MG4 (5.56 mm)

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Description

The 5.56 mm MG4 is a German machine gun currently seen used in-game on the PUMA. It is the second machine gun using an intermediate cartridge introduced in the game, coming after the 5.8 mm QJT machine gun.

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

With the advent of belt-fed Squad Automatic Weapons (SAW) for the infantry with weapons like the FN Minimi, which was adopted in 1984 by the US Army as the M249 SAW,[1] H&K sought to develop their own weapon design to fulfill the SAW role. Prompted by the German Bundeswehr program "Infanterist der Zukunft" (IdZ, English: Infantryman of the future),[2] H&K began working on a SAW-type machine gun in the late 1990s. As a weapon intended to be used by a single soldier, the machine gun was built to be lightweight and compact, with the use of 5.56x45 mm NATO intermediate cartridge for lighter recoil as well. Recent technological advances in the firearms industry, such as polymer furniture, were utilized to keep weight down, as well as the use of accessory rails for soldier modularity of the weapon.[3]

The German Bundeswehr adopted H&K's SAW in 2003 as the MG4 light machine gun and would utilize it in an infantry and vehicle-mounted role.[3] Within the infantry, the MG4 has replaced the MG3 GPMG in the platoon level,[4] where it is used in a bipod or tripod-mounted configuration. For vehicle-mounts, the MG4 is modified to be remote fired and has the rear sight, butt stock, handguard, cartridge case deflector, and bipod removed.[5]

The MG4 sees use in not only in Germany, but also in Malaysia, Portugal, South Africa, and Spain in the form of an export variant MG4E.[4] Compared to the standard variant, the MG4E is slightly lighter and has a reduced fire rate of roughly 725 rounds a minute.[5]

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

References

Citations
  1. McNab 2017, 73
  2. Heckler & Koch, n.d., Overview
  3. 3.0 3.1 Popenker, n.d.
  4. 4.0 4.1 McNab 2017, 78
  5. 5.0 5.1 Heckler & Koch, n.d., Technical Data
Bibliography
  • Heckler & Koch. n.d. "MG4 | Technical Data." Heckler & Koch. Accessed July 12, 2022. Website (Archive).
  • Heckler & Koch. n.d. "MG4 | The reliable machine gun with high firepower." Heckler & Koch. Accessed July 12, 2022. Website (Archive).
  • McNab, Chris. 2017. The FN Minimi Light Machine Gun - M249, L108A1, L110A2, and other variants. Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing.
  • Popenker, Maxim. n.d. "Heckler-Koch HK MG4 light machine gun (Germany)." Modern Firearms. Accessed July 12, 2022. Website (Archive).


Tank machine guns
USA 
7.62 mm  M37 · M60D · M73 · M240 · M1919A4
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