Description

The US M60 General Purpose Machine Gun, known as “the Pig,” was developed in the years after World War II from two revolutionary German designs. Adopted in 1957, the M60 came into its own in the jungles, hamlets, and city streets of Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War. “Humping the Pig” became common in US military squads, with at least one soldier equipped with an M60 and every squad member carrying ammunition for it. The M60 design transformed infantry tactics as squads took advantage of the immediate volume of fire offered by the design. Although it has now been replaced by the M240 series of weapons in US infantry and mechanized units, the M60 is still in common use with the US armed forces. Meanwhile, its iconic status has been assured by its frequent appearance in many popular films and television shows, from Full Metal Jacket to The A Team. Featuring specially commissioned full-color artwork, this is the full story of the M60, the innovative squad base-of-fire weapon that has equipped the US military from the jungles of Vietnam to the deserts of Iraq.

Product details

Published Nov 20 2012
Format Ebook (PDF)
Edition 1st
Extent 80
ISBN 9781849088459
Imprint Osprey Publishing
Illustrations 25 b/w; 34 col
Series Weapon
Short code WPN 20
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

About the contributors

Illustrator

Mark Stacey

Mark Stacey was born in Manchester, UK, in 1964 an…

Illustrator

Alan Gilliland

Alan Gilliland, a contributor to more than 70 Ospr…

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