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Rheinmetall Mk 20 Rh-202

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Rh 202 in the Marder turret

The MK 20 Rh 202 (short for MaschinenKanone 20 mm Rheinmetall) is an autocannon with a caliber of 20 mm designed and produced by Rheinmetall.

The cannon is used on military vehicles of German origin, like the Marder infantry fighting vehicle, the Spähpanzer Luchs and some variants of the Wiesel AWC. It is also used in the Argentinian VCTP, an IFV based on the TAM chassis.

German naval ships also employed Rh 202 mounts (usually two on frigates and destroyers, four on larger replenishment ships), but they have been or are currently being replaced with the new Mauser (now a subsidiary of Rheinmetall) MLG 27 remote controlled guns of 27 mm calibre.

An antiaircraft towed twin mount was also produced; it was used by Argentina in the Falklands War.

The gun modified to fire the U.S. M50 series of ammunition loaded into the M14 link belt has been offered to no avail for the U.S. Government by Maremont Corp., of Saco, Maine, licensed by Rheinmetall under marketing arrangement.[1]

Variant: 20 mm twin anti-aircraft mount

Flugabwehrkanone 20 mm Zwilling
20 mm twin gun 1095 of the German Air Force.
TypeAutocannon
Place of originWest Germany
Production history
DesignerRheinmetall
Designed1960s
ManufacturerRheinmetall
Specifications
Mass1,640 kg (combat ready)[2]
2,050 kg (travelling)
Crew3 to 4
Shell20 × 139 mm
Caliber20 mm[2]
ActionGas unlocked blowback
Elevation-5° to +83.5°[2]
Traverse360°[2]
Rate of fire880 to 1,030 rpm per gun[2]
Muzzle velocity1,044 m/s with HEI
1,100 m/s with AP
Effective firing range1,600 m against high flying aircraft[2]
2,500 m against ground targets[2]

Rheinmetall Zwillingsflak twin-gun anti-aircraft system began development in 1968 to meet the requirements of the low-level air defence units of the German Air Force, i.e. "to engage low and very low approaching enemy aircraft with all appropriate means in time to prevent them from firing their weapons or delivering their ordnance, or at least to prevent them from carrying out an accurate attack on an air force installation."

The Budget Committee of the Bundestag approved the Zwillingsflak system in December 1969, and serial production began in 1972; the first production systems reached units of the Bundeswehr on October 12 of that year. Rheinmetall delivered the last of these in 1976.

This gun was also used by the Argentine Air Force, including during the Falklands War.

Since 1981, it was used by the Portuguese Army and Portuguese Air Force.

Operators

Specifications

  • Type: single-barrel automatic cannon
  • Caliber: 20 mm x 139 (0.79 in)
  • Operation: Gas-unlocked sliding breechblock, blowback, recoiling base
  • Length: 2612 mm (8 ft 7 in)
  • Barrel length: 2002 mm
  • Rifling angle: 6°
  • Weight (complete): 75 kg (165 lb) single feed; 83 kg (183 lb) dual feed
  • Rate of fire: 880-1,000 rpm
  • Effective range: 2000 m
  • Max. range: 7000 m
  • Muzzle velocity: 1,050 to 1,150 m/s (3,440 to 3,770 ft/s)
  • Recoil force: 550–750 kg
  • Projectile weight: 134 g (0.3 lb) full calibre; 108 g APDS

See also

References

  1. ^ German Machineguns, MOR Associates, 1971, p. 168
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h "Die Flugabwehrkanone 20 mm Zwilling" (in German). luftwaffe.de. Retrieved 8 April 2011.
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