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GUNNING [CONTINUED FROMPAGE 64]


weapon with selectable slow or fast automatic firing modes but no semiautomatic mode. The Marines modified most of their BARs for semiautomatic operation to better suit their expeditionary mission.


A once and future weapon
The Browning guns remained in service through the Korean War, but in the 1950s the M60 7.62 mm replaced the BAR as the Army’s standard medium machine gun and saw extensive use in Vietnam. In combat, the M60 turned out to be difficult to clean and prone to jamming, especially when dirty. It now has been superseded by the M240B 7.62 mm gun by Fabrique Nationale of Belgium, which also produces the M249 light machine gun. Both weapons have proven more reliable than their predecessors and are in wide use by the Army, Army National Guard, and Marine Corps.


In addition to its ground-combat role when fitted with a buttstock and bipod, the M240B also can be fitted to a wide range of vehicles, watercraft, and aircraft. The M249, previously known as the Squad Automatic Weapon, is designed to give smaller units the firepower of an automatic weapon in a portable gun. It features a quick-change barrel to alleviate jamming problems and can be used as either an automatic rifle or a machine gun. It has seen action in every major U.S. conflict since the first Gulf War in 1991.


Although Gatling’s brainchild never brought an end to warfare as he hoped, it certainly has revolutionized the way wars are fought. Few things are capable of stopping a machine gun, but the weapon finally might have met its match with recent military program reductions and budget cuts. The Army’s next prospective heavy automatic gun program, the XM307 Airbursting Weapon System, was canceled in 2007.


Nevertheless, research continues on ever-deadlier machine guns. Metal Storm Ltd. of Australia has created the Metal Storm Stacked Projectile weapon, an electronic gun that combines the barrel and magazine, eliminating the need for a traditional firing mechanism. The design allows it to rain fire at an astonishing rate of 16,000 rounds a second. Integrated with an advanced motion-detection system, the gun can operate autonomously, raising a host of moral and ethical issues. Gatling’s vision might come true someday after all. MO


— Mark Cantrell is a North Carolina-based freelance writer. His last feature for Military Officer was “The White Mouse,” March 2012.


 


FESTIVALS [CONTINUED FROMPAGE 69]


Held each spring in Norfolk, the event — a part of the Virginia Arts Festival — brings together hundreds of musicians from across the globe. During the festival, marching bands, massed pipes and drums, and drill teams present stirring concerts featuring military music both old and new.


A shore thing
Festivals that take place near the water add an additional element of fun, and the Sea Witch Halloween & Fiddler’s Fest in Rehoboth Beach, Del., is proof. The three-day event kicks off with bike and train rides for kids, followed by a big parade with thousands of costumed participants. The event also features a pet parade, a broom-tossing contest, a 5K race, a duck-calling contest, and various beach games.


The highlight of the festival is the Sea Witch Hunt, where contestants receive 100 clues that take them all across town searching for a witch. But the clues are in no particular order, and the clock is counting down to a 5 p.m. finish. Those who have no luck in the hunt can cheer up by listening to some great fiddle and banjo music during the Fiddler’s Festival on Saturday.


Another waterborne celebration is the Gasparilla Pirate Fest, held in Tampa, Fla., each January. The week long event is a raucous tribute to José Gaspar, a 17th-century pirate whose exploits along the Florida coast have become legend. Adopting the moniker Gasparilla, the pirate and his motley band made a living attacking and robbing merchant vessels and impressing their crews into service until running afoul of a U.S. Navy frigate. Some say Gaspar bound himself with heavy chain and jumped into the ocean rather than be captured.


78 MILITARY OFFICER APRIL 2012

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