Interesting Browning AN M2 30 cal

[RCS]

Thanks to Tom in NJ for sending me this photo, can anyone provide any information

Information

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[browningautorifle]

Looks like the flexible gun with ball and socket mount, but it's in the wrong place.

[Brit plumber]

Is it not one of the experimental flash suppressors? I'm sure I've seen it in one of the Browning books.

[Peter Laidler]

That is definately a ball mount. It should be close to the trunnion/swivel point. If it was placed where it is, the gunner would have to be an acrobat to swivel the gun in any meaningful way. As for it being any form of F/E, then definitely not. The only way to diminish a flash is to break up the particles that are on fire or to douse them

[fjruple]

That's an easy one. It's a .30 T9 flexible training machine gun which uses frangible ammunition for teaching flexible gunnery. The T9 was kit to modified a AN/M2 .30 Aircraft Flexible Machine Gun. A specially armored aircraft, I believe a P-39 Airacobra or P-63 KingCobra was used. When the T9 gunner scored a hit on the aircraft, the hit was electronically registered and a flashing light on the aircraft would provide instant gratification to the T9 gunner. I believe I have a copy of the SNL in a pdf format somewhere around here. I do not believe they were used long after WWII. As the AN/M2 was declared obsolete immediately after WWII being replaced by the AN/M2 and AN/M3 .50 Aircraft Gun. Additionally I believe the T9 kit was used as an intermediate training kit from the .22LR M5 conversion kit to convert the AN/M2 Aircraft Flexible Gun into a M5 .22 training machine gun.

--fjruple

[RCS]

I was looking at some frangible 30 cal cartridges and read that the muzzle velocity was around 1320 fps. I know the Browning ANM2 was used to train the aircraft gunners during WW2 on the P-63 fighter. I was thinking how did they get the ANM2 to function with this low velocity cartridge when Tom in NJ found the photo.

[Peter Laidler]

Hey, can you imagine the pilot on his first briefing, being told that they're sort of real bullets but don't worry, they won't hurt a bit.......

We used to have some Centurion tanks that were up-armoured and therefore xxxxxxx heavy, sufficient to trundle around the field firing range while the crunchies let loose on them with 3.5" rockets and Charlie G practice ammo. The trouble was that the driver inside and 2 crew steered them by periscope and radio comms kept them on the sort-of straight and narrow. That was the theory. But in practice, the crunchies on the A/Tk courses soon discovered that a few good shots could simply smash the periscope visors even though they had armoured glass sacrificial screens. And you could also send a rocket thudding across the turret roof - and that'd take care of the aerials. The crew had to stay closed down until the firing point was closed and declared safe and then someone had to walk out to the Centurion and physically tell the crew to un-hatch and drive back They were always being towed off the ranges.

Ho ho..... happy days

[fjruple]

RCS--

The front end of the standard AN/M2 .30 Flexible Aircraft was modified to provide a booster, cylinder and piston to provide the necessary force to function the M22 (T44) frangible rounds thru the gun. I have attached a picture of the parts from the May 1945 SNL to show the relationship on how they worked.

Cheers

--fjruple

[RCS]

photo shows both the US 7,62mm M160 Frangible (headstamped FA 63) and the 30M2 Frangible cartridge. The M160 also has the same low velocity of 1320 fps with a 108.5 gr bullet. Any idea what weapons might have used the M160 cartridge ?

[fjruple]

RCS--

From the US Army Ammunition Data Book the M160 7.62mm NATO was used as a single shot training round for US 7.62mm NATO weapon systems for marking the impact on targets. The M160 round was for out door use only as the particle lead was toxic to breath. In my 30 years with the US Army I have never seen one of these rounds used.

Cheers

--fjruple