M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage

M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage.

M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage is a variant of the M3 Half-Track mounting quad .50 Caliber Browning M2 HB anti-aircraft machine-guns. The M45 Quadmount with four Browning M2 machine-guns had a theoretical rate of fire of 2400 round per minute which proved very effective in anti-aircraft use. Having been superseded by the M42 «Duster» in 1953, the M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage was withdrawn from US Army service in 1958, although it continued to service in other armed forces until the 1970s.

Available Scale Model Kits

  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage, 1:16 Trumpeter 00911
  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage (olive drab), 1:18 21st Century 10106S1
  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage (2-colour camo), 1:18 21st Century 10106S2
  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage, 1:32 Dragon 6381
  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage, 1:32 Unimax 81005
  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage, 1:32 Unimax 81303
  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage, 1:32 InAir IN-EZTA1C
  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage, 1:32 Tamiya 35081
    • Photoetched parts for Tamiya M16 Halftrack, 1:35 Eduard 35387
  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage, 1:43 Atlas Editions 2011
  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage (25th AAA Btn, Korea), 1:50 Corgi US60415
  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage (US Army), 1:72 CDC 3153
  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage (British Army), 1:72 CDC 3155
  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage (French Army), 1:72 CDC 3154
  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage, 1:72 Unimax 85043
  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage mit Quad .50 AA, 1:76 Matchbox 40078
  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage mit Quad .50 AA, 1:76 Revell (Matchbox) 03153
  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage, 1:87 ROCO 279
  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage, 15 mm Old Glory CD224
  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage, 15 mm Forged in Battle A-65
  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage, 1:285 GHQ US55
  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage, 1:300 Heroics & Ros US33

Technical Specifications

  • M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage (MGMC)
  • Motor: White 160AX 6-cylinder, 128 hp, gasoline engine
  • Speed: 64 km/h on roads
  • Range: 282 km
  • Length: 6180 mm
  • Width: 2220 mm
  • Height: 2620 mm
  • Ground Clearance: 284 mm
  • Weight: 10.2 t
  • Armament: quad .50 Caliber Browning M2 HB Machine Gun with 5000 rounds
  • Crew: Commander, Driver, Gunner, Loader (2)

Historical Employment

  • US Army, 1943–1958
  • Belgian Army
  • Britisch Army
  • French Army
  • German Bundeswehr (M16A1), 1956–1962

In 1956, the German Bundeswehr received M16A1 Multiple Gun Motor Carriages based on the standard M3 Half-Track with rear door, but lacking the hinged armoured hull panels of purpose-built M16s. A 35 cm spacer ring was used to allow the M45 Quadmount to fire over the higher hull compartment walls of the M3 Half-Track.

Bibliography

  • Anweiler, Karl: Rad- und Kettenfahrzeuge der Bundeswehr.
  • Gau, Lutz-Reiner: Deutsche Militärfahrzeuge. Bundeswehr und NVA.
  • Plonski & Szczerbicki: Multiple Gun Motor Carriage M16 (2010)

US Army Miniatures of World War Two