" Vietnam War " is the longest war since World War II. It was not officially ended in the mid-1950s until the mid-1970s. It was a complete twenty years, and both sides paid a heavy price.
During the war, although other camps supporting different sides participated in the war, the main force on the battlefield was still the US and Vietnamese army. So at that time, what weapons were both the US and Vietnam equipped? Let’s take a look at the individual weapon and light weapons used by the two sides at that time. There is really a big gap between the two. The US military is very modern, while the North Vietnamese military is very shabby and relatively backward.
US Army:
Winchester M-70 bolt-action sniper rifle
In the early days, the US military used the Springfield M1903 and Garland M1D sniper rifle. Later, the Winchester sports rifle in the civilian field was re-activated, the machine barrel was modified, and a more advanced optical scope was installed. The earliest point 22LR ammunition was changed to 7.62×51mm ammunition, and the ammunition compartment capacity was five rounds, which not only improved the accuracy, but also increased the range and lethality. In that year, the US sniper, Carlos Heskake, used the Winchester M-70 sniper rifle, successfully sniping 93 enemy troops.
CAR-15 Carbine
It is derived from the Cort AR-15 assault rifle, was born in the 1960s, and became an CAR-15 gun family . It looks very similar to M4, but in the 1960s, the M4 carbine was not yet born. It can also be said that the later M4 carbine also inherited the characteristics of the CAR-15 gun family. The gun fired 5.56×45mm NATO small-caliber ammunition, and used 20 rounds of vertical magazines to supply ammunition, and later changed to a 30 round arc standard magazine. It can be shot in three consecutive points, single points, and fully automatic. The CAR-15 carbine was the main weapon of the "Seals II" and the temporary special operations group that year.
M-14 Automatic rifle
M-14 was improved based on the Garland M-1 semi-automatic rifle during World War II and was officially put into use in 1957. It fires 7.62×51mm NATO full-power ammunition, and can use 15 rounds or 20 rounds of vertical magazines to supply ammunition. Bayonets can also be installed at the front of the barrel. Some models can also be equipped with scopes on the top of the gun body. As a sniper rifle, most people think that the M14 is a semi-automatic rifle, but it has a fully automatic fire mode, but it has a large recoil and is not easy to control, so in normal use, semi-automatic point shooting is better controlled. However, as a weapon in the early stage of Vietnam War , the M-14 was high in weight and weak in firepower, and could not compete with the AK47 assault rifle used by the enemy. Later, in 1968, it was replaced by the more advanced small-caliber rifle and M-16.
M-16 Automatic rifle
M-16 Automatic rifle is the second-generation rifle used by the US military after World War II. It is also the first small-caliber weapon of the US military. It was developed based on the AR-15 automatic rifle. It was designed in 1957, entered service in 1965, and was first put into use in the Vietnam War battlefield in 1968. It fires 5.56×45mm M193 small-caliber ammunition. The early models used 20 rounds standard magazines to supply ammunition. They can be single-shot, three consecutive point-fire and fully automatic shooting. The effective range is 600 meters and the theoretical rate of fire can reach 800 rounds per minute. Moreover, the main rifle used by the US military is still a derivative model of the M16 series, such as M16A2, M16A3 and M16A4.
M-21 Semi-automatic sniper rifle
M-21 Semi-automatic sniper rifle, to be precise, is the sniper type of the M-14 automatic rifle. The barrel has been added on the original basis and the original fully automatic launch function on the M-14 has been removed. The gun began to be equipped in 1969, replacing the old Garland M-1D semi-automatic sniper rifle and the Shunta M-1903 bolt-action sniper rifle. The gun fired 7.62×51mm NATO full-power ammunition, used 20 rounds of magazines to supply ammunition, the gun body was made of walnut , and was eddy epoxy resin soaked stain . A 3-9x ATR optical scope is installed on the top of the receiver, with an effective range of 800 meters.The gun has high accuracy and strong reliability. Since the Vietnam War, the M-21 has been used until 1988 and was later replaced by the more advanced M-24 sniper system. However, for some special forces, there are still a small number of improved M-21 semi-automatic sniper rifles.
M-60 universal machine gun
M60 universal machine gun represents the symbol of the US soldiers in the Vietnam War. It was officially established as a M60 universal machine gun by the Springfield Arsenal in the United States in 1957 and began to be fully produced. In 1958, it began to gradually replace the Browning M1917A1 and M1919A4 machine guns in the hands of the US military. During the research and development of the M60 general-purpose machine gun, the characteristics of the MG42 general-purpose machine gun adopted by the German army during World War II, but the imitation was not successful. The M60 fires 7.62×51mm NATO full-power ammunition, using 100 rounds of ammunition chains or 250 rounds of ammunition boxes to supply ammunition. The range of using a two-legged bracket is 800 meters, and the range of equipped with a three-legged bracket is 1,000 meters, the theoretical rate of fire is 550 rounds per minute, and the actual rate of fire is 200 rounds per minute. In the later stage, M600 also derived special models such as M60E2, M60E3, M60E4, and M60B, C, and D.
M-72 bazooka
A 66mm individual anti-tank bazooka equipped by the US military in 1968. Based on the original basis, M72A1, M72A2 and M72A3 were also derived, which mainly fired armor-piercing missiles to effectively fight enemy armor targets. It has a caliber of 66mm, a non-combat state length of 655mm, a combat state length of 893mm, a combat weight of 2.36kg, a non-combat weight of 1.36kg, and a ammunition length of 508mm. The biggest feature is that it is light weight and small in size, which is lighter than the Soviet RPG7 at that time, and played a huge role during the Vietnam War.
M-76 submachine gun
was produced by Smith Wesson in the United States between 1967 and 1974, and was improved on the basis of the M3 "greasing gun" during World War II. The launch principle and characteristics are also imitated by the Karl Gustav M45 submachine gun of Swedish . The M76 submachine gun is relatively simple and its working principle is very simple. It has two modes: single-shot point shooting and fully automatic shooting. It is also divided into 11.43×23mm version and 9×19mm version. However, during the Vietnam War, the gun was relatively rare and is generally distributed to personnel in the rear.
M-79 grenade launcher
M-79 was developed from 1953 to 1960, and was equipped with the US military in 1961 and put into use in the Vietnam War. Its operation is very simple and has the characteristics of a modern rifle grenade launcher. When it is launched, the bullet barrel is opened, the ammunition is loaded from the tail, and then the ruler on the grenade barrel is opened, and the trigger is pulled to fire. It can fire 40×46mm low-speed grenades with a range of 400 meters, and the ammunition will not be opened after flying 15 to 20 meters. In addition, its grenades are divided into various models, including M576 grenade, M1029 explosion-proof bomb, M406 high-explosion bomb, and other models of incendiary bomb and gas bomb. Later, based on the M-79 grenade launcher, the M-203 rifle grenade launcher was derived, and the ammunition was general.
M-202 66mm 4-tube bazooka
a 4-unit shoulder-fired bazooka developed by the United States Talley Defense Systems and Eziwood Arsenal in 1972. It was equipped with US Marine Corps and US Army in 1974. In fact, the internal launch structure is the same as the early M72 bazooka, except that it uses a trigger to control 4 launch tubes. The outside of the M202 bazooka is made of fiberglass and is lightweight. It can be loaded with 4 ammunitions at a time at the tail. It can be fired all in one second or one at a time. It can be matched with an optical scope or mechanical sight when shooting. But this type of bazooka was only used on a large scale when the Vietnam War was about to end.
M-1911 Semi-automatic pistol
I believe many people are familiar with this pistol. As a century-old legendary classic pistol in the United States, it was created by the master of John Browning . It was born as early as the early 20th century and participated in World War I. Since then, it has been the main standard pistol of the US military and has been used until now. Its biggest feature is that it is more powerful than conventional pistols, and it fires 11.43×23mm ammunition, which is the commonly mentioned point 45ACP ammunition.The gun has a magazine capacity of 7 rounds and an effective range of 50 meters. With its power, simple structure, and reliable performance, it has always been loved by American soldiers and played a great role in the Vietnam War battlefield.
M-1919A4 General Machine Gun
1919A4 was the main general machine gun of the US military during World War II. Some were used with tripod brackets, while others were installed on jeeps or tanks. In the early days of the Vietnam War, the M1919A4 general-purpose machine gun was also used in large quantities. It launches 7.62×63mm M1 heavy-tip bullets, which can use 100 rounds of ammunition chains or 250 rounds of ammunition boxes to supply ammunition. The theoretical rate of fire per minute is 500 rounds and the effective range is 1,000 meters.
Browning M-2 heavy machine gun
M2 is also one of the heavy machine guns equipped by the US military during World War II. It was first developed on aviation machine gun , launching 12.7×99 mm large-caliber ammunition, with a theoretical rate of fire of 580 rounds per minute, an initial muzzle velocity of 930 meters per second, and a maximum range of 2,500 meters. Launching armor-piercing missiles can effectively attack light armor targets or low-altitude flying objects. The M2 heavy machine gun has been used since 1921 until now. Some are installed on Hummer armored vehicles, and some have been changed to remote-controlled weapons stations and installed on tanks and infantry fighting vehicles. During the Vietnam War, the M2 heavy machine gun was mainly used as the main weapon on the M113 armored personnel transport vehicles.
Ithaca M-37 Pump-action shotgun
Ithaca M37 is a shotgun from the United States in the 1930s. It became a police weapon in the 1930s and 1940s. It also has a small number of loading troops. It can fire 12-caliber and 20-caliber shotgun. The length of the entire gun is 960 mm and the barrel length is 470 mm. Without loading, it weighs 2.7 kg and has a capacity of 5 rounds. It is also divided into a stockless version and a stocked version. The gun was once again used as a military weapon during the Vietnam War. It had a very powerful effect in close combat in the jungle and was well received by veterans of the Vietnam War.
North Vietnam Army:
56 submachine gun
It was a weapon that Vietnam received assistance back then. The Type 56 is based on the former Soviet AK47 assault rifle. It has basically no difference in appearance, but the Type 56's sight is completely wrapped, while the AK47 is in a semicircular state, and there is also a foldable triangular bayonet at the bottom of the Type 56 barrel. The Type 56 is essentially an assault rifle, but because the concept of assault rifle was relatively backward at that time, it was called a "submachine gun". It fires the same 7.62×39mm intermediate power ammunition as the AK47, with a magazine capacity of 30 rounds, an effective range of 400 meters, and a fully automatic combat rate of fire of 90 rounds per minute. The Type 56 submachine gun was one of the main automatic weapons in the North Vietnamese army.
63 automatic rifle
63 also belongs to the aid weapon received by the North Vietnamese Army. The Type 63 automatic rifle was developed in the late 1950s. Based on the characteristics of the 6 semi-automatic rifle , the sight adopts the same design as the Type 56 semi-automatic rifle, and also has a foldable bayonet at the front of the barrel. The entire gun adopts a wooden structure. Compared with the Type 56 semi-automatic, the Type 63 has higher accuracy and can adapt to various harsh conditions. The biggest feature is that it has fully automatic shooting capabilities. The gun fires 7.62×39mm ammunition and uses 20 rounds of magazines to supply ammunition. The muzzle initial velocity is 735 meters per second, the effective range is 400 meters, and the fully automatic theoretical firing rate is 750 rounds per minute. During the Vietnam War, the North Vietnamese Army did not use many Type 63.
AK47/M Assault rifle
Do you have to say more about AK47? Basically, this kind of gun has been used in any area. The gun was made by Kalashnikov, a veteran of World War II of the former Soviet Union. He was originally a peasant child who had not studied for a few years, but he designed the "king of rifles" AK47, which gave the whole world a thumbs up. This was his lifelong achievement, and his gun was also widely used. Later in the 1950s, based on the original foundation of AK47, the AKM type was derived. The basic principle was not changed, but some details were optimized, especially the appearance of the stock was changed, the angle became perpendicular, and the recoil could be better controlled. The AKM and AK47 assault rifles were one of the main automatic weapons of North Vietnamese soldiers during the Vietnam War.
DKZ82-B10 Recoilless Cannon
DKZ82-B10 Although developed in Vietnam, it belongs to the Soviet B10 82mm recoilless Cannon, and there is no big difference in the characteristics between the two. It can fire BK-811 armor-breaking bombs, O-811 high-explosive bombs, the total gun length is 1910 mm, the total gun weight is 49 kg, the effective range of launching armor-breaking bombs is 400 meters, and the range of personnel killing bombs is 1000 meters. It can be installed on a triangle bracket or on a jeep. During the Vietnam War, this type of recoilless gun was widely used, launching armor-piercing missiles against US-made M48 tanks and M113 armored vehicles.
K-50M Submachine gun
This time, K50M was one of the main submachine guns of North Vietnamese soldiers and was called a weapon independently developed. However, in essence, the gun imitated the assisted 0 submachine gun and Bobosha 43 submachine guns, fired 7.62×25mm Tokarev pistol bullets, the magazine capacity is 40 rounds, the theoretical rate of fire per minute is 600 rounds, the effective range is 100 meters, the total length is 756 mm, and the weight of the empty gun is 3.4 kg. It adopts a retractable simple buttstock and wooden grip, which also has its own characteristics in terms of appearance.
KPV14.5mm Heavy machine gun
anti-aircraft machine gun used by the former Soviet Union in the 1950s, which was divided into double, single and four-way. During the Vietnam War, North Vietnam also equipped a large number of equipment. Some were air defense weapon , and some were used as defensive weapons, firing 14.5×114 mm large-caliber ammunition, with an effective range of 2,000 meters, a maximum range of 7,500 meters, and a fully automatic theoretical firing rate of 600 rounds per minute. 50 rounds of round drum or 150 rounds of ammunition chains can be used to supply ammunition.
MAT-49 submachine gun
A 9mm submachine gun developed by France in 1946 was officially installed in 1950 and fired 9×19mm Paraberum pistol bullet . It uses a free-style bolt, which can be shot continuously and single-shot. The theoretical rate of fire is 600 rounds per minute and the combat rate of fire is 128 rounds per minute. For the ammunition supply part, 32 round vertical magazines or 20 round short magazines can be used. The total gun length is 720 mm, the retracted stock length is 460 mm, and the barrel length is 228 mm. Since France took the lead in participating in the early days of the Vietnam War, that is, in the mid-1950s, all the MAT49 submachine guns in the hands of North Vietnamese soldiers were captured in the hands of French soldiers.
MG-34 General Machine Gun
MG34 was originally a German general machine gun during World War II, and was generally used as a single weapon or a vehicle-mounted weapon on a tank of armored vehicles. The gun fires 7.92×57mm Mauser ammunition, which can be supplied with 50 rounds of drums or 200 rounds of ammunition chains. The theoretical rate of fire can reach 900 rounds per minute, with an effective range of 800 meters. You can also use a two-legged stand to shoot or a three-legged stand to shoot. After World War II, many MG34 general-purpose machine guns were assisted by the Soviet Union to Asian alliances, such as Vietnam. During the Vietnam War, the MG34 universal machine gun served as an air defense weapon and ground support weapon for North Vietnamese soldiers.
RPD Light machine gun
This gun was finalized by the Soviet Union in 1944 and began to produce equipment in 1960, mainly replacing the old DP27 and DP28 light machine guns at that time. Moreover, RPD already had the concept of modern squad machine guns that year. At that time, almost every infantry squad in the Soviet Union would be equipped with one or two RPD light machine guns. The gun fires 7.62×39mm intermediate power ammunition, uses 100 rounds of bullet drums to supply ammunition, with an effective range of 800 meters, a fully automatic shooting theoretical rate of fire is 550 rounds per minute, and an actual combat rate of fire is 150 rounds per minute. During the Vietnam War, a large amount of RPD light machine gun assistance was used for North Vietnam.
RPG-7 Bazooka
RPG-7 was developed by the former Soviet Union in the late 1950s. It began to be equipped in the early 1960s and launched 40mm rocket , mainly targeting armored targets at that time, bunkers, offensives and buildings. Its carrying length is 630 mm, its combat length is 960 mm, its armor-breaking bomb weighs 8.6 kg, its fragmented bomb weighs 8.7 kg, and its range can reach 1,000 meters. During the Vietnam War, the RPG-7 bazooka was also provided with a large amount of assistance to North Vietnam.
RPK Light machine gun
RPK Light machine gun is derived from the AKM assault rifle . It extends the barrel on the original basis, installs a double-leg mount on the front, fires 7.62×39mm M43 intermediate power ammunition, with a maximum kill range of 1500 meters, and has a fully automatic theoretical firing rate of 600 rounds per minute. It can use 45 rounds long magazines or 75 round drums to supply ammunition. 80% of the parts of the gun body are universal to the AKM assault rifle. In the 1960s, there were also a large number of RPK light machine guns, which were aided to North Vietnamese soldiers.
SKS Semi-automatic rifle
SKS Semi-automatic rifle was designed at the end of World War II and was officially finalized in 1946, and was then equipped with Soviet soldiers. 7.62×39mm middle power ammunition is fired, and it uses 10 rounds of magazines to supply ammunition. It has a sword-shaped bayonet at the front of the muzzle, which is foldable and expandable. A Soviet-made PSO-1 scope can also be installed on the top of the receiver and used as a sniper rifle. In the 1960s, North Vietnam also received a lot of assistance from SKS semi-automatic rifles.
SVD Semi-automatic sniper rifle
SVD is the first special semi-automatic sniper rifle equipped by the former Soviet Union in 1967, because at that time, they were always using sniper rifles modified from Mosinnagan , or SVT40 and SKS to install scopes and modify sniper rifles. SVD is a special sniper rifle designed specifically for sniper combat. It fires 7.62×54mm ammunition and uses 10 rounds of standard magazines to supply ammunition. The top of the receiver is equipped with a POS-1 scope by default. The maximum kill range is 3,800 meters and the effective range is 600 meters. Also in the late Vietnam War, North Vietnam also received a lot of assistance from SVD semi-automatic sniper rifles.
Bobosha Type 41 Submachine gun
One of the submachine guns widely used by the Soviet Union during World War II. The Bobosha 41 was tested in 1941 and started production in mid-1942. After the end of World War II, the gun was produced in a total of more than 6 million units. The Bobosha 41 fires 7.62×25mm Tokarev pistol bullets, which can be supplied with 35 round arc magazines or 71 round drums. The fully automatic theoretical firing rate can reach 900 rounds per minute, and the effective range is 150 meters. Because of its strong firepower, simple structure, convenient and durable, it was used in the Soviet army until the 1960s. During this period, there were also a large number of Bobosha 41 submachine guns to be used for North Vietnam.
Deshka 12.7mm Heavy Machine Gun
In the late 1930s, a 12.7mm heavy machine gun equipped by the Soviet Union was partly used as anti-aircraft machine guns. In the later period, most of them were anti-aircraft weapons on tank destroyer and heavy tank . The gun fires 12.7×108mm ammunition, and can use 100 rounds of ammunition box or 250 rounds of ammunition chains to supply ammunition. The gun has an effective range of flat firing of 1800 meters, a maximum range of 7000 meters, an air-to-air range of 1600 meters, and launches armor-piercing missiles, which can penetrate 20 mm thick steel plates within a distance of 100 meters. The theoretical rate of fire per minute is 600 rounds, and the actual rate of fire is 80 rounds. To this day, some of the guns are still used as vehicle-mounted weapons on the top of Russian tanks. During the Vietnam War, North Vietnamese soldiers also received a lot of assistance from Deshka heavy machine guns.
Makarov Semi-automatic pistol
A semi-automatic pistol developed by the former Soviet Union at the end of World War II was equipped in the early 1950s and fired 9×18mm Makarov pistol bullets. It can use 8 rounds or 12 rounds of magazines to supply ammunition, with an effective range of 50 meters. Later, the silence version was improved based on its technology, as the main weapon of special forces and KGB agents. During the Vietnam War, many Makarov pistols were also used for North Vietnam, and they were used as a portable gun for officers and commanders.
Mosinnagan Bolt-action sniper rifle
This gun was born as early as the late 19th century. It was first used as a standard weapon of the Tsarist Russian army and participated in World War I . Then, as a standard weapon of the Soviet Union, it participated in World War II . During World War II, many Mosinnagan was also used as a standard weapon of sniper rifle.The gun fired 7.62×54mm R ammunition, with a capacity of 5 rounds and an effective range of 800 meters. The gun has strong penetration and high accuracy. It has been used in the Soviet army until the 1950s. During the Vietnam War, a large number of Mosinnagan bolt-action rifles were changed to sniper-type aid to NATO.
Tokarev Semi-automatic pistol
A semi-automatic pistol was widely used during World War II in the Soviet Union. It began to be equipped in the 1930s to replace the previous Nagan revolver. The gun fires 7.62×25mm Tokarev pistol bullets, the magazine capacity is 8 rounds, the effective range is 50 meters, the initial muzzle velocity is 420 meters per second, the empty gun weighs 0.85 kg, and the combat weight is 0.94 kg with full ammunition. After the end of World War II, the gun was eliminated, with a lot of assistance to North Vietnam, and most of them were used as officers and commanders.
So this is the end of this issue about the weapons of the United States and Vietnam during the Vietnam War. If you think there are any errors in this article, I hope you will give me more advice and improvements. If you want to know more about the content of weapons and equipment, please remember to follow and continue to update for you next issue.
