KPV Heavy Machine Gun - Motor Torpedo Boat Armament

Motor Torpedo Boat Armament

In 1964, amongst other small craft combatants, the North Vietnamese Navy had 12 P4 Motor Torpedo Boats in their inventory. On 2 August 1964, three P4s belonging to NVN Torpedo Boat Squadron 135 attacked the US destroyer USS Maddox in the Tonkin Gulf. The Maddox fired over 280 5 inch (127mm) shells at the charging boats, thus preventing them from discharging their 550 lb TNT armed torpedoes within the necessary 1,000 yard effective range. All six torpedoes missed. However, as the torpedo boats were moving at nearly 52 knots (96 km/h), they commenced to duel the destroyer with their 14.5mm heavy machineguns, scoring only one hit on the US warship in the process. At the time of the "Tonkin Gulf Incident", US identification manuals described the P4 as being equipped with 25mm guns, thus identifying the spent projectile (as well as in after action reports) as 25mm instead of the actual 14.5mm caliber bullet.

As the duel between the destroyer and torpedo boats ended, and each departed in opposite directions, 4 F8 Crusaders from the aircraft carrier USS Ticonderoga attacked the retreating boats. The Crusaders fired Zuni rockets and 20mm cannons, while the 3 boats replied with their 14.5mm machineguns. The jets reported leaving one boat in sinking condition (it limped back to base), and one F8 was heavily damaged, which was reported as shot down by the NVN, but in fact also limped back to its carrier.

The 14.5mm marine pedestal machine gun mount (14.5mm MTPU) is intended for combat against armoured surface, coast and air targets. It is mounted on decks of boats and can defeat surface and coast targets with a range of 3,000 meters horizontally and 2,000 meters vertically against low flying planes.