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The M61A1 Vulcan cannon is a six-barrel 20mm gun capable of firing 6,600 rounds per minute. Its operation is based upon the principle used in the rapid-firing gun invented by Richard J. Gatling in the 1860s. The six rotating barrels, firing one at a time, permit a high rate of fire while at the same time reducing the problem of barrel wear and heat generation. The gun can be driven electrically, hydraulically, or by a ram-air turbine. The Vulcan has equipped such USAF aircraft as the F-104, F-105 B/D/F, F-15, F-16, A-7D, F-111 A, F-4E, B-58, and B-52H. A ram-air driven M61A1 is the heart of the SUU-16/A external gun pod that can be carried under the wings of high-performance aircraft lacking internally mounted guns. The Vulcan is one of the USAF weapons that served in Operation Desert Storm

The 6-barreled M61A1 Vulcan 20-mm Gatling gun has been the standard internal gun armament on most US combat aircraft for over 30 years. (The self-powered GAU 4 is virtually identical.)

The M61 operates on the Gatling principle. 6, 20-mm barrels mounted on a geared rotor, driven by a 20-hp electric motor.  Firing only once per revolution reduces each barrel's rate of fire to below that of most single-barrel revolver cannon.   The use of external power eliminates jamming due to a misfired round.

In the F-106's double-ended, hydraulically driven link less feed system, rounds were stored along longitudinal rails within the drum and moved to the gun end by a helix. A rotating scoop disc assembly transfers the rounds to a rotating retaining ring. The rounds travel partway around the ring to the exit unit, which puts the rounds into the chute that feeds the gun. Empty cases are returned to the drum for storage.

 

General characteristics
Type	Cannon Gatling
Contractor	General Electric
Range	1 mile	1.6 km
Caliber	0.79 in	20mm
Weight	255 lb	102 kg
Mounted	Internally
Muzzle velocity	3,400 ft/s	3,730 km/h
Rate of fire	6,600 rounds per minute
Magazine capacity	515