UKM-2000 ( Polish. Uniwersalny Karabin Maszynowy 2000 ) - Polish single machine gun , which is a modification of the Kalashnikov machine gun chambered for 7.62 × 51 mm .
| UKM-2000 | |
|---|---|
 UKM-2000P | |
| Type of | single machine gun |
| A country |  Poland |
| Service history | |
| In service | Poland |
| Wars and conflicts | Iraq War , War in Afghanistan (since 2001) |
| Production history | |
| Designed by | 2000 |
| Manufacturer | Tarnuvsky Mechanical Plant |
| Specifications | |
| Weight, kg | 8.4 |
| Length mm | 1203 |
| Barrel length, mm | 547 |
| Cartridge | 7.62 × 51 mm NATO |
| Work principles | removal of powder gases , butterfly valve |
| Rate of fire shots / min | 600–700 |
| starting speed bullets , m / s | 840 |
| Type of ammunition | machine gun belt for 100, 200 or 250 rounds |
Content
History
Production of the PKM machine gun has been mastered in Poland since 1968. After the transition to NATO standards, it was decided to create for the Polish army a single machine gun chambered for 7.62 × 51 mm, which was supposed to use machine-gun belts of the NATO standard [1] . As a result, in 1997, the first prototype of the PKM-NATO was created, later it was finalized to ensure the capability of ammunition from NATO standard machine-gun belts and in 2000, prototypes were transferred to field testing, which took place in 2001 and were completed in May 2002 [2] .
Pre-production samples provided the possibility of ammunition from the standard loose cartridge tape M13 and non- loose cartridge tape DM1 made in Germany, but according to the results of tests for armament, the option was adopted with the possibility of using only standard loose cartridge tape M13 [2] .
On November 28, 2003, the Polish Ministry of Defense ordered the first 30 machine guns for military trials [2] .
In 2007, the first batch of 130 machine guns was purchased for the Polish army. In 2008, another 252 machine guns, the UKM-2000P, were purchased [3] ; in 2009, another 40 machine guns were purchased [2] .
As of February 2014, there were more than 1,200 UKM-2000 machine guns of various modifications in service with the Polish army and it was planned to modernize them to the UK-2000M level [4] .
In December 2014, the Polish Ministry of Defense ordered 200 units. SCT Rubin thermal imaging sights (total cost of PLN 16.2 million) to be delivered by the end of 2014. Sights of this type can be mounted on wz.96 Beryl rifles, Tor sniper rifles and UKM-2000 machine guns [5] .
In early June 2015, the Polish armed forces ordered another 378 units. UKM-2000P [6] .
As of the beginning of 2017, there were 1,300 UKM-2000 machine guns of various modifications in service with the Polish armed forces; in February 2017, the weapons inspectorate of the Polish Ministry of Defense announced its intention to purchase another 2,500 units. machine guns UKM-2000P [7] .
Construction
It is an automatic weapon, built according to the scheme with gas-driven automation and locking the barrel by turning the bolt. In the machine gun saved two-stage feed cartridge in the barrel. Changes compared to base PCM include:
- barrel with modified chamber, pitch and section of the vent hole;
- modified design of the feed fingers of the base of the receiver;
- modified design of the extractor from the bolt;
- shutter with a resized hemp;
- Ejector with a modified length;
- gas regulator with a modified liner cap size;
- aim;
- loose cartridge tape.
Modifications
- UKM-2000P - infantry machine gun [4]
- UKM-2000 D - option for airborne troops with a folding butt [2]
- UKM-2000Z - version with a telescopic butt
- UKM-2000 C - tank machine gun for installation on armored vehicles [7] , equipped with electro-release
- UKM-2013 is a modernized version with a barrel shortened to 440 mm, a telescopic butt and the Picatinny universal aiming bar for mounting NATO standard sights.
- The UKM-2000M is a modernized version developed and entered for military trials in early 2014 [4] .
Operator countries
- Poland [7]
- Nigeria - purchased a batch of UKM-2000P [8]
Notes
- ↑ Sergey Monetchikov. Weapons for the "thunder" . // Journal "Little Brother", № 11, 2005
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 5 Leszek Erenfeicht, Mirosław Zahor. UKM-2000: The Polish Successor to the PKM // “Small Arms Defense Journal”, volume 3 № 2, 2012
- ↑ Zakupy Beryli i UKM-2000P Archived November 9, 2013. // "Altair", № 1, 2008
- ↑ 1 2 3 Poland: modified machine guns // "Red Star", No. 28 (26488) of February 18, 2014. p.3
- ↑ Order of SCT Rubin thermal imaging sights // “Red Star”, No. 227 (26687) of December 11, 2014. p.3
- ↑ Kolejne karabiny maszynowe UKM-2000 dla Wojska Polskiego
- ↑ 1 2 3 Krzysztof Wilewski. Nowe UKM-y dla łołnierzy // "Polska Zbrojna" from February 2, 2017
- ↑ Nigeryjskie sukcesy polskiej zbrojeniówki // “Altair”, 8 września 2016
Links
- WWW factory
- M. R. Popenker. United Machine Gun UKM-2000 (Poland) / "Modern Small Arms" website