Difference between revisions of "L21A1 (12.7 mm)"

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{{About
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| about = '''{{PAGENAME}}''' machine gun
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| usage = the 30 mm autocannon
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| link = L21A1 (30 mm)
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}}
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[[File:L21A1.png|x280px|thumb|right|The L21A1 inside of the Vickers Mk.3 turret]]
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== Description ==
 
== Description ==
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''Write an introduction to the article in 2-3 small paragraphs. Briefly tell about the history of the devekopment and combat using of the weaponry and also about it's features. Make a air or ground vehicles list on which this weapon is installed in our game.''
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<!-- ''Write an introduction to the article in 2-3 small paragraphs. Briefly tell us about the history of the development and combat using the weaponry and also about its features. Compile a list of air, ground, or naval vehicles that feature this weapon system in the game.'' -->
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The '''L21A1''' is the post-war British designation for the American [[Browning M2 (12.7 mm)|Browning M2]] .50 cal (12.7 mm) machine gun, when used as a ranging gun on the [[Chieftain (Family)|Chieftain]] series of tanks. In-game the L21A1 is found as a co-axial ranging gun on the [[Vickers MBT]], [[Chieftain Mk 3]] and [[Chieftain Mk 5]]. Despite being a variant of the [[Browning M2 (12.7 mm)|Browning M2]] it performs significantly differently to the normal version in-game. The rate of fire almost halves, and most notably penetration is lower than that of the tank's [[L37A1 (7.62 mm)]] co-axial machine gun.
  
 
=== Vehicles equipped with this weapon ===
 
=== Vehicles equipped with this weapon ===
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<!-- ''List out vehicles that are equipped with the weapon.'' -->
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The L21A1 is only found as a ranging gun on the Vickers MBTs and Chieftain series of tanks, it is not found on the [[Chieftain Mk 10]], as this version of the tank did away with the ranging machine gun. The L21A1 is found on:
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* {{Specs-Link|uk_chieftain_mk_3}}
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* {{Specs-Link|uk_chieftain_mk_5}}
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* {{Specs-Link|uk_vickers_mbt_mk_1}}
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* {{Specs-Link|uk_vickers_mbt_mk_3}}
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* {{Specs-Link|uk_vijayanta}}
  
 
== General info ==
 
== General info ==
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''Tell us about the tactical and technical characteristics of the cannon or machine gun.''
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<!-- ''Tell us about the tactical and technical characteristics of the cannon or machine gun.'' -->
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The L21A1 is primarily designed as a ranging gun, and therefore has poor ballistic performance (as the rounds it fires are designed to be visible rather than penetrate armour). The rate of fire is also reduced to conserve ammunition as a high rate of fire is not needed for ranging purposes.
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=== Available ammunition ===
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<!-- ''Describe the shells that are available for the weapon and their features and purpose. If it concerns autocannons or machine guns, write about different ammo belts and what is inside (which types of shells).'' -->
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The L21A1 only has access to one ammunition belt consisting entirely of Adjustment Incendiary (AI) bullets. As these bullets are designed to be visible on impact rather than to penetrate armour they have poor ballistic performance, with a maximum penetration of 7 mm.
  
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=== Available shells ===
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{{:{{PAGENAME}}/Ammunition|AI}}
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''Describe the shells that are available for the cannon and their features and purpose. If it iconcerns autocanons or machine guns, so write about different ammo belts and what is inside (which types of shells).''
 
  
 
=== Comparison with analogues ===
 
=== Comparison with analogues ===
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''Give a comparative description of cannons/machine guns, that have firepower equal to these type of weapons.''
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<!-- ''Give a comparative description of cannons/machine guns that have firepower equal to this weapon.'' -->
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Unlike other tank-mounted machine guns the L21A1 , which are designed primary for anti-infantry, anti-aircraft, or general purpose use; the L21A1 is specialised for range finding. It has worse rate of fire and ballistic performance than most other guns. It is worse in nearly every way (aside from ranging) compared to the [[L8A1 (7.62 mm)]], [[L37A1 (7.62 mm)]] and [[L3A1 (7.62 mm)]], also found on the tanks this weapon is equipped on.
  
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== Usage in the battles ==
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== Usage in battles ==
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''Describe the cannon/machine gun in the game - its distinctive features, tactics of usage against the main opponents. Please don't write a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view, but give the reader food for thought.''
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<!-- ''Describe the cannon/machine gun in the game - its distinctive features, tactics of usage against notable opponents. Please don't write a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view, but give the reader food for thought.'' -->
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The L21A1 should be primarily used for range finding as it has poor ballistic performance and rate of fire, making it useless against enemy armour. On the Chieftain series the gun is set up so that the shells from it accurately reflect where the shells from the main gun will land, making it an effective ranging tool. It can also be used, like other machine guns for killing exposed crew members (being a 12.7 mm machine gun it does decent damage when it hits exposed crew) in open topped vehicles (although there are few such vehicles at the battle ratings this gun is found at), marking enemy vehicles and obscuring the view of enemy players (shooting at their gun sight).
  
 
=== Pros and cons ===
 
=== Pros and cons ===
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''Summarize and briefly evaluate the weaponry in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark pros and cons as a list.''
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<!-- ''Summarise and briefly evaluate the weaponry in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark pros and cons as a list.'' -->
  
 
'''Pros:'''
 
'''Pros:'''
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*
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* Gun can be accurately used for ranging the main gun on the [[Chieftain Mk 3]] and [[Chieftain Mk 5]]
  
 
'''Cons:'''
 
'''Cons:'''
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*
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* Very low rate of fire
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* Despite being a 12.7 mm machine gun has less penetration than most light machine guns
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* Inferior to the Chieftain's [[L8A1 (7.62 mm)]] and [[L37A1 (7.62 mm)]] machine guns for all purposes other than range finding.
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== History ==
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<!-- ''Examine the history of the creation and combat usage of the weapon in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the weapon and adding a block "/History" (example: <nowiki>https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Weapon-name)/History</nowiki>) and add a link to it here using the <code>main</code> template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <code><nowiki><ref></ref></nowiki></code>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <code><nowiki><references /></nowiki></code>.'' -->
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{{main|Browning M2 (12.7 mm)}}
  
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== Historical part ==
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The L21A1 is the post-war British designation for the American [[Browning M2 (12.7 mm)|Browning M2]] .50 cal (12.7 mm) machine gun, when used as a ranging gun on the Chieftain series of tanks. The Browning M2 (also called the "M2 Machine Gun" or "Browning .50 Caliber Machine Gun") is a heavy machine gun designed by John Browning toward the end of World War I. The gun was similar to the earlier .30 cal [[M1919A4 (7.62 mm)|M1919]] machine gun but used the much more powerful .50 BMG cartridge. The M2 entered service in 1933 and saw wide-spread use by the Allies in WW2 as a heavy infantry machine gun, as well as being mounted on aircraft, ships and land vehicles (including extensive use on tanks and armoured cars). The weapon remains in service with a large number of countries (including the US and UK) to this day.
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''Examine the history of the creation and combat usage of this weapon. If the historical reference turns out to be big one, take it into a separate article and add a link to it by using the "main" template. In the end be sure to include references to sources.''
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The British designation L21A1 was given to weapons used as a ranging gun on the Chieftain series of tanks. The L21A1 fired tracer rounds with an explosive tip allowing the gunner to track the rounds in the air (tracer was visible up to 2,400 m) and see a visible "splash" where the round impacted. Starting in the 1970s the ranging gun was phased out on newer variants of the Chieftain, in favour of laser rangefinders with a 10 km (6.2 mi) range, which was linked to the Fire Control System (FCS), allowing for quicker and more accurate engagement at longer ranges.
  
 
== Media ==
 
== Media ==
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''An excellent addition to the article would be a video guide, as well as screenshots from the game and photos.''
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!-- ''Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.'' -->
  
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== Read also ==
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;Images
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''Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example,''
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<gallery mode="packed-hover" heights="200">
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File:Weapon L21A1 12.7mm.jpg|<small>The L21A1 on the Chieftain Mk 3</small>
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</gallery>
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== See also ==
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<!-- ''Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:''
 
* ''reference to the article about the variant of the cannon/machine gun;''
 
* ''reference to the article about the variant of the cannon/machine gun;''
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* ''references to approximate analogues by other nations and research trees.''
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* ''references to approximate analogues by other nations and research trees.'' -->
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''ETC.''
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* [[Browning M2 (12.7 mm)]]
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== External links ==
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<!-- ''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''
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* ''topic on the official game forum;''
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* ''other literature.'' -->
  
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== Sources ==
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* [[wikipedia:M2_Browning|[Wikipedia] M2 Browning]]
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''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''
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* [[wikipedia:Chieftain_(tank)|[Wikipedia] Chieftain (tank)]]
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* ''topic on the official game forum''
 
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* ''page on the Wikipedia''
 
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* ''page on aircraft or gorund forces encyclopedia''
 
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* ''other literature''
 
  
 
{{Tank machine guns}}
 
{{Tank machine guns}}
  
 
[[Category:Tank machine guns]]
 
[[Category:Tank machine guns]]

Latest revision as of 20:15, 24 June 2023

This page is about the L21A1 (12.7 mm) machine gun. For the 30 mm autocannon, see L21A1 (30 mm).
The L21A1 inside of the Vickers Mk.3 turret

Description

The L21A1 is the post-war British designation for the American Browning M2 .50 cal (12.7 mm) machine gun, when used as a ranging gun on the Chieftain series of tanks. In-game the L21A1 is found as a co-axial ranging gun on the Vickers MBT, Chieftain Mk 3 and Chieftain Mk 5. Despite being a variant of the Browning M2 it performs significantly differently to the normal version in-game. The rate of fire almost halves, and most notably penetration is lower than that of the tank's L37A1 (7.62 mm) co-axial machine gun.

Vehicles equipped with this weapon

The L21A1 is only found as a ranging gun on the Vickers MBTs and Chieftain series of tanks, it is not found on the Chieftain Mk 10, as this version of the tank did away with the ranging machine gun. The L21A1 is found on:

General info

The L21A1 is primarily designed as a ranging gun, and therefore has poor ballistic performance (as the rounds it fires are designed to be visible rather than penetrate armour). The rate of fire is also reduced to conserve ammunition as a high rate of fire is not needed for ranging purposes.

Available ammunition

The L21A1 only has access to one ammunition belt consisting entirely of Adjustment Incendiary (AI) bullets. As these bullets are designed to be visible on impact rather than to penetrate armour they have poor ballistic performance, with a maximum penetration of 7 mm.

Penetration statistics
Ammunition Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
10 m 100 m 500 m 1,000 m 1,500 m 2,000 m
AI 7 7 6 5 3 3
Shell details
Ammunition Velocity
(m/s) 		Projectile
mass (kg) 		Fuse delay
(m) 		Fuse sensitivity
(mm) 		Explosive mass
(TNT equivalent) (g) 		Ricochet
0% 50% 100%
AI 915 0.04 0.1 3 - 47° 56° 65°

Comparison with analogues

Unlike other tank-mounted machine guns the L21A1 , which are designed primary for anti-infantry, anti-aircraft, or general purpose use; the L21A1 is specialised for range finding. It has worse rate of fire and ballistic performance than most other guns. It is worse in nearly every way (aside from ranging) compared to the L8A1 (7.62 mm), L37A1 (7.62 mm) and L3A1 (7.62 mm), also found on the tanks this weapon is equipped on.

Usage in battles

The L21A1 should be primarily used for range finding as it has poor ballistic performance and rate of fire, making it useless against enemy armour. On the Chieftain series the gun is set up so that the shells from it accurately reflect where the shells from the main gun will land, making it an effective ranging tool. It can also be used, like other machine guns for killing exposed crew members (being a 12.7 mm machine gun it does decent damage when it hits exposed crew) in open topped vehicles (although there are few such vehicles at the battle ratings this gun is found at), marking enemy vehicles and obscuring the view of enemy players (shooting at their gun sight).

Pros and cons

Pros:

Cons:

  • Very low rate of fire
  • Despite being a 12.7 mm machine gun has less penetration than most light machine guns
  • Inferior to the Chieftain's L8A1 (7.62 mm) and L37A1 (7.62 mm) machine guns for all purposes other than range finding.

History

Main article: Browning M2 (12.7 mm)

The L21A1 is the post-war British designation for the American Browning M2 .50 cal (12.7 mm) machine gun, when used as a ranging gun on the Chieftain series of tanks. The Browning M2 (also called the "M2 Machine Gun" or "Browning .50 Caliber Machine Gun") is a heavy machine gun designed by John Browning toward the end of World War I. The gun was similar to the earlier .30 cal M1919 machine gun but used the much more powerful .50 BMG cartridge. The M2 entered service in 1933 and saw wide-spread use by the Allies in WW2 as a heavy infantry machine gun, as well as being mounted on aircraft, ships and land vehicles (including extensive use on tanks and armoured cars). The weapon remains in service with a large number of countries (including the US and UK) to this day.

The British designation L21A1 was given to weapons used as a ranging gun on the Chieftain series of tanks. The L21A1 fired tracer rounds with an explosive tip allowing the gunner to track the rounds in the air (tracer was visible up to 2,400 m) and see a visible "splash" where the round impacted. Starting in the 1970s the ranging gun was phased out on newer variants of the Chieftain, in favour of laser rangefinders with a 10 km (6.2 mi) range, which was linked to the Fire Control System (FCS), allowing for quicker and more accurate engagement at longer ranges.

Media

!-- Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos. -->

Images

  • The L21A1 on the Chieftain Mk 3

See also

External links


Tank machine guns
USA 
7.62 mm  M37 · M60D · M73 · M240 · M1919A4 · Mk.52
12.7 mm  FN M3P · M2HB · M80 · M85
Germany 
5.56 mm  MG4
7.62 mm  C6 · MG3A1
7.92 mm  MG13 Dreyse · MG34 · MG37(t) · MG42
12.7 mm  S.MG.50
USSR 
7.62 mm  DT · PKMB · PKT · PKTM · RP-46 · SGMT
12.7 mm  DK · DShK · 6P49 · NSVT
14.5 mm  KPVT
Britain 
7.62 mm  Browning MG4 · L3A1 · L8A1 · L8A2 · L37A1 · L37A2 · L94A1
7.7 mm  Vickers
7.92 mm  BESA
12.7 mm  L21A1
Japan 
6.5 mm  Type 91
7.62 mm  Type 74
7.7 mm  Type 97
12.7 mm  Type 60 (B)
China 
5.8 mm  QJT
7.62 mm  Type 55 · Type 59 · Type 86
12.7 mm  QJC88A · Type 54
14.5 mm  QJG02
Italy 
7.62 mm  Beretta MG42/59 · FN MAG 60-40
8 mm  34/40M · Breda Mod. 38
13.2 mm  Breda Model 31
France 
7.5 mm  AAT-52 · MAC 31
7.62 mm  A-A-F1N
8 mm  Hotchkiss Mle 1914
Sweden 
6.5 mm  ksp m/14-29
7.62 mm  ksp 39 C · ksp 58 · ksp 94
8 mm  ksp m/36 · ksp m/39B
12.7 mm  ksp 88

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