MG 15

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Debris of a downed Heinkel He-111 along with a MG 15

The MG 15 was a 7.92 mm machine gun developed by Rheinmetall-Borsig before World War II as a derivative of the company's MG 30 infantry weapon.
It was used on almost all Luftwaffe bomber aircraft in the flexible-mounted defensive role.

Starting in the 1940's, the MG 15 was replaced by the Mauser 7.92 mm MG 81, MG 81Z (twin-MG 81), MG 131, 13 mm machine guns or MG 151/20 20 mm cannons. Many MG 15s were modified for infantry use as heavier weapons replaced them on Luftwaffe aircraft. Official numbers of conversions was about 17,648 by January 1, 1944, although additional conversions may have been done as well [1].

Cartridge weight was 24 grams, bullet weight 11.5 grams. Ammunition was fed by a double-drum containing 75 rounds total (not 150 as is often mistaken). This combined with a firing rate of 1250 rpm means it took about 3.6 seconds to empty the drum.

The MG 15 was used in the Japanese aircraft as the Type 98 flexible-mounted machine gun.