The MG 81 is a German belt fed 7.92×57mm Mauser machine gun which was used in flexible installations in World War II Luftwaffe aircraft, in which capacity it replaced the older drum magazine-fed MG 15.

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MG 81
MG 81 (upper) and MG 81Z (in box)
Type	Machine gun
Place of origin	Nazi Germany
Service history
Used by	Nazi Germany
Wars	World War II
Production history
Variants	MG 81Z
Specifications
Mass	6.5 kg (14.33 lb)
Length	965 mm (38.0 in) (with flash hider)
Barrel length	475 mm (18.7 in)
Cartridge	7.92×57mm Mauser 7.62×51mm NATO (post-war)
Caliber	7,9 (7,92+0,04)[1]
Action	Recoil-operated, gas assisted, open-bolt
Rate of fire	1,400–1,600 rounds/min
Muzzle velocity	705 m/s (2,310 ft/s) (sS ball ammunition)
Feed system	Belt-fed

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The MG 81 was developed by Mauser as a derivative of their successful MG 34 general-purpose machine gun. Development focus was to reduce production cost and time and to optimize the machine gun for use in aircraft. Developed in 1938/1939, it was in production from 1940 to 1945.

A special twin-mount MG 81Z (the Z suffix stands for Zwilling, meaning "twin") was introduced in 1942. It paired up two of the weapons on one mount to provide even more firepower with a maximum cyclic rate of fire of 3,200 rounds per minute without requiring much more space than a standard machine gun. Towards the end of the war many specimens were delivered to the army and equipped for use in ground battles with shoulder rest and bipod.

After West Germany's entry into NATO in May 1955, Mauser offered the MG 81 chambered in 7.62×51mm NATO. The twin-barrel MG 81Z was marketed for helicopter fixed mount with theoretical firepower of 6,800–7,000 rounds per minute for a MG 81Z mounted on each side of the helicopter. The MG 81 was also marketed for infantry use with bipod, wood buttstock, and reduced fire rate of 1,200 rounds per minute.^[2]

The MG 81Z was found in many unique installations in Luftwaffe combat aircraft, such as a pair of MG 81Z (for a total of four guns) installed in the hollow tail cone of the Dornier Do 217 K-2. Designated R19 (R for Rüstsatz) as a factory designed field conversion/upgrade kit, it allowed the pilot of the Do 217 to shoot at pursuers.

Another application was the Gießkanne (Watering can), an externally mounted pod with three gun pairs, making a total of six guns and their ammunition. Able to fire at a cyclic rate of 9,000 rounds per minute, this was attached to Junkers Ju 87 or Ju 88 in an underwing mount and used to strafe ground targets.^[3]

MG 81

• Weight: 6.5 kg (14 lb)
• Length: 915 mm (36.0 in) (965 mm (38.0 in) with flash hider)
• Muzzle velocity: 705 m/s (2,310 ft/s) (sS ball ammunition), 755 m/s (2,480 ft/s), 785 m/s (2,580 ft/s) or 790 m/s (2,600 ft/s), depending on ammo type
• Rate of fire: 1,400–1,600 rpm (sS ball ammunition)
• Rate of fire: 1,700–1,800 rpm^[4]
• Rate of fire: 800 rpm (coaxial mount)^[5]

MG 81Z

• Weight: 12.9 kg (28.44 lb)
• Length: 915 mm (965& mm with flash hider)
• Muzzle velocity: 705 m/s (2,310 ft/s) (sS ball ammunition), 755 m/s (2,480 ft/s), 785 m/s (2,580 ft/s) or 790 m/s (2,600 ft/s), depending on ammo type
• Rate of fire: 2,800–3,200 rpm (sS ball ammunition)
• Rate of fire: 3,400–3,600 rpm^[6]

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