The British Army adopted several machine guns of Czech design on the way to World War II - the BREN LMG is probably the most notable of these modifications. Another important and reliable weapon is the BESA, a medium-range machine gun for vehicles and tanks. The gun is based on the pneumatic, air-cooled, belt-fed Czech ZB vz. 37 and locally produced in the UK, licensed.
The name BESA comes from the Birmingham Small Arms Company (based in Redditch), abbreviated as "BSA", or simply "BESA". In addition to British use of it, it is also used by the Irish Armed Forces. After production began in 1939, several variants were eventually created.
The original June 1940 version became the "BESA Mk I", which included a rate selector of 450 or 750 rounds per minute. Its official name is "Gun, Machine, 7.92mm, BESA, Mark I".
Interestingly, BESA kept its original chamber for the German 7.92x57mm Mauser cartridge, rather than modifying it for the British .303 rifle cartridge. Due to the deteriorating situation in Europe and the British need for various war materiel, this was done as a stopgap measure, any captured 7.92mm ammunition could be repurposed by the British against its former master should the British confront the Germans again.
Also introduced in June 1940 was the "BESA Mk II", which added a rate-of-fire selector switch that allowed the use of rates of fire of 500 and 800 rounds per minute. The receiver was also cleaned up and a short barrel slide was added for heat dissipation.
The barrel is further sealed with a flash suppressor.
In August 1941, the "BESA Mk III" appeared as a streamlined war machine for mass production. These lack a rate selector that simplifies their manufacture and operation, and fire at a fixed rate of fire of 750 rounds per minute. With the arrival of the Mk III, all additions to the Mk II stockpile are now identified as "Mk II*".
These include the production simplifications introduced by the Mk III model.
The last BESA gun model was the August 1941 BESA Mk III*. It has no rate selector and is fixed at 450 rounds.
The BESA range of firearms in service in the UK has had a difficult period of development, delaying their eventual entry into service. Early firearms, delivered in June 1939, proved largely unusable, leading to redesigns of vests to make the firearms more practical in every way. Once freed from their confines, these weapons become completely reliable and robust in the harshest combat conditions. The UK-developed modified recoil damping action makes the launch platform more precise, and its rate-of-fire selection system (those equipped) allows the operator to work at lower speeds when working remotely and at higher speeds when working in close quarters Speed ??work.
As a result, BESA guns were used on many British and Commonwealth Army vehicles, including tanks, with a total production of 59,332.
Another related BESA weapon shape has also been validated, a chamber for a 15 x 104 mm (15 mm) cartridge, based on the Czech ZB vz. 60 heavy machine guns. About 3,218 prototypes of this type were produced, limiting mass production of WWII small arms, and these only envisioned a few vehicle types.
By the end of the war, this design was replaced by an automatic cannon, with no further development. They were finally abandoned in 1949.
- Fire Support/Suppression/Defense
- Vehicle Assembly
1,100 mm (43.31 in)
740 mm (29.13 in)
21.65 kg
iron
Gas powered; select fire (some models)
2,700 ft/s (823 m/s)
650 rounds-per-minute
Gun, Machine, 7. 92mm, BESA, Mark I - Long-form designation.
BESA Mk I - Original production model of June 1940; 450 or 750 rpm selection.
BESA Mk II - Model of June 1940; revised, simpler receiver design; sleeve added over barrel; flash suppressor added.
BESA Mk II* - Mk II guns produced after August 1941 introduction of Mk III model; simplified manufacture process of Mk III models.
BESA Mk III - Simplified mass production model of August 1941; sans rate-of-fire selector.
BESA Mk III* - Model of August 1941; rate-of-fire fixed at 450 rounds per minute.
BESA 15mm - Larger-caliber vehicle machine gun; production limited to 3,218 units.