The M30 Drilling was a survival weapon issued to Luftwaffe pilots during World War II.
Description[]
What differentiates the Drilling from a normal shotgun is that the drilling has three barrels. Two were shotgun barrels, usually 12 gauge or 16 gauge, and one was a rifle barrel with the 9.3x74mmR calibre.
The iron sights were fixed and the total weight of the M30 was about thirty-four hectograms. The M30 was expensive to manufacture and it was commonly engraved with many "artistic" designs meaning that it obviously was never meant for any real type of mass production.
History[]
An M30 Drilling being handed off to a fighter pilot.
The M30 Drilling was first assigned to Luftwaffe units in 1941 and ended production in 1942. Over 2,000 were made in that short period of time and they were mainly assigned to air crews in North Africa and the Meditarranean. Not only was the M30 designed to defend air crews once they crash landed in enemy territory, but they also helped the crew catch food until rescue arrived. It was produced entirely by the German company Sauer & Sohn.[1]
References[]
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||