New Chain Gun Aims To Counter UAS And Ground Threats

Defence firm Northrop Grumman has just launched a new dual-feed version of its Bushmaster chain gun designed to fend off both drones and ground threats.

In a press statement released yesterday (Wednesday) the American multinational corporation hailed the new weapon as "the first medium-calibre chain gun in the world to offer a dual feed."

The new functionality means the next-generation M230 Link Fed (M230LF) Bushmaster Chain Gun can instantly switch between two belts which can be loaded with different kinds of ammunition to combat differing threats.

Operators can "seamlessly" address targets that require different 30x113mm ammunition types at the flick of a switch. Typically, proximity-fuzed rounds would be fired against enemy Uncrewed Aerial Systems (UAS) such as drones, while high-explosive anti-armour munitions would be more effective when fired at enemy vehicles.

As per the press statement the new chain gun is at "Technology Readiness Level 6" meaning it is ready to undergo live-firing demonstrations for potential customers; these are currently scheduled to take place in early 2025.

The firm's armament systems vice president Dave Fine extolled the virtues of the new weapon's flexibility, commenting: "Using advanced technology combined with five decades of battle-proven experience, this next-generation cannon will empower operators to quickly respond to threats.”

The dual-feed M230LF weighs roughly the same as the the existing single-feed M230LF and about 60% of the parts used by the weapons are the same. The company says it plans to continue producing single and dual-feed versions of the gun side by side.

The M230 chain gun is a widely-used electrically driven automatic cannon in use since the 1970s. Versions are mounted on Apache helicopters, as well as Oshkosh All Terrain Vehicles (ATVs), and some Stryker Armoured Fighting Vehicles (AFVs).

The U.S. has also supplied M230LF chain guns mounted on civilian trucks to the Ukraine to help boost its CUAS capabilities.

• You can read more details about the new weapon on the Northrop Grumman website