360 degree machine gun

Hello people

I was doing some aircraft concept designs, when I suddenly got a brilliant idea. A new modern version of the B17 bomber belly gun. You know, These,


With todays technology it could be almost fully automated and all the gunner have to do is fire after a appropriate target have been selected. When I came up with idea I was thinking of fighter jets. They still have machine guns on the nose, if they're not more like cannons, either way, it's only pointing forward. Even though dogfights are rare these days because of long distance air to air missiles it'll happen sooner or later and having one of these would more or less remove the possibility of having someone on your six, or anywhere else for that matter as it could go 360 around.

Only problem I can think of is aerodynamics but I'm sure there's solutions to it. For example "folding in" the gun when it's not in use.

Comments, Thoughts?

Well...as you said....with air to air missiles there really is no need for that. Also....if it is a belly gun then you limit your ability to fire to only that which is below you. This could be simply avoided if the attacking aircraft came from above.

I know nothing about fighter jets or air warfare at all, but my guess is there is a reason for not having these......and my reasoning would be that you would never be close enough to use them in an air to air situation except in some very extenuating circumstances, and even then the cost to outfit these would have to far outweigh the benefit of having it.

Just a couple thoughts on it.

reply to post by Drapan


You realise, of course - you could probably use one of those to shoot air-to-air missiles?

reply to post by Anti-Tyrant


That's even better! Was stuck thinking about machine guns/cannons.

As far as I'm aware, fighter pilots train a lot for dog fights so this wouldn't be that useless. Dog fights do still happen even though they're rare and this would certainly give the upper hand in such situation. Equipping it with air to air or air to ground missiles would certainly be great as well.

Talking about air to air missiles, weren't the Russians developing missiles that shoots out from the back?

reply to post by Vasa Croe


Hmm you're right. But placing it far back on the top of the aircraft might solve that problem. The top is covered and if they come from beneath you "simply" climb as steep as possible so the gun sees whoever was coming at you.

The system might also have dual purpose, Destroying incoming missiles kinda like those guns used on ships. It would have to be more precise though then those so it doesn't burn all the ammo by destroying 1 missile (by building a wall of projectiles as the ship anti missile systems do).

Well in that respect...the wall of metal.....you should take a look at Metal Storm. Would be similar to what you are thinking of and could be mounted to a fighter I would imagine, or at least a similar configuration of the sort.

www.metalstorm.com...

reply to post by Drapan

I am fairly certain that the V-22 Osprey is slated to get a turretted machinegun in the near future.
Osprey may get turret-mounted machine gun: Navy Times, Oct.2007

reply to post by Vasa Croe


By a wall of projectiles this what was I was thinking: Phalanx CIWS.

But using air burst rounds on that Metal Storm weapon that would be kinda effective as well against both aircraft's and missiles. If it can be timed precisely enough that is.

BAe had an idea like this 20 years ago for a project called SABA (Small Agile Battlefield Aircraft) here are two designs which feature an underbelly rotating turret for use against AAM's and Helicopters.

reply to post by waynos


That's really coo, I like the second one in particularl. I know I couldn't have been the first with this idea. Is there any more info on them? Didn't find anything while google:ing

In today's world, there's no need for machine guns mounted on a fighter. Yes they still have them but rarely used. Air-to-Air missiles are the way to go. There is better accuracy with a missile than there is with a machine gun.

reply to post by Drapan


There's not a lot of info out there on these projects but the best source is the book British Secret Projects : Jet Bombers since 1949 by Tony Buttler