The M2 also saw widespread use during the war by Britain and her Commonwealth nations including Australia, Canada, South Africa and New Zealand. These were employed in similar ways and with great success to the point that the Browning design largely replaced the British BESA series machine guns then in use. In the British Army nomenclature, the weapon received the L2A1, L6, L11, LO21, L111 and M3M designations to mark their various types in service. The Soviet Army received some 3,100 M2s through Lend-Lease during the war.
After the war, the M2 maintained a very healthy existence and saw use through an increasing user base the world over. After World War 2, the M2 was in combat with American forces once again during the Korean War of the early 1950s as well as during the Vietnam War of the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. It also went on to see extensive actions in other notable wars elsewhere and in less publicized conflicts. In some instances, troopers found the M2 suitable for the long-range sniper role and modified their M2s with appropriate optics. This modification was used to good effect in the Vietnam War by US Marine Carlos Hathcock (1942-1999).
Despite its World War 1 origins, the excellent Browning M2 remains in widespread use today and is/has been produced by General Dynamics and US Ordnance in the United States as well as Fabrique National in Belgium and Manroy Engineering of the UK. It is estimated that some 3 million M2 units have been manufactured since 1921. Many of the newer generation heavy machine guns developed by US allies owe much to the tried-and-true design that was the M2 Browning developed by master gunsmith John Browning and proven by war.
Beyond World War 2, Korea and Vietnam, the M2 has been featured in the 1st Indochina War, the Suez Crisis, the Six Day War, the Yom Kipper War, the Cambodian Civil War, the Cambodian war with Vietnam, the Falklands War, the South African Border War, the US invasion of Panama, the 1991 Gulf War, the Somali Civil War of the 1990s, the Yugoslav Wars, the 2001 US invasion of Afghanistan and, most recently, in the 2003 US invasion of Iraq.
The M2HB's formal designation is "Browning Machine Gun, Caliber .50, M2, HB". The HB model has seen service since 1933.
The .50 BMG (12.7x99mm NATO) cartridge has proven useful in the long-range sniper role when utilized in anti-material rifle guises. This is embodied perfectly by the Barrett series of heavy rifles deployed by the United States and others. The anti-material rifle has since become a standardized part of many armies around the world for its effectiveness in dealing with enemy personnel and armor at range.
In October of 2010, the US Army formally created the M2A1 designation in response to an improved form of the M2 Browning. The M2A1 initiative was born out of the failed XM806 program of 2012, a General Dynamics heavy-caliber (50 BMG) development being considered for replacing the original Browning design. The M2A1 brings about use of a new flash suppressor, revised bolt assembly, manual trigger block safety, a Quick-Change Barrel (QCB) feature and an optional carrying handle. Existing US Army M2HB machine guns will undergo the modification to the new M2A1 standard which number some 45,000 individual units.
Content ©MilitaryFactory.com; No Reproduction Permitted.
