Mk 2 Mod 0 and Mod 1 .50 BMG/81mm Mortar

[Canadian Army]

The other day I was surf the web and found this weapon, I thought it could be useful for Twilight 2000, so I decided to post it.

Mk 2 Mod 0 and Mod 1 .50 BMG/81mm Mortar (http://www.warboats.org/stonerordnot...Mod1%20R3.html)



"Chief [Warrant] Gunner Elmer L. HICKS, USCG, has designed an adapter for a .50 caliber Browning machine gun on top of the recoil cylinder of the 81mm seagoing mortar mount which may eventually be standard armament on all Coast Guard cutters. The accompanying picture shows Chief Gunner HICKS beside his mount. The 81mm is designated a mortar but it can also be fired by trigger. It is light weight, has a simple pedestal mount and can be operated in train and elevation by one man. A variety of ammunition types are available to this gun making it a very effective weapon for WPB Class Coast Guard Cutters. The stability provided by using the 81mm mortar as a platform also increases the accuracy of the .50 caliber gun."

No date; photographer unknown.

Another view of the piggyback mortar;



No date; photographer unknown.

(Both pictures are from http://www.uscg.mil/history/uscghist...otoIndex_A.asp)

History: The Mk 2 Mod 0 and Mod 1 .50 BMG/81mm Mortar 81mm mortar was unique to the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard small craft of the Vietnam and post war-era. The mortar itself is entirely different in design from all other mortars in U.S. service. This mortar is designed for direct and indirect fire. The difference between the Mk 2 Mod 0 and Mk 2 Mod 1 are mostly cosmetic and that the Mod 1 mounts an AN/M2HB .50 Browning machine gun above its recoil cylinder and either a 100 or 400 round ammunition box on its right side. The recoil cylinder for the mortar is above the barrel. Note the prominent ventilated basket. This is a guard to prevent injury to the gunner when the mortar recoils when fired. The mushroom-shaped knob is the mode of fire selector for the mortar: DROP or TRIGGER fire.

The Mk 2 Mortar was developed by the Naval Weapons Station, Crane, Indiana, in the early 1960s to provide offshore patrol boats with a light weight direct and high-angle fire weapon that could engage both surface and shore targets. It was adopted by the USCG in 1962 where it was first mounted on their large WHEC cutters in the Atlantic and Pacific. In mid-1964 the USCG recommended the fitting of a .50 Browning machine gun in "piggyback" fashion above the mortar's recoil cylinder. The prototype was built by the USCG at its Curtis Bay, MD, yard and it worked very well. The mortar's tripod mount was more than adequate for taming the .50 Browning's recoil. In late 1964, the Navy fired the Mk 2 Mod 1 at its Dahlgren, VA range. The Mk 2 Mod 1 was successful in its tests. Two Mk 2 Mod 1 units were then taken to sea aboard USCG 95-foot cutters for demonstration and operational evaluation. Both units passed with flying colors.

Ammunition: Typical ammunition used with the .50 Browning was armor piercing incendiary (API), incendiary (INC), and armor piercing incendiary tracer (API-T). It was linked two API, two INC, and one API-T. Ammunition for the 81mm mortar was the M43 series HE; M362 series HE or TP; M374 series HE; M301 series ILLUM; M57 series FS or WP smoke; M375 WP Smoke; Mk 112 Leaflet; Mk 115, Mk 133 to Mk 135 Chaff; and Mk 120 APERS*.






*The Mk 120 Mod 0 APERS (anti-personnel) round was specifically-designed for Navy and USCG use. The round made the mortar into an 81mm shotgun which fired 1,200 13-grain steel flechettes (these resemble nails with fins) that were effective to 600 feet.