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MG 151
The MG 151 is a German autocannon produced by Mauser during World War II. It was initially designed as a 15mm cannon, but was quickly redesigned to 20mm; the latter was designated MG 151/20, with the original retroactively designated MG 151/15. The MG 151/20 inherited the powerful minengeschoss explosive shell (just the projectile, not the whole cartridge) from the earlier MG FF/M and became a staple of Luftwaffe aircraft during the war, primarily as fixed offensive armament in fighters, but also in flexible defensive positions.
The MG 151/20 was also used by Italy, equipped on a number of their late-war fighter aircraft, by the Japanese on nearly 400 of their Ki-61 fighters, as well as the Romanian IAR 81. The French also made use of leftover MG 151s after the war.
Originally, the weapon was designed for the 15x96mm cartridge, so its name "MG" refers to the German term for machine gun "MaschinenGewehr" and the number 151 refers to the caliber and model. This is 1 weapon model in 15mm caliber. The MG 131 has a similar name (1 weapon model in 13 mm caliber). Despite the later change of the weapon's caliber to 20 mm, the name was not changed and it is still referred to as a Machine Gun and not an Automatic Cannon. According to German naming standards, the weapon should be called MK 20x, "MK" refers to the German term for automatic cannons "MaschinenKanone". Due to the fact that the weapon did not differ much mechanically when using a larger caliber, it was decided to leave the original name of the weapon and add a number specifying the caliber.
Specifications
MG 151/15 specifications
- Type: Heavy machine gun
- Caliber: 15mm
- Cartridge: 15x96mm
- Operation: Recoil-operated; short recoil
- Length: 1916 mm
- Barrel length: 1254 mm
- Weight (complete): 38.1 kg
- Rate of fire: 740 rpm
- Effective range: 400 m
- Muzzle velocity: 960 m/s (HE-T, HEI-T); 850 m/s (AP-T); 1030 m/s AP(WC)
MG 151/20 specifications
- Type: single-barrel automatic cannon
- Caliber: 20mm
- Cartridge: 20x82mm
- Operation: Recoil-operated; short recoil
- Length: 1766 mm
- Barrel length: 1104 mm
- Weight (complete): 42.7 kg
- Rate of fire: 750 rpm
- Muzzle velocity: 805 m/s (M-Geschoss); 705 m/s (HE-T, AP)
The MG 151 and variants can be seen in the following films, television series, video games, and anime used by the following actors:
Film
Title | Actor | Character | Notes | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
Story of a Real Man | Mounted on Fw 190 | 1948 | ||
"Cyclone" Will Begin at Night ("Tsiklon" nachnyotsya nochyu) | Mounted on Bf 109 G; seen in documentary footage | 1967 | ||
The Brest Fortress | Luftwaffe pilots | Mounted on Me 109 fighters | 2010 | |
Red Tails | Luftwaffe pilots | Mounted on Me 109 fighters | 2012 |
Television
Title | Actor | Character | Notes / Episode | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
Take Him Alive (Vzyat zhivym) | In turret mounting of Fw 200 Condor, seen in documentary footage | 1983 |
Video Games
Title | Appears as | Mods | Notes | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
Hidden & Dangerous | Mounted on the Bf 109 | 1999 | ||
Medal of Honor: Allied Assault | 2002 | |||
Hidden & Dangerous 2 | 2003 | |||
Forgotten Hope 2 | Mounted on the Messerschmitt Bf 109 F-4 and Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A-8 | 2005 | ||
Heroes & Generals | Mounted in Messerschmitt Me 410 B-2 | 2016 | ||
Battlefield V | Mounted in Messerschmitt Bf 109 | 2018 | ||
Enlisted | MG 151/15 | 2021 | ||
MG 151/20 | ||||
Sniper Elite 5 | 2022 |
Anime
Title | Character | Notes | Date |
---|---|---|---|
The Cockpit | Ep. 1 "Slipstream"; mounted in Focke-Wulf Ta 152 | 1993 | |
Strike Witches: The Movie | Heidemarie Schnaufer | MG 151/20, fictional handheld variant | 2012 |
Strike Witches: Operation Victory Arrow | Heidemarie Schnaufer | MG 151/20, fictional handheld variant | 2014-2015 |
The Magnificent Kotobuki | mounted on "Ki-61-I-Hei Hien" plane | 2019 | |
Strike Witches: Road to Berlin | MG 151/20 mounted in Bf 109 fighters | 2020 | |
Luminous Witches | Heidemarie Schnaufer | MG 151/20, fictional handheld variant | 2022 |
Heinrike Prinzessin zu Sayn-Wittgenstein |