MG3 (7.62 mm)
Contents
Description
The 7.62 mm MG3 is a German general-purpose machine gun. It sees use in the game mounted on helicopters and naval boats.
Based off the tested MG42 design that the Germans used in World War II, the MG3 is a Cold War iteration of the same weapon chambered in 7.62x51 mm cartridges.
Vehicles equipped with this weapon
General info
Tell us about the tactical and technical characteristics of the cannon or machine gun.
Available ammunition
Describe the shells that are available for the weapon and their features and purpose. If it concerns autocannons or machine guns, write about different ammo belts and what is inside (which types of shells).
Comparison with analogues
Give a comparative description of cannons/machine guns that have firepower equal to this weapon.
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:
Cons:
History
The MG42, or as it was popular nicknamed by the Allied soldiers "Hitler's Buzzsaw" for the sound it makes while firing, was the standard infantry mounted machine of the Wehrmacht during World War II. After the war ended, the Wehrmacht was dismantled and the technical drawings of the MG-42 were captured by the Soviets. Germany would remain under the occupation of four different nations from the victorious Allied Powers (United States, United Kingdom, France and the Soviet Union).
The occupation ended in 1949 with the foundation of the Federal Republic of Germany (more commonly known as West Germany), but they lacked a standing military. Cold War tensions would soon change this and in 1955 the new Bundeswehr was formed. This new military needed new weapons, particularly with the decision for NATO to standardize on a 7.62x51 mm cartridge the year before. Rheinmetall was contracted to make their new general purpose machine gun based on the MG-42, but re-chambered for 7.62 mm NATO. With the blueprints stolen, Rheinmetall reverse engineered some of the MG-42s still in Germany to get the new weapon, chambered in 7.62 mm, into production.
The result was the MG 1, which entered production in 1958. Variants soon followed with the MG 1A1 featuring a chrome-lined barrel and sights calibrated for the new cartridge, the MG 1A2 which uses a heavier bolt for a more controllable rate of fire, and the MG 1A3 which had an improved muzzle break, bolt and bipod. In 1968, the MG 3 entered production (the MG 2 being re-designated MG-42s with the original 8 mm Mauser chambering). It featured a new belt retaining paw to hold onto the belt when the top cover of the gun was opened, anti-aircraft sights, and a new ammunition box. Most of the MG 1s and MG 2s would gradually converted to MG 3s (helped by the high level of interchangeability from its WWII precursor) and Rheinmetall would start exporting the guns in 1979. While it is beginning to be replaced or complemented by the MG4, the gun remains in service in over 30 countries. In 2019, Rheinmetall announced two new variants of the MG 3. The MG 3A0A1 for use on low-flying aircraft and the MG 3A1A1 for replacing the MG3A1 as a turret mounted machine gun.
Media
Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.
See also
Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:
- reference to the article about the variant of the cannon/machine gun;
- references to approximate analogues by other nations and research trees.
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 |
| Naval machine guns | |
|---|---|
| USA | |
| 7.62 mm | M73 |
| 12.7 mm | AN-M2 |
| Germany | |
| 7.62 mm | MG-3 |
| 7.92 mm | MG08 pattern 1908 · MG15 · MG34 |
| 13.2 mm | Hotchkiss |
| 15 mm | MG M38(t) |
| USSR | |
| 7.62 mm | Maxim |
| 12.7 mm | DShK |
| 14.5 mm | KPV |
| Britain | |
| 7.62 mm | FN MAG |
| 7.7 mm | Lewis 1916 · Vickers GO No.5 |
| 12.7 mm | Vickers Mk.V |
| Japan | |
| 6.5 mm | Maxim · Type 38 pattern 1907 |
| 7.7 mm | Type 89 · Type 92 |
| 13.2 mm | Type 93 |
| Italy | |
| 6.5 mm | Breda Mod.30 · Fiat Model 26 |
| 12.7 mm | Breda-SAFAT |
| 13.2 mm | Breda Model 31 |
| France | |
| 7.7 mm | Darne M1922 |
| 7.92 mm | Hotchkiss pattern 1914 |
| 13.2 mm | Browning · Model 1929 Hotchkiss |
