M4 (37 mm)

This page is about the aircraft cannon M4 (37 mm). For the tank armament, see M4 (105 mm). For other uses, see M4 (Disambiguation).

Description

The M4 (37 mm) (officially the 37 mm Automatic Gun, M4) is an American autocannon firing 37x145mmR cartridges. It is predominantly seen on the P-39 Airacobra series of fighters, and on the early P-63 Kingcobra fighters as well (namely the P-63A-5 and ▂P-63A-5 in-game).

Vehicles equipped with this weapon

American:

• P-39N-0
• P-39Q-5
• P-63A-5
• YP-38
• A-26B-10 (Modification)

Soviet:

• ▂P-39K-1
• ▂Pokryshkin's P-39N-0
• ▂P-39Q-15
• ▂P-63A-5

General info

The 37 mm autocannon on the P-39 and P-63 has the ability to delete most fighters if a 37 mm HE shells hit. However, the 37 mm suffer from poor trajectory and a relatively low rate of fire compared to other large caliber autocannons.

A specific note for the 37 mm belts in-game is that the Soviet P-39 and P-63 fighters do not have any belt options available. This is due to the historical note that the US did not supply any armour-piercing 37 mm rounds to the Soviets, as they did not consider the P-39 and P-63 for tank-busting duties.

Available ammunition

• Default: HEFI-T*
• Universal: HEFI-T* · HEFI-T* · AP-T
• Ground targets: AP-T · HEFI-T*

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Penetration @ 90° (mm)
	10 m	100 m	500 m	1,000 m	1,500 m	2,000 m
AP-T	43	40	30	18	15	11
HEFI-T	3	3	3	3	3	3

Shell details
Ammunition	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile Mass (kg)	Fuse delay (m)	Fuse sensitivity (mm)	Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)	Normalisation at 30° from horizontal	Ricochet
							0%	50%	100%
AP-T	556	0.753	N/A	N/A	N/A	-1.0°	47°	60°	65°
HEFI-T	610	0.608	0.05	N/A	65.2	+0.0°	79°	80°	81°

Comparison with analogues

Give a comparative description of cannons/machine guns that have firepower equal to this weapon.

Usage in battles

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.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• 30 rounds loaded, can last an entire round with good trigger discipline.
• One hit will usually either directly destroy a single engine fighter or damage it enough to prompt the pilot to return to base
• Particularly good in a close range snapshot situation, quickly ending a dogfight

Cons:

• Very slow muzzle velocity, requiring a lot of lead to score a hit in a dogfight
• Self destroying HE shells, which limits the range at which they can be used.
• Absolutely useless AP shells, which struggles even with light tanks.
• Very slow rate of fire
• Inaccurate, NEVER count on it during a head on fight

History

The 37 mm autocannon had its root in 1921, designed by famed American firearms designer John M. Browning. Browning and Colt refined the design and was tested as the 37 mm T9 autocannon. It was accepted as the 37 mm Automatic Gun, M4, intended for a anti-aircraft weapon for intercepting and shooting down large aircraft.

The 37 mm cannon were mounted onto the P-39 and P-63 series of fighters, but proved unpopular with the pilots. The trajectory drooped harshly over distance and in night time operations, the muzzle flash could blind the pilot.

Media

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

See also

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;
• references to approximate analogues by other nations and research trees.

External links

• P-63 Kingcobra - Browning M4 37mm Auto Cannon Gun
• Aviation History Online Museum - Browning Model M4 (T9) 37 mm Cannon