces |
 | Armed patrol boat | Royal Navy says HMS Tracker is a fully fledged armed patrol boat and is well-armed with three 7.62mm General Purpose Machine Guns, while FN Herstal says the FN MAG can fire from ship and boat mountings. Sources: HMS Tracker (P274) - Royal Navy, FN MAG® |
 | Tracked command vehicle | Weaponsystems.net says a 7.62 mm PK machine gun is issued with the BMP-1KSh, and Army Recognition says the vehicle is armed with a PK 7.62 mm machine gun for self-protection. Sources: BMP-1KSh, BMP-1KSh Command Post Vehicle |
 | Mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicle | Army Recognition says the Cougar MRAP roof can be fitted with an open-top weapon station or a remotely controlled weapon station armed with a 7.62 mm machine gun. Sources: Poland signs contract to purchase 300 second-hand Cougar MRAP vehicles from US |
 | Wheeled armored personnel carrier | Defense Update said some Eitan variants would receive a lighter turret mounting a 7.62 mm machine gun. Sources: Defense Update on Eitan armament |
 | Dive support and mine-countermeasures vessel | Baird Maritime says the Ophrys boat has a manually operated 7.62 mm general-purpose machine-gun mount for self-defence. Sources: Ophrys – New minehunting dive boat delivered to French Navy |
 | High-speed assault and landing craft | Rosoboronexport lists the BK-16E as configurable with 7.62 mm machine guns and gives four 7.62 mm guns in the published characteristics. |
 | 8x8 amphibious armored personnel carrier | Rosoboronexport lists the BTR-80 turret armament with a 7.62 mm PKT/PKTM machine gun as the secondary weapon. Sources: BTR-80 Armoured Personnel Carrier |
 | 8x8 armored personnel carrier / infantry fighting vehicle | Ukraine's Ministry of Defence identifies the widely used Hitfist-30P Rosomak combat variant with a coaxial 7.62 mm UKM-2000C machine gun. Sources: Ukraine MOD Rosomak APC overview |
 | Tracked infantry fighting vehicle | FAS lists the BMP-2 auxiliary weapon as a 7.62 mm PKT machine gun in a turret coaxial mount. Sources: BMP-2 Fighting Vehicle |
 | Tracked armored personnel carrier | Rheinmetall says the Bulldog is armed with a 7.62 mm General Purpose Machine Gun. Sources: Bulldog - Armoured Personnel Carrier |
Media
7.62 mm machine gun Videos
7.62 mm machine gun Images
Related Weapon Systems
Sources
Video: French Navy's New POM OPV for the Indo-Pacific | Naval NewsPublisher: Naval News | Note: Supports the Félix Éboué class armament fit including 7.62 mm machine guns on the POM class. | Accessed: 2026-06-28Machine gunPublisher: Encyclopaedia Britannica | Note: Supports general machine-gun background, classification, operating principles, and class-level context for 7.62 mm crew-served weapons. | Accessed: 2026-06-23FN MAG®Publisher: FN Herstal | Note: Supports 7.62x51mm general-purpose machine gun background, original designer/manufacturer context, and vehicle/tripod mounting use for a representative 7.62 mm machine gun family. | Accessed: 2026-06-23Jordan Delivers Al-Jawad Armored Vehicles to Palestinian Security ForcesPublisher: Al Defaiya | Note: Supports the relationship claim that Al-Jawad roof turrets can be armed with a 7.62 mm machine gun. | Accessed: 2026-06-23Defense Update on Eitan armamentPublisher: Defense Update | Note: Supports the Eitan turret fit described with Spike guided missiles and a coaxial 7.62 machine gun. | Accessed: 2026-06-28HMS Tracker (P274) - Royal NavyPublisher: Royal Navy | Note: Supports HMS Tracker's armed patrol-boat fit with three 7.62mm General Purpose Machine Guns and the Archer class's boat-mounted use of the class. | Accessed: 2026-06-28Bulldog - Armoured Personnel CarrierPublisher: Rheinmetall | Note: Supports Bulldog background and its listed armament with a 7.62 mm general-purpose machine gun. | Accessed: 2026-06-28M240B/L/H 7.62mm Medium Machine GunPublisher: U.S. Army | Note: Supports representative 7.62 mm medium machine-gun background, infantry and ground-unit support role, and vehicle-mount context for the class page. | Accessed: 2026-06-23PK (& close variants) Weapons Identification SheetPublisher: Small Arms Survey | Note: Supports PK, PKM, PKS/PKMS, PKT/PKD, and related close-variant distinctions for the representative 7.62 mm machine-gun family list. | Accessed: 2026-07-03M60E6Publisher: U.S. Ordnance | Note: Supports the M60E6 as a 7.62x51 mm NATO M60-family machine gun. | Accessed: 2026-07-03M60DPublisher: U.S. Ordnance | Note: Supports the M60D as a mounted M60-family configuration for boats, vehicles, and helicopter door-gun positions. | Accessed: 2026-07-03Das Maschinengewehr MG3Publisher: Bundeswehr | Note: Supports MG3 caliber, rate, and use from bipods, vehicle mounts, armored-vehicle installations, weapon stations, and helicopters. | Accessed: 2026-07-03General Purpose Machine GunPublisher: British Army | Note: Supports the L7A2 GPMG as a 7.62x51 mm belt-fed general-purpose machine gun used as a light weapon and in sustained-fire roles. | Accessed: 2026-07-03C6 and C6A1 7.62-mm Medium Machine GunPublisher: Canadian Army | Note: Supports the C6/C6A1 Canadian 7.62 mm medium machine-gun designation, operating type, belt-fed use, and service context. | Accessed: 2026-07-03PK machine gun imagePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Image provenance for a representative 7.62 mm machine-gun image; the file page lists public-domain status. | Accessed: 2026-06-237,62 KK PKM.JPGPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Image provenance for a representative PKM-family 7.62 mm machine-gun image. | Accessed: 2026-06-23M240B Medium Machine Gun imagePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Image provenance for a representative M240B 7.62 mm NATO medium machine-gun image; the file page lists U.S. Air Force public-domain status. | Accessed: 2026-07-03BMP-1KShPublisher: WeaponSystems.net | Note: Supports the BMP-1KSh carrying a 7.62 mm PK machine gun as vehicle armament. | Accessed: 2026-06-20BMP-1KSh Command Post VehiclePublisher: Army Recognition | Note: Supports the BMP-1KSh being armed with a PK 7.62 mm machine gun for self-protection. | Accessed: 2026-06-20AW109 TrekkerM brochurePublisher: Leonardo | Note: Supports the AW109 TrekkerM's two door-mounted 7.62 mm pintle machine guns. | Accessed: 2026-06-27French Navy Guyana-based Light Patrol Vessel PLG La Confiance is now on active dutyPublisher: Army Recognition | Note: Supports the Confiance-class secondary weapon-station description that can receive 7.62 mm machine guns. | Accessed: 2026-06-28Poland signs contract to purchase 300 second-hand Cougar MRAP vehicles from USPublisher: Army Recognition | Note: Supports Cougar MRAP carriage of a 7.62 mm machine gun on the roof weapon station. | Accessed: 2026-06-28Ophrys – New minehunting dive boat delivered to French NavyPublisher: Baird Maritime | Note: Supports the Ophrys-class relationship claim by describing a manually operated 7.62 mm general-purpose machine-gun mount for self-defence. | Accessed: 2026-07-03BK-16E high-speed assault-landing boatPublisher: Rosoboronexport | Note: Supports the BK-16E relationship claim by listing configurable 7.62 mm machine guns and four 7.62 mm guns in the characteristics table. | Accessed: 2026-07-03BTR-80 Armoured Personnel CarrierPublisher: Rosoboronexport | Note: Supports the BTR-80 relationship claim by listing a 7.62 mm PKT/PKTM machine gun as the secondary turret weapon. | Accessed: 2026-07-03Ukraine MOD Rosomak APC overviewPublisher: Ministry of Defence of Ukraine | Note: Supports the Rosomak relationship claim by identifying the Hitfist-30P combat variant with a coaxial 7.62 mm UKM-2000C machine gun. | Accessed: 2026-07-03BMP-2 Fighting VehiclePublisher: Federation of American Scientists | Note: Supports the BMP-2 relationship claim by listing the auxiliary weapon as a 7.62 mm PKT machine gun in a turret coaxial mount. | Accessed: 2026-07-03Army Guide FahdPublisher: Army Guide | Note: Supports the Fahd family carrying 7.62 mm machine guns on turreted and command-post variants. | Accessed: 2026-06-28