NSV machine gun
| NSV | |
|---|---|
 NSV heavy machine gun | |
| Type | Heavy machine gun |
| Place of origin | Soviet Union |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1971–present |
| Used by | See Users |
| Wars | Soviet–Afghan War First Nagorno-Karabakh War Gulf War Afghan Civil War War in Afghanistan Lebanese Civil War Iraq War 2008 South Ossetia war Iraq War Syrian Civil War Iraqi Civil War (2014–2017) Russo-Ukrainian War[1] Yemeni Civil War (2015–present) 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine |
| Production history | |
| Designer | G.I. Nikitin, Y.S. Sokolov, V.I. Volkov |
| Designed | Central Design Bureau of Sports and Hunting Weaponry, Tula, 1969 |
| Manufacturer | "Metallist", Uralsk, Kazakh SSR, Crvena ZastavaSerbia |
| Produced | 1971–present |
| Variants | NSVT |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 25 kg (55.12 lb) (gun only) 41 kg (90.39 lb) on tripod 11 kg (24.25 lb) (50-round belt) |
| Length | 1,560 mm (61.4 in) |
| Cartridge | 12.7×108mm |
| Caliber | 12.7 mm |
| Action | Gas-operated |
| Rate of fire | 700–800 rounds/min |
| Muzzle velocity | 845 m/s (2,772 ft/s) |
| Effective firing range | 1500 m vs. air (maximum) 2000 m vs. ground targets |
| Feed system | 50-round belt |
| Sights | Iron sights |
The NSV (Russian НСВ Никитина-Соколова-Волкова), also known as the «Utyos» (Project: Lonely Cliff), is a 12.7mm caliber heavy machine gun of Soviet origin, named after the designers, G. I. Nikitin (Г. И. Никитин), Y. S. Sokolov (Ю. М. Соколов) and V. I. Volkov (В. И. Волков). It was designed to replace the DShK machine gun and was adopted by the Soviet Army in 1971. It is no longer being produced in Russia; the manufacturing license for the NSV ended up in Kazakhstan after the break-up of the Soviet Union. The NSV has been manufactured in Bulgaria, India, Poland and Yugoslavia under license.
The NSV weighs 25 kg (55 lb), has a rate of fire of 700–800 rounds per minute, and an effective range from 1,500 m (1,600 yd) to 2,000 m (2,200 yd) against airborne and ground targets, respectively. A loaded ammunition belt with 50 rounds weighs 11 kg (24 lb).[2]
The NSVT version is used on the T-72,[3] T-64[4] and T-80[5] tanks.
The new Kord machine gun has replaced worn-out NSVs in some countries.[6]
History
The Soviet Army began looking for a new heavy machine gun to replace its older SGM and DShK machine guns in the early 1950s. The Soviet Army liked the idea behind the German MG 42; a versatile weapon used on a variety of mounts to perform many different roles. Two Soviet weapon designers were asked to design one weapon each utilizing the same principle.
Testing approved Mikhail Kalashnikov's solution; it was found to be more reliable and cheaper to manufacture than the design of Grigory Nikitin and Yuri Sokolov. Kalashnikov's machine gun became the new standard machine gun, and was named PK.
Nikitin's and Sokolov's design was however not forgotten. It was developed into the heavy NSV machine gun about 10 years later and selected in 1969 as the successor to the DShK/DShKM machine gun. It was accepted in service by the Soviet Army in 1971. The machine gun was also license-manufactured in Bulgaria, India, Yugoslavia and Poland. The Yugoslavian version of the NSVT is called the M87.
Production of the NSV has ended in Russia, and it is currently being replaced by the Kord heavy machine gun. The Russian Army needed a more accurate heavy machine gun, and it has also been increasingly difficult to get hold of spare parts. NSV production was located in Ukraine and in Kazakhstan and was disrupted by the end of the Soviet Union.
Use in Finland
The NSV is called 12,7 Itkk 96 or 12,7 ilmatorjuntakonekivääri 96 (12,7 anti-aircraft machine gun 96) in Finland. It is often used as a vehicle-mounted machine gun, and can be seen on the Pasi armoured personnel carrier, the Nasu transport vehicle and the Leopard 2R tank.
Due to its high rate of fire, the NSV is intended to be used as a close-range anti-aircraft weapon against helicopters, UAVs and aircraft. In dismounted ground combat it is placed on a special mount.
The Finnish Navy also uses the NSV in the anti-aircraft role, where it complements other unguided anti-aircraft weapons like the 23 ITK 95, Bofors 40 Mk3 or Bofors 57 Mk2 and Mk3.
Variants
Soviet Union NSVS-12.7 (Russian > Nikitina-Sokolova-Volkova Stankovy 12.7 = "NSV-designed mounted 12.7mm machinegun"): Used on tripod mount.- Soviet Union NSVT-12.7 (Russian > Nikitina-Sokolova-Volkova Tankovy 12.7 = "NSV-designed coaxial 12.7mm machinegun"): Used on T-72 and T-80 main battle tanks.
Finland 12.7 Itkk 96: Finnish designation. Guns acquired from Soviet Union, Russia and Germany (Ex-Nationale Volksarmee).[7]
Serbia M87 NSVT: Serbian license built version by Zastava Arms. The M87 has seen use with the armies of the former Yugoslav states.
Poland NSW: Polish version, license built NSV.- Poland WKM-B: Polish version adapted for NATO-standard .50 BMG ammunition.
Ukraine KT-12.7: Ukrainian version.
Bulgaria MG-U: Bulgarian version
Users
- Bulgaria: Produced by Arsenal [8]
Croatia[9]
Czech Republic[10]
Djibouti[11]- Finland[12][13]
Georgia[14]
India: Manufactured NSVT at Ordnance Factory Tiruchirappalli of the Ordnance Factories Board.[15][16]
Iraq[17]
Ivory Coast[18]
Kazakhstan: Locally produced by Western Kazakhstan Machine-Building Company (ZKMK)[19]
Kuwait: Mounted and used on M-84 tanks[20]
Mongolia[21]
Malaysia:Used by UNGERIN
Namibia: Used by Namibian Marine Corps[22]
North Korea[23]- Poland: Manufactured at ZM Tarnów as NSW. Poland also developed their own machine gun based on NSV and chambered to .50 BMG NATO round, known as WKM-B.[12]
Russian Federation[24]- Serbia: Manufactured at Zastava Arms. Copies were produced as the M02 Coyote[25]
Sierra Leone[26]
South Korea: Mounted and used on T-80U tanks.[27]- Soviet Union[24]
Syria[28][29]- Ukraine[30]
Vietnam: Produced locally by Z111 Factory.[31][32]
Yugoslavia: Produced locally by Zastava Arms.[33]
See also
References
- Koll, Christian (2009). Soviet Cannon: A Comprehensive Study of Soviet Arms and Ammunition in Calibres 12.7mm to 57mm. Austria: Koll. p. 67. ISBN 978-3-200-01445-9.
- ^ UKRAINE HOT NEWS (8 April 2015). "NSV 12.7mm caliber heavy machine gun. Donetsk today". Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved 7 October 2018 – via YouTube.
- ^ "12.7 ITKK 96". Finnish Army. Archived from the original on 2016-07-07. Retrieved 2016-06-27.
- ^ "T72 Tank Characteristics". Archived from the original on 2017-10-19. Retrieved 2017-06-26.
- ^ "T64 Tank". Archived from the original on 2016-07-15. Retrieved 2017-06-26.
- ^ "T80 Tank Characteristics". Archived from the original on 2017-02-14. Retrieved 2017-06-26.
- ^ "Kord 12.7 - Modern Firearms". 10 November 2010. Archived from the original on 9 October 2017. Retrieved 7 October 2018.
- ^ "NSV AAMG". Finnish Defence Forces. Archived from the original on 13 November 2017. Retrieved 12 November 2017.
- ^ "12,7 mm Arsenal Multi-purpose Machine Gun MG-U". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 26 November 2014.
- ^ Gander, Terry J. (22 November 2000). "National inventories, Croatia". Jane's Infantry Weapons 2001-2002.
- ^ Gander, Terry J. (22 November 2000). "National inventories, Czech Republic". Jane's Infantry Weapons 2001-2002.
- ^ Debay, Yves (2004). VBL Panhard (in French). Histoire et collections. p. 120. ISBN 9782913903166.
- ^ a b Jane's Armour and Artillery, Volume 23, p. 450
- ^ Gander, Terry J. (22 November 2000). "National inventories, Finland". Jane's Infantry Weapons 2001-2002.
- ^ "Georgian Army". Georgian Army. Archived from the original on 2012-03-09. Retrieved 2007-06-25.
- ^ "OFT develops Gen-X weapons". www.oneindia.com. 19 March 2007. Archived from the original on 25 October 2014. Retrieved 26 November 2014.
- ^ Indian army seeks new heavy machine gun Archived 2010-06-16 at the Wayback Machine upi.com
- ^ "Bro strzelecka w WP na pocztku XXI wieku". Archived from the original on 13 April 2015. Retrieved 26 November 2014.
- ^ de Tessières, Savannah (April 2012). Enquête nationale sur les armes légères et de petit calibre en Côte d'Ivoire: les défis du contrôle des armes et de la lutte contre la violence armée avant la crise post-électorale (PDF) (Report). Special Report No. 14 (in French). UNDP, Commission Nationale de Lutte contre la Prolifération et la Circulation Illicite des Armes Légères et de Petit Calibre and Small Arms Survey. p. 97. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-10-09. Retrieved 2018-08-30.
- ^ Small Arms Survey (2012). "Blue Skies and Dark Clouds: Kazakhstan and Small Arms". Small Arms Survey 2012: Moving Targets. Cambridge University Press. p. 133. ISBN 978-0-521-19714-4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-08-31. Retrieved 2018-08-30.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-06-06. Retrieved 2014-01-05.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ bmpd – Монгольская армия получает танки Т-72 и БТР-70М Archived 2016-01-12 at the Wayback Machine. Bmpd.livejournal.com (2012-09-23). Retrieved on 2013-06-04.
- ^ Defence Web (June 2016). "Namibia receives Russian small arms". defenceweb.co.za. defenceweb. Archived from the original on 12 August 2016. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
- ^ "North Korean Small Arms (Democratic People's Republic of Korea)". Small Arms Review. Vol. 16, no. 2. June 2012. Archived from the original on 2019-02-02. Retrieved 2019-02-03.
- ^ a b NSV-12,7 'Utes' Archived 2011-01-01 at the Wayback Machine world.guns.ru
- ^ "Machine Gun M02 Coyote - 12.7x108 mm /.50 Browning". Archived from the original on 30 December 2014. Retrieved 26 November 2014.
- ^ "World Infantry Weapons: Sierra Leone". 2013. Archived from the original on 24 November 2016.
- ^ 국방TV (29 November 2017). "[선진강군 24시] 육군제3기갑여단 불곰대대 전차포 사격훈련". Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved 7 October 2018 – via YouTube.
- ^ Neville, Leigh (19 Apr 2018). Technicals: Non-Standard Tactical Vehicles from the Great Toyota War to modern Special Forces. New Vanguard 257. Osprey Publishing. p. 9. ISBN 9781472822512. Archived from the original on 26 October 2018. Retrieved 25 October 2018.
- ^ Gander, Terry J. (14 December 2001). "National inventories, Syria". Jane's Infantry Weapons 2003-2004.
- ^ "NSV - Weaponsystems.net". Archived from the original on 21 August 2014. Retrieved 26 November 2014.
- ^ https://web.archive.org/web20180720165840/http://infonet.vn/tim-hieu-5-loai-sung-duoc-viet-nam-cai-tien-nang-cap-gan-day-post207846.info [dead link]
- ^ "BAODATVIET.VN | Sức mạnh T-54/55 Việt Nam tăng đáng kể". Archived from the original on March 15, 2012. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
- ^ Gander, Terry J. (4 May 2001). "Zastava 12.7 mm machine gun NSV-12,7". Jane's Infantry Weapons 2002-2003.
