40 mm machine grenade launcher Mk 19

Mk 19 MOD 3

Mk 19 on a Humvee

Training on the Mk 19 while sitting

The 40-mm machine grenade launcher Mk 19 ( English MK 19, 40-mm GRENADE. MACHINE GUN, MOD 3 ) is a 40-mm machine grenade launcher . The 40 × 53-mm-shells are fed laterally by a belt, which a cadence allows five rounds per second.

History and commitment

During the Vietnam War , the US Navy recognized the need for effective short and medium-range support weapons that could be used on River Patrol Boats (PBR) . These boats patrolled the great rivers and inland waters of Vietnam to control and dominate the banks. To do this, they needed great firepower from weapon systems, which had to be compact and light due to the limitations of boat size. Due to the dense vegetation in many places, a long fire range was not necessary. The Navy's solution was rapid-firing grenade launchers with a caliber of 40 millimeters . Three technically different systems were created:

The Mark 18 grenade launcher is a manually operated weapon, i.e. a hand crank, with an unusual split chamber that does not close completely even when the shot is fired . This is possible through the use of the 40 × 46 mm grenade, which operates with a comparatively low internal pressure.
The Mark 19 machine grenade launcher has a more conventional structure and was designed to use the more powerful 40 × 53 mm grenade. However, it was not able to convince in the first three development stages Mod 0 to Mod 2.
The machine grenade launcher Mk 20 is a technically unusual zuschießende Blow-forward gun and used just like the Mark 18, the less powerful 40 × 46-mm grenade.

Only after the Mk 19 grenade launcher had reached a satisfactory level in the fourth development stage, Mod 3, did it replace the Mk 18 and Mk 20 weapons from 1983 onwards. The Navy continues to use the Mk 19 to protect smaller but also medium-sized ones and large war and transport ships in addition to the M2 Browning heavy machine guns . When deployed by the land forces, the Mk 19 can either be mounted on an infantry gun or on vehicles and light tanks such as the HMMWV , on trucks, fast attack vehicles , LAV-25 or AAV7A1 .

Mod 3

The United States Army only took over the Mk 19 from 1983, at that time already in the fourth version Mod 3 , after earlier versions were considered unsafe and reliable. It was used on a larger scale in the Second Gulf War and was therefore known to a wider public. Also in Somalia 1993 and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq it was and is mainly used on HMMWV off-road vehicles. Its firepower can pose a threat to even lightly armored enemies. Due to the scattering effect in the target, it can also be used for suppressive fire, for example when fighting an ambush.

Technical specifications

Mk-19 machine grenade launcher
Caliber:	40 mm
ammunition	HEDP ( English High Explosive Dual Purpose , splinter explosive shell ' )
cadence	300-400 rounds / min.
Muzzle velocity	241 m / s
Max. Range	2200 m
Max. effective range	1600 m
length	109.5 cm
width	34.0 cm
Weight	33 kg

Web links

Commons : Mk-19 machine grenade launcher - Collection of images, videos and audio files

FAS.org - MK19 40mm Machine Gun, MOD 3 (engl.)
[web.archive.org/web/20060516222413/ http://www.gdatp.com/products/lethality/mk19/mk19.htm Offic. Page of the manufacturer]

Individual evidence

↑ Ian McCollum, Vietnam Mk18 Mod0 Hand-Crank Grenade Launcher on forgottenweapons.com , published December 20, 2017, last accessed January 13, 2018.
↑ Bob Stoner: NOS Louisville Mk 20 Mod 0 Automatic 40mm Grenade Launcher on warboats.org , published 2005, last accessed January 13, 2018.

[1] Ian McCollum, Vietnam Mk18 Mod0 Hand-Crank Grenade Launcher on forgottenweapons.com , published December 20, 2017, last accessed January 13, 2018.

[2] Bob Stoner: NOS Louisville Mk 20 Mod 0 Automatic 40mm Grenade Launcher on warboats.org , published 2005, last accessed January 13, 2018.