Tongans present machine gun

Waimarino Bulletin, Volume 5, Issue 27, 1 December 1987, Page 3

Tongans present machine gun

A Vickers 303 Mark I medium machine gun used profusely by the Allied Forces during World Wars One and Two w a s part of a presentatior to the School of Infantry, Army Training Group Waiouru, by the Tongan Defence Force recently. The commander of Tonga's defence services, Colonel Tupou, made a special trip to the military base to make the presentation to the school. In attendance were the Commander ATG Colonel Bestic, adjutant to the commander of the Wanganui Battalion, Col. Don McGregor and officials from the army school. The Vickers machine gun was used extensively by New Zealand forces in WWI and was one of the most lethal guns available to them. The water cooled barrel allowed for continu-

ous firing of rounds, unlike today's modern machine guns that require cooling after just 200 rounds. The gun fires 600 rounds a minute and has 27 different stoppages. They were the main weapon used by New Zealand's 27th Machine Gun Battalion during WW2, but were replaced by general purpose machine guns in the 1960s. A drawback of the Vickers was its ponderous size and weight. The gun weighs around 40 pounds even before water and ammunition have been added.

Col. Bestic said a rapport has existed between New Zealand and Tonga since WW2 and the sanguinary land battle against the Japanese at Guadal Canal. A large number of Tongan soldiers have since passed through New Zealand's defence services, with many graduating from the School of Infantry in Waiouru. The Vickers machine gun will join other relics of militaria at the entranceway into the School of Infantry's headquarters in the army camp.