Madsen 20 mm cannon

Madsen 20 mm cannon

Madsen 20 mm cannon
Type Autocannon
Place of origin Denmark
Service history
Used by Denmark
Finland
Ireland
Germany
Hungary
Wars World War II
Winter War
Continuation War
Chinese Civil War
Specifications
Weight 55 kilograms (121 lb)
Length 2,500 millimetres (98 in)
Barrel length 1,200 millimetres (47 in)

Cartridge 20 x 120 mm
Caliber 20 mm
Rate of fire 350 rounds per minute
Muzzle velocity 790 metres per second (2,592 ft/s)
Effective firing range 500 metres (1,640 ft)
Maximum firing range 1,800 metres (5,906 ft)
Feed system Drum magazine
20x120 mm Madsen
Type Autocannon
Place of origin Denmark
Production history
Manufacturer Kynoch
Specifications
Rim diameter 28.9mm[1]

The 20 mm AA Machine Cannon M/38 was produced by the Danish company Dansk Industri Syndikat (Danish Industry Syndicate) - DISA - in Herlev near Copenhagen and was used by the military of Denmark in different types of mounting. This cannon was originally constructed by Colonel V. H. O. Madsen and was therefore widely known as the 20 mm Madsen Cannon. A version with a necked-out 23 mm round was also produced, generally known as the 23 mm Madsen.

The mountings were also produced by DISA in the following types:[2]

There were also a number of locally designed mounts.

This type of machine cannon was a very well functioning weapon, which was exported by DISA to several countries.

The 20 mm machine cannons of the Danish Army were responsible for knocking out eleven armoured cars and two Panzer I's during the German invasion before the order to surrender came through.[3]


Madsen cannon at Nuoli gunboat

Self-propelled Mounts

References

  1. An introduction to collecting 20 mm cannon cartridges Archived 2012-10-25 at the Wayback Machine.
  2. Jessen, Halvor (1946). Automatic Standard Arms of Modern Warfare XI. Compagnie Madsen.
  3. Gert, Lausen. "The German occupation of Denmark". Archived from the original on 2013-10-15.
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