Israel has decided to equip its military with the Gatlin-style M61 Vulcan cannons on its northern borders to counter drone strikes from its foes. These rotary cannons have been the go-to weapon of the United States's fixed-wing aircraft for over half a century. Lebanon and Syria are located to the north of Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah has been at war with the Israel Defense Force (IDF) for many months now.
M61 Vulcan cannons were used by the US Army in Vietnam, Iraq and in Afghanistan, amongst other wars. The IDF and Israeli Air Force used it during the first Lebanon War (1982). However, Washington first sent the giant cannons to Israel during the Yom Kippur War of 1973.
In the first decade of the twenty-first century, Israel tasked its Air Force with the responsibility of storing the M61 Vulcans, the Jerusalem Post said in a report while confirming its deployment in the northern borders.
Gatling guns and the M61
According to the National Museum of the US Air Force website, the M61A1 Vulcan cannon is a Gatling six-barrel 20mm weapon that can shoot some 6,000 rounds per minute. As the name indicates, a Gatling gun is a machine gun that has many barrels that fire bullets by turning the barrels in circles. It was first used by the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Vulcan cannon can be loaded with target practice, armour piercing, or high explosive incendiary rounds. M61A1 cannons can be driven electrically, hydraulically or by a ram-air engine. Simply put, it fires by the power of electricity and is cooled by air.
Some history
In June 1946, the General Electric Company was awarded the contract for "Project Vulcan". Out of the thirty-three model C T45 guns delivered in 1952, the T171 20mm gun was selected for further development. In 1956 the T171 20mm gun was standardized by the U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force as the M61 20mm Vulcan aircraft gun.
In service since the 1950s, the US used to equip its fighter aircraft including the F-104, F-15 and F-16 with these cannons, the NMUSAF website added. It is often referred to as the main gun for all fixed-wing aircraft of the US military since the late 1960s.
M61 and M61A1
The initially developed M61 versions used linked, belted ammunition. However, it was soon discovered that they were prone to "misfeed" and presenting a foreign-object damage hazard with discarded links. Thus, the M61s were replaced by the M61A1 variants.
The Dutch Aviation Society said in a report that M61A1 uses a linkless ammunition feed system, unlike its predecessor. Each of the gun's six barrels fires only once during each revolution of the barrel cluster. The six rotating barrels contribute to long weapon life by minimizing barrel erosion and heat generation.
The M61 Vulcans are mobile and can be mounted on vehicles as well, making it easier for the IDF to use it at multiple warfromnts.