Dillon Aero M134D MINIGUN

Initially, Dillon produced components to modernize the General Electric GAU-2 Minigun. The GAU-2 Minigun, also known as the M134, had been in service since the 1960’s and was suffering from a combination of innate design flaws, poor spares supply and no product support. By the time Dillon Aero began work on the project, the Minigun was on the verge of retirement. Dillon’s first product, the DAFD-2001 Feeder/Delinker was adopted by the US Military in the mid-90s. The Feeder/Delinker addressed several fundamental design and support issues and paved the way for the weapon’s rebirth. After the success of the DAFD 2001, Dillon systematically redesigned every component of the GAU-2. This multi-year effort greatly improved the weapon system’s reliability and eventually, led to the creation of an entirely new generation of Minigun, the Dillon M134D. The Dillon Minigun was accepted into service with the US Army in 2003 and was designated the M134D, replacing the earlier GAU-2C as the standard type. Six-barreled. Electrically powered. Firing rates of 3,000 rounds per minute. Available in Steel and Hybrid. Meantime between stoppages is less than 1 in 30,000 rounds fired. Service life for the M134 is greater than 1 million rounds. The Dillon Aero M134D is an electrically powered, six-barreled, Minigun with fixed firing rates of 3,000 rounds per minute. It can be powered by AC or DC power sources. The weapon is chambered in 7.62 x 51mm (NATO) with magazines available in up to 4,000 round capacities. The M134D is a modular system, allowing easy adaptation to any existing platform. This flexibility allows it to perform equally well in the Fixed Forward fire or Crew Served mode. It is simple to load and easy to maintain. With an average of 30,000 rounds between stoppages, the Dillon M134D is one of the most reliable weapons in the world. The standard Dillon Minigun fires 3,000 rounds per minute. That equals 50 rounds per second. Why is shooting fast important? Because only fast guns such as the M134D can achieve the extreme shot density needed to suppress multiple targets in compressed periods of time. More importantly, fast guns are more accurate than slower firing weapons. There are two reasons for this and both are a result of the high cyclic rate. First, Miniguns experience virtually no recoil. The M134D fires 50 rounds per second, meaning there is 1/50th of a second between each shot. Because the time between shots is so short, the M134D, on a properly engineered mount, simply moves aft with the first shot with no tendency to pitch up or yaw. This makes the weapon far more stable and easier to aim and keep on target. Secondly, in the time it takes to fire one round from an M240, four rounds are fired from the Minigun, which makes for very dense shot grouping. This also means that with four times the number of impacts in the target area, there is a four-fold reduction in the amount of time it takes for a gunner to see his hits and adjust his aim. Additionally, fast guns are more accurate when it comes to reduced error correction. When a gunner fires on a target, he must see the impacts to know exactly where the gun is aiming. As the amount of time between each impact increases, the amount of error caused by target movement or gun recoil movement also increases. The amount of error can grow quite large due to helicopter movement, gun movement and target movement. As the range to the target increases to 100 meters or more, the problem becomes severe. However, by increasing the number of shots per second, the amount of time between each observed impact is greatly reduced. But just how much more accurate is the M134D? Four times the number of shots should equal four times the number of hits, but the M134D is, on average, nine times more likely to score hits. This is true because of the combined effects of high rate of fire, extremely dense shot grouping, and high weapon stability. Since Miniguns are more effective and more reliable than conventional “gas operated” or “recoil operated” guns, fewer weapons are required to cover a target area. Fewer guns mean fewer bodies to man them and fewer platforms to support them. This translates into big cost savings. The Dillon M134D Minigun is a true force multiplier. On land, the M134D is currently deployed worldwide for convoy escort, border patrol, and VIP protection. In the naval role, Miniguns are employed in the force protection role on the US and foreign blue water and riverine fleet and as fire support weapons on Special Operations boats including hovercraft. However, it is in helicopters that the M134D is most often used. It is now customizable to all military/commercial helicopters. The M134D or component systems are currently employed by all branches of the U.S. military and across more than 30 countries.