Type 54 (12.7 mm)
Contents
Description
Type 54 12.7 mm heavy machine gun (54式高射机枪), aka Type 59 12.7 mm tank anti-aircraft machine gun (59式12.7毫米高射机枪) for armor vehicles, is the first domestic heavy machine gun for Mainland China as the reverse-engineered version of the famous DShK from Soviet Union; aside from its intended use - anti-aircraft operations for infantry, it was also the most common pintle machine gun for PLAGF armored vehicles ranging from APC all the way to MBTs in 1990s, as well as supplementary weapons for early PLAN patrol vessels.
Vehicles equipped with this weapon
| Vehicles equipped with this weapon | |
|---|---|
| Light tanks | Type 62 · ▂Type 62 · ZTS63 |
| Medium tanks | |
| Object 122 | Object 122MT "MC" |
| T-34-85 | Т-34-85 Gai |
| Type 59 | Type 59 · ZTZ59A · ZTZ59D1 |
| Type 69 | Type 69 · Type 69-IIa · T-69 II G |
| ZTZ88 | ZTZ88A · ZTZ88B |
General info
| Gun characteristics | |
|---|---|
| Mass | 34 kg (gun) |
| Caliber | 12.7x108 mm |
| Rate of fire | 600 |
| Overall length | 1625 mm |
| Ammo feed | fixed 50-round belt |
Available ammunition
Default: API-T · IAI · API-T · AP-I(c)
| Penetration statistics | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm) | ||||||
| 10 m | 100 m | 500 m | 1,000 m | 1,500 m | 2,000 m | ||
| IAI | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | |
| API-T | 29 | 27 | 20 | 13 | 9 | 6 | |
| AP-I(c) | 34 | 32 | 24 | 17 | 12 | 8 | |
| Shell details | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Velocity (m/s) |
Projectile mass (kg) |
Fuse delay (m) |
Fuse sensitivity (mm) |
Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (g) |
Ricochet | ||||||
| 0% | 50% | 100% | ||||||||||
| IAI | 860 | 0.04 | 0 | 0.25 | 3.23 | 47° | 56° | 65° | ||||
| API-T | 865 | 0.05 | - | - | - | 47° | 56° | 65° | ||||
| AP-I(c) | 850 | 0.05 | - | - | - | 47° | 56° | 65° | ||||
Comparison with analogues
M2HB - its long-time rival from United States and been used by ROCA since 1950s, while Type 54 has higher penetration thanks to its AP-I(c) and better RoF; M2HB always have the higher ammo count per magazine/box.
Usage in battles
Like its Soviet cousin, DShK, Type 54 was built to handling enemy aircrafts in most cases, while there were many occasions for infantries to utilize the gun i.e tripod mount, the only option for PLAGF vehicles are used as the pintle mount machine gun for various vehicles ranging from LTs all the way to MBTs in early-1990s.It is always a good idea to have a .50 caliber-equivalent machine gun onboard as it can serve as a more economic way to take down light vehicles, aircrafts and even high tier rotorcrafts at specific battle ratings; leave the cannon for more important and lethal targets, Type 54 can handle the rest.
But just like DShK, players would also have to be trigger-discipline as there are only 50 rounds per magazine; if the vehicle is in safe position from enemy gunfire while an aircraft/rotorcraft is coming for the vehicle, it will be a good idea to switch the reticle for secondary weapon (via multifunction menu or shortcut keys) as this will also enables the optical sight, making the aiming for pilot or engine easier.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Fast traverse speed for its weight
- Sufficient RoF
- Sufficient penetration similar to M2HB, lethal to lightly-protected vehicles, aircrafts or even rotorcrafts
Cons:
- Rather sparse ammo count at only 50 rounds per magazine
History
Soon after the establishment of the People's Republic, PLA was in dire for anti-aircraft machine guns due to the lack of HMGs from different sources i.e. captured Japanese (which has none) and Nationalist weapons, this also hindered the combat efficiency of PVA during early days of Korean War due to the lack of more advanced autocannons and HMGs for air-defense operations. At such, Soviet Union supplied 36 division equivalent of military equipment with majority of them being anti-aircraft guns like 37 mm 61-K and 85 mm 52-K, as well as the long-desired DShK to fill the low-altitude gap of air-defense network. With the needs to expand the PLAGF and military capabilities, DShK was soon reverse-engineered by Chinese engineers in 1953, then with the help of Soviet engineers and their original blueprints for the gun; a year after the armistice, the domestic version was then named Type 54 with identical performance and options for tripods; soon after the intention to built domestic tanks based on T-34-85 and later Type 59, the Type 54 HMG were also selected as its anti-aircraft machine gun. The gun served with PLAGF since then and were used in combat alongside with its Soviet cousin, as well as aided weapons to Viet Cong during Vietnam War as one of the most lethal weapon to RVA or USMC's UH-1 Huey helicopters; then during Sino-Vietnamese War where both side deployed Type 54 in different scenarios - suppression against infantry on tripod mount for VPA, while PLAGF armored corps utilized the pintle mounts to suppress VPA's infantry during town/fire position assaults.
Type 54 on vehicles were eventually replaced by the QJC88A since ZTZ96 series, while the QJZ85 and the very "light" QJZ89 at barely 26 kg even with tripod (DShK is already 33 kg itself with the tripod twice of its weight) replaced them in PLAGF infantry platoons; as of present, Type 54 is likely still been used by different countries or insurgents outside of Mainland China.
Media
Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.
See also
Vehicular 12.7 mm heavy machine guns
- DShK - its Soviet cousin
- M2HB - American counterpart
- QJC88A - the HMG that replaced Type 54 on vehicles
External links
Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:
- topic on the official game forum;
- other literature.
| Tank machine guns | |
|---|---|
| USA | |
| 7.62 mm | M37 · M60D · M73 · M240 · M1919A4 · Mk.52 |
| 12.7 mm | FN M3P · M2HB · M80 · M85 |
| Germany | |
| 5.56 mm | MG4 |
| 7.62 mm | C6 · MG3A1 |
| 7.92 mm | MG13 Dreyse · MG34 · MG37(t) · MG42 |
| 12.7 mm | S.MG.50 |
| USSR | |
| 7.62 mm | DT · PKMB · PKT · PKTM · RP-46 · SGMT |
| 12.7 mm | DK · DShK · 6P49 · NSVT |
| 14.5 mm | KPVT |
| Britain | |
| 7.62 mm | Browning MG4 · L3A1 · L8A1 · L8A2 · L37A1 · L37A2 · L94A1 |
| 7.7 mm | Vickers |
| 7.92 mm | BESA |
| 12.7 mm | L21A1 |
| Japan | |
| 6.5 mm | Type 91 |
| 7.62 mm | Type 74 |
| 7.7 mm | Type 97 |
| 12.7 mm | Type 60 (B) |
| China | |
| 5.8 mm | QJT |
| 7.62 mm | Type 55 · Type 59 · Type 86 |
| 12.7 mm | QJC88A · Type 54 |
| 14.5 mm | QJG02 |
| Italy | |
| 7.62 mm | Beretta MG42/59 · FN MAG 60-40 |
| 8 mm | 34/40M · Breda Mod. 38 |
| 13.2 mm | Breda Model 31 |
| France | |
| 7.5 mm | AAT-52 · MAC 31 |
| 7.62 mm | A-A-F1N |
| 8 mm | Hotchkiss Mle 1914 |
| Sweden | |
| 6.5 mm | ksp m/14-29 |
| 7.62 mm | ksp 39 C · ksp 58 · ksp 94 |
| 8 mm | ksp m/36 · ksp m/39B |
| 12.7 mm | ksp 88 |
