MG 81 (7.92 mm)

Description

The 7.92 mm MG 81 is a German aircraft machine gun. It sees use in-game primarily as a defensive armament for larger German aircraft, though it sees rare usage as a offensive armament as well.

The MG 81 comes in either single or twin-mounted configuration. The twin-mounted configuration of the MG 81 was designated MG 81Z, with "Z" standing for Zwilling, or "twin".

Vehicles equipped with this weapon

Vehicles equipped with this weapon
Twin-engine fighters	Ju 88 C-6
Strike aircraft
Bf 110	Bf 110 G-2 · Bf 110 G-4 · ◐Bf 110 G-4
Ju 87	Ju 87 G-1 · Ju 87 G-2
Bombers
Ar 196	▄Ar 196 A-5
Do 217	Do 217 K-1 · Do 217 M-1
He 111	He 111 H-16
He 177	He 177 A-5
Ju 87	Ju 87 D-3 · ▄Ju 87 D-3 · Ju 87 D-5*
Ju 88	Ju 88 A-4* · ▄Ju 88 A-4*
Ju 188	Ju 188 A-2
	* Available as an offensive armament or gunpod, in addition to the defensive turret(s)

General info

Tell us about the tactical and technical characteristics of the cannon or machine gun.

Available ammunition

The default belt is available for all planes equipped with the MG 81. Belts "Armoured targets" and "AP-T" are for defensive purposes while belts "Universal", "Tracers" and "Stealth" are for offensive purposes (Ju 88 A-4 and Ju 87 D-5 only).

• Default: AP-T · Ball · Ball · AP-I · AI

The default round that all players start with. With a mix of AP-T, AP-I and AI rounds along regular bullets, its efficiency is severely limited as it does not focus on any role but rather tries to fulfill all of them in the same belt. It keeps damaging planes until 1,500 m distance.

• Universal: AP-T · AP · AI · AP-I

This belt is the best to attack both air and ground targets. It keeps damaging planes until 1,500 m distance.

• Tracers: AP-T

This belt is uniquely composed of armour-piercing tracer shells. Its damage potential drops severely beyond 5,00 m distance.

• Stealth: AI · AP · AP · AP · AI

This belt combines the benefits of armour-piercing rounds with incendiary rounds while packing no tracers to prevent from revealing your position. It keeps damaging planes until 1,500 m distance.

• Armoured targets (turret): AP · AP · AP · AP-T

This belt is for armoured targets due to the high content of armour-piercing rounds together with tracers to support your aim. Its damage potential drops severely beyond 500 m distance.

• AP-T (turret): AP-I · AP-T · AP-I · AP-T

This belt combines the benefits of armour-piercing rounds with incendiary rounds. Its damage potential drops severely beyond 1,000 m distance.

Penetration statistics
Belt	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
	10 m	100 m	500 m	1,000 m	1,500 m	2,000 m
Default	10	10	7	4	3	3
Universal	13	12	7	4	3	3
Tracers	10	10	6	2	1	1
Stealth	13	12	7	3	3	3
Armoured targets (turret)	13	12	7	3	1	1
AP-T (turret)	10	10	7	4	1	1

Belt details
Belt	Type of warhead	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile mass (kg)	Fuse delay (m)	Fuse sensitivity (mm)	Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (g)	Ricochet
							0%	50%	100%
Tracers	AP-T	905	0.01	N/A	N/A	N/A	47°	56°	65°

Comparison with analogues

Comparable machine guns to MG 81 (7.92 mm)
	Name	Year of Creation	Mass	Rounds Per Minute	Ammunition	Feed Type
▃	Browning (7.62 mm)	1919	14 kg	1,000 RPM	7.62 × 63 mm	Belt
▀	MG 17 (7.92 mm)	1934	10.2 kg	1,150 RPM	7.92 × 57 mm	Belt
▀	MG 15 (7.92 mm)	1932	12.4 kg	1,150 RPM	7.92 × 57 mm	Drum
▂	ShKAS (7.62 mm)	1932	10.5 kg	1,800 RPM	7.62 × 54 mm R	Belt
▄	Browning (7.7 mm)	1919	14 kg	1,000 RPM	7.7 × 56 mm R	Belt
▄	Vickers K (7.7 mm)	1935	13.4 kg	950 RPM	7.7 × 56 mm R	Pan
▅	Type 1 (7.92 mm)	1932	12.8 kg	1,150 RPM	7.92 × 57 mm	Drum
▅	Type 92 navy (7.7 mm)	1932	8 kg	600 RPM	7.7 × 56 mm R	Pan
▅	Type 98 (7.92 mm)	1932	12.8 kg	1,150 RPM	7.92 × 57 mm	Drum
▄	Lewis (7.7 mm)	1911	13 kg	900 RPM	7.7 × 56 mm R	Pan
▄	Breda-SAFAT (7.7 mm)	1935	12.5 kg	900 RPM	7.7 × 56 mm R	Belt
▄	MAC 1934 (7.5 mm)	1934	10.7 kg	1,350 RPM	7.5 × 54 mm MAS	Belt/Magazine
SW	Ksp m/22-37 R (8 mm)	1919	11.7 kg	1,200 RPM	8 × 63 mm	Belt

Usage in battles

Describe the cannon/machine gun in the game - its distinctive features, tactics of usage against notable opponents. Please don't write a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view, but give the reader food for thought.

Pros and cons

Summarise and briefly evaluate the weaponry in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark pros and cons as a list.

Pros:

• High rate of fire
• Varied selection of belts
• Accurate

Cons:

• Jams relatively quickly
• Small calibre rounds don't do much damage

History

Around 1938, Germany began seeking a replacement for their MG 15 in the role of a flexible armament of their aircraft. To save on development time, the design is a variant of the MG34, one of the first general purpose machine guns to enter service. The new gun, designated the MG 81, entered service in 1940 and would see service until the end of World War II in 1945.

Compared to the original MG 34, the MG 81 is lighter and has a higher rate-of-fire at 1,600 rounds per minute, twice the cyclic rate of its base model. The gun is also shorter over all with shorter barrel. A variant mount exists for the MG 81 called the MG 81Z (short for Zwilling or "twin") which was a twin mount. The MG 81Z notable saw a total of four guns mounted in the hollow nose cone of the Dornier Do 217 series of medium bombers which received the designation the R19 for the field modification kit. It was also notably in the ground attack role with Ju 87 and Ju 88 series of bombers. In the final months of the war, some MG 81s were modified to serve as infantry weapons.

Media

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

See also

German airborne MG with the same calibre

• MG 15 (7.92 mm)
• MG 17 (7.92 mm)

Japanese airborne MG with the same calibre

• Type 1 (7.92 mm)
• Type 98 (7.92 mm)

Other airborne MG with the same calibre

• FN Browning (7.92 mm)

External links

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

• topic on the official game forum;
• other literature.

Aircraft machine guns
USA
7.62 mm	Browning · M134 Minigun
12.7 mm	GAU-19 · M2 Browning · M3 Browning
Germany
7.62 mm	MG3
7.92 mm	MG 15 · MG 17 · MG 81
12.7 mm	FN M3P
13 mm	MG 131
USSR
7.62 mm	DA · GShG-7.62 · PKT · PV-1 · ShKAS
12.7 mm	A-12.7 · Berezin UB · TKB-481 · YaK-B
Britain
7.62 mm	FN 60.30 · L8A1
7.7 mm	Browning · Lewis · Vickers E · Vickers K
Japan
7.7 mm	Te-1 · Type 89 · Type 89 'special' · Type 92 · Type 97 navy
7.92 mm	Type 1 · Type 98
12.7 mm	Ho-103 · Ho-104
13 mm	Type 2
13.2 mm	Type 3
China
12.7 mm	QJK99-12.7-1
Italy
7.7 mm	Breda-SAFAT · Lewis
7.92 mm	FN Browning
12.7 mm	Breda-SAFAT · FN M3M · Scotti
France
7.5 mm	Darne 1933 · Fabrique Nationale Mle 38 · FN Browning · MAC 1934 · MAC 1934T · Mle 33 · Mle 1923
7.62 mm	PKA
7.92 mm	FN-Browning M.36 No.3 · FN-Browning M.36 No.4
Sweden
7.7 mm	FN-Browning M.36 No.3
8 mm	Ksp m/22 · Ksp m/22 Fh · Ksp m/22 Fv · Ksp m/22-37 R
12.7 mm	Akan m/39A · Akan m/40 · Akan m/45 · LKk/42
13.2 mm	Akan m/39 · Akan m/39A