Weapons in the Vietnam War

(M-16 and The M-60) Melanie TullochMr. Chuimento

Humanities 2

Weapons in the Vietnam war was the most effective way of fighting combat during war. Fighting by hand was not the way to go due to everyone coming towards you.

Thesis statement

The M60 was one of the most feared weapons in the Vietnam War, because it was capable of firing so far and through almost any substance, and with a huge bullet. (Alex)

The M60 shot as far as 3,280 ft and shot at 550rds/min.

The M60 was one of the top 10 weapons also used during the Vietnam War because it was able to be taken anywhere during combat.

(M60)

The m60 was used anywhere it needed to be. It was used on PBR, on helicopters and other places it was necessary to be placed. It had a hefty range of fire to an area or designated target. (Alex)

The m60 had a nickname called “the pig”( Alex)

They nicknamed it the pig due to it being so heavy. It normally weighed about 21 pounds. Two to Three men had to operate it because of its size.

Since the m60 was used mainly during every battle, they made more versions of it for more accuracy and better to handle.

The m16 was a durable and light gun used during this time. It shot at a good distance and was preferred to be used during the Vietnam War (Kyle williams)

(m16)

The m16 was 3 feet long and had a black plastic wrap which made it a stylish rifle at the time. It used light metal and weighed at least 8 pounds.

The m16 showed its great advantages used by the US army against the ak-47 used by the soviets. (Bielakowski, Alexander M.)

M16

Even though the ak47 had a thicker bullet than the m16, the m16 had a more accurate shot than the ak-47

“The U.S.-made M-16 rifle was redesigned in 1966 to perform better in the wet, dirty conditions that prevailed in ground combat during the Vietnam War, and it became the weapon most commonly associated with U.S. troops in the conflict.” (History.com)

Since the m-16 was replaced by the m-14 due to lighter and better efficiency of the weapon, the m-16 was used during most combats during the Vietnam war time period

“51% of deaths and 16% of wounds were caused by small arms fire. The higher rate in Vietnam was contributed to the high velocity rapid fire weapons such as the AK47 and captured M16s.” (General statistics)

The M-16 was one of the top 10 weapons used in the Vietnam war. To show effectiveness of weapons in Vietnam war most kills were made by small arms fire.

“During the Vietnam War, the m60 underwent a dozen or more modification. (alex)

Alex, Dan. "M60 GPMG General Purpose Machine Gun." Global Firepower. Military Factory, 1/25. Web. 10 Jun 2012. <http://www.militaryfactory.com/smallarms/detail.asp?smallarms_id=122>.

Bielakowski, Alexander M. "rifles, military use of." In Tucker, Spencer C., gen. ed. Encyclopedia of American Military History. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2003. American History Online. Facts On File, Inc. <http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE52&iPin=EMHIII0176&SingleRecord=True> (accessed June 10, 2012).

"General Statistics Vietnam War." 103fieldbatteryraa. 103 field battery raa, n.d. Web. 10 Jun 2012. <http://www.103fieldbatteryraa.net/documents/74.html>.

Kyle Williams, . "Vietnam War Weapons." Military Factory. N.p., 2011. Web. 10 Jun 2012. <http://www.militaryfactory.com/vietnam/vietnam_war_weapons.asp>.

"Vietnam War Weapons." . History, 1996. Web. 10 Jun 2012. <http://www.history.com/topics/weapons-of-the-vietnam-war>.

Works Cited