Type 99 light machine gun

Type 99 Light Machine Gun
Type 99 LMG
Type	machine gun
Place of origin	Empire of Japan
Service history
Used by	Japan
Wars	WWII
Production history
Designer	Kijiro Nambu
Designed	1939
Specifications
Mass	11.4 kg
Length	1181 mm
Barrel length	550 mm
Cartridge	7.7x58mm Arisaka
Action	Gas operated
Rate of fire	250 to 900 round/min
Muzzle velocity	715 m/s (2,300 ft/s)
Feed system	30 round

The Type 99 Light Machine Gun was a light machine gun produced by Japan during the Second World War. It entered service in 1939.

Because Japan had adopted the 7.7 mm Type 99 Rifle an accompanying 7.7 mm light machine gun was also developed. The Type 99 was the basically same design as the Type 96 light machine gun, but the Type 99 dispensed with the oiler and had better primary extraction. Early models had a mono-pod at the stock and a flash-hider at the muzzle which was screwed onto a threaded portion of the barrel. Like the Type 96, most were issued with a 2.5 power optical sight. These were often issued to the best marksmen of the unit and occasionally employed like a sniper rifle. It also served as a light anti-aircraft gun occasionally during the war. The gun shares the shape of the British Bren gun and the Czech ZB26, however, internally it is quite different from both.

References

• Leo J. Daugherty III, Fighting Techniques of a Japanese Infantryman 1941-1945, ISBN 1-86227-162-3
• Japanese Model 99 MG, Tactical and Technical Trends No. 35, U.S. War Department.

See also

• Mendoza RM2
• Lahti-Saloranta M/26
• FM-24/29
• Furrer M25
• Bren gun
• Charlton Automatic Rifle
• M1918 BAR

External link

• Modern Firearms