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Weapons System

Mk 48 machine gun

Machine Guns And Automatic Weapons

The Mk 48 is a lightweight machine gun developed by FN America as a scaled up version of the M249 SAW, chambered in 7.62x51mm NATO. It weighs about 18.5 pounds and measures roughly 39.5 inches, giving squads a portable weapon with more power than the 5.56mm M249 while remaining lighter than the older M60 based Mk 43 it was designed to replace. Deliveries to United States Special Operations Command began in August 2003, and the gun has served with units such as the Navy SEALs and the Army 75th Ranger Regiment. Later Mod 1 and Mod 2 versions added ergonomic improvements and expanded caliber options. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

Facts
Classification
Caliber
7.62x51mm NATO 1
Service Status
In Service 2
Weapon Class
Lightweight machine gun 3
Introduced Year
2003 4
Weapon Class
Weapon Class (category)
Machine Gun 3
Connections

Operated By

Australian Defence Force, Armed Forces and Units
Source MilitaryFactory.com: Fabrique Nationale Mk 48 LWMG
United States Armed Forces, Armed Forces and Units
Source MilitaryFactory.com: Fabrique Nationale Mk 48 LWMG

Used In

Bosnian War, Wars
Source Wikipedia: M249 Squad Automatic Weapon
Gulf War, Wars
Source Wikipedia: M249 Squad Automatic Weapon
Iraq War, Wars
Source Wikipedia: M249 Squad Automatic Weapon
Kosovo War, Wars
Source Wikipedia: M249 Squad Automatic Weapon
Syrian Civil War, Wars
Source Wikipedia: M249 Squad Automatic Weapon
War in Afghanistan (2001-2021), Wars
Source Wikipedia: M249 Squad Automatic Weapon
In the Other Atlases

Manufactured By

FN Herstal

Also in Business Atlas: the manufacturer of this subject.

Source Wikidata: Mk 48 machine gun
Sources
1. Wikidata: Mk 48 machine gun
Wikidata Q6885441, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source
2. Wikipedia: M249 Squad Automatic Weapon
  • Infobox: service
    1984-present
  • Used In: Gulf War, infobox wars field: 'Gulf War'
  • Used In: Bosnian War, infobox wars field: 'Bosnian War'
  • Used In: Kosovo War, infobox wars field: 'Kosovo War'
  • Used In: War in Afghanistan (2001-2021), infobox wars field: 'War in Afghanistan (2001-2021)'
  • Used In: Iraq War, infobox wars field: 'Iraq War'
  • Used In: Syrian Civil War, infobox wars field: 'Syrian Civil War'
View the Source
3. Wikipedia: Mk 48 machine gun
  • Article text
    Army service as the M249 SAW in 1984, and was later adopted by the U.S.
  • Caliber attribute (mk-48-machine-gun)
    The Mk 48 is a lightweight machine gun developed by FN America as a scaled up version of the M249 SAW, chambered in 7.62x51mm NATO.
  • Article text
    A request was put in for a new machine gun in 2001, and FN responded with a scaled-up version of the M249 weighing in at ~18.5 lb with an OAL of ~39.5".
  • In Group: Light Machine Guns, Infobox: type
    Light machine gun Squad automatic weapon
View the Source
4. MilitaryFactory.com: Fabrique Nationale Mk 48 LWMG
MilitaryFactory.com
  • Page header: country and year
    United States | 2003
  • Operated By: Australian Defence Force, Operators
    [ Australia; Czech Republic; Iraq; Italy; United States ]
  • Operated By: United States Armed Forces, Operators
    [ Australia; Czech Republic; Iraq; Italy; United States ]
View the Source
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