The 🌐M249 light machine gun, formally designated as Light Machine Gun, 5.56 mm, M249, is the American adaptation of the FN Minimi, a light machine gun manufactured by the Belgian company FN Herstal. Formerly designated as the M249 Squad Automatic Weapon (SAW), it was introduced to the United States Armed Forces in 1982, partially replacing the squad automatic weapon role of the late M60 general-purpose machine gun.
The M249 fires at 700-1000 rpm, is gas operated and air-cooled, has a quick-change barrel and a folding bipod. It can be fed from both linked ammunition and STANAG magazines, like those used in the M16 and M4.
It appears in all Insurgency games, and is the default machine gun for the Security Forces.
Insurgency: Modern Infantry Combat[]
The M249 SAW is a light machine gun featured in Insurgency: Modern Infantry Combat.
[Edit] Weapons of Insurgency: Modern Infantry Combat
| ||
|---|---|---|
 United States Marine Corps
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 Iraqi Insurgents
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| Carbines | M4A1 | AKS-74U • SKS |
| Assault rifles | M16A4 | AK-47 • L1A1 SLR |
| Light machine guns | M249 SAW | RPK-74 |
| Shotguns | M1014 JSCS | TOZ-87 |
| Sniper rifles | M14 DMR | Al-Kadesiah • L42A1 |
| Pistols | M9 Pistol • MEU SOC 1911 | Makarov PM |
| Melee | Kabar | Bayonet |
Insurgency[]
The M249 is a light machine gun featured in Insurgency.
Attachments[]
| Optics |
CO-OP Only: |
| Barrel | |
| Siderail | |
| Underbarrel |
|
| Ammunition |
Tips[]
- Due to the heavy weight of the M249, as well as the aiming speed, it is not recommended for users of this weapon to take point.
- The M249's primary function should be heavy suppression, that being said friendlies should be aware of the support's position at all times.
- Due to the strong recoil the weapon produces, when firing full auto make sure you aim downwards to maximize accuracy.
- AP ammo is not necessarily a must for the M249, as its sheer firing speed will ensure a kill even for an average player (assuming your aim is not bad)
- When attacking with the M249, attaching a red dot sight will help you with your aiming, this will give you a better chance at fighting offensively and if or when you get caught off guard. Attaching the 2x red dot sight will hamper your ability to fight in close quarters combat, however this set up is particularly useful for long-range suppression or if you are in position for it, spawn camping.
- The M249's world model always has a belt, regardless of whether the weapon is empty or not.
- An animation bug is present on the M249: When inserting a new belt during reloads, sometimes the M249's belt only consists of 8 rounds of ammunition, even when there are more than 8 rounds remaining. However, when the player model closes the dust cover, the belt appears to be full-length. This bug is also present on other belt-fed machine guns in New World Interactive's other game, Day of Infamy.
Media[]
| Weapons of Insurgency | ||
|---|---|---|
 Security Forces
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 Insurgent Forces
| |
| Submachine guns | MP5K • UMP-45 | MP40 • Sterling |
| Carbines | AC-556 • Mk18 • M4A1 | M1 Carbine • SKS • AKS-74U |
| Assault rifles | M16A4 • Galil SAR | AKM • AK-74 • Galil |
| Battle rifles | L1A1 SLR • M14 EBR | FAL |
| Light machine guns | M249 | RPK |
| Shotguns | M590 | TOZ |
| Sniper rifles | M40A1 | Mosin |
| Handguns | Makarov • M45A1 • M9 | Makarov • Model 10 • M1911 |
| Melee | Knife | Khukuri |
Insurgency: Sandstorm[]
The M249 is a machine gun featured in Insurgency: Sandstorm. It is available to Security Gunners in every game mode.
The M249 is a light machine gun that is a relatively cheap and reliable choice. It shares the same cost of three credits with the M60 and the Insurgent PKM and RPK, with all working as a step up from the cheaper guns. They all give Gunners extreme suppressive capabilities for a decent price.
The M249 chambers 5.56x45mm NATO, and is able to reliably eliminate targets from a considerable distance away. The 5.56 bullet is able to travel at 915 m/s, which is faster than most of the current sniper rifles. This complements the heavy suppression role that the M249 fills. This machine gun takes the suppressive fire to the next level, with a huge box of 200 rounds, the largest capacity in the game. It fires as fast as the M4A1, at 741 RPM. This gives a huge upside over the other machine guns, just due to the fact that it has so much ammo and it fires so fast. Its capacity unfortunately cannot be extended further, but users can spend their credits elsewhere on better attachments, like scopes.
Speaking of scopes, the M249's iron sights are quite obstructive, with junk blocking peripheral vision. The little circular sight inside is the only focal point, and is small and can get lost in the clutter. Especially at the ranges that Gunners want to engage from, the clunky iron sights should be replaced with an optic, whether a low-magnification holographic sight or a magnified scope for longer ranges.
The SAW also comes with an already attached bipod, that braces the weapon when against a place to mount the weapon, like a short wall or a window. When mounted, the bipod will basically cancel out any recoil, making the gun spray a laser of bullets towards enemies. When not mounted, the gun will take a long time to raise due to its weight, and the recoil massively kicks the gun around.
With these attachments in mind, there isn't much variety when it comes to attachments, but due to the cheap cost of the M249, that really isn't much of a problem. Muzzle attachments and scopes are the only choice when it comes to the M249. Variety isn't the forte of the MGs, with the only exception being the M60E4. Adding a flash hider will do great for concealing the M249's muzzle report, something that will definitely give it away in certain situations. Even better is the suppressor, which hides both the muzzle flash and also the sound of it firing.
Overall, think of the M249 as a chunky M4A1 with a huge capacity and a lot heavier handling and recoil control.
Attachments[]
| Optics | |
| Underbarrel |
|
| Barrel | |
| Siderail |
| Weapons of Insurgency: Sandstorm | ||
|---|---|---|
 Security Forces
|
 Insurgent Forces
| |
| Submachine guns and Personal Defense Weapons | Grease Gun • MP5A5 • MP7 • Vector | Sterling • MP5A2 • Uzi • P90 |
| Carbines | G36K • Mk 18 CQBR • M4A1 • Honey Badger | SKS • AKS-74U • SG 552 • AS Val |
| Assault rifles | M16A4 • L85A2 • VHS-2 • Galil SAR • AUG A3 • QTS-11 • WCX • F2000 Tactical | M16A2 • AKM • AK-74 • Alpha AK • QBZ-03 • Galil • FAMAS F1 • QBZ-97 • AR7090 • F2000 |
| Battle rifles | Mk 17 Mod 0 • G3A3 • Mk 14 EBR • Tavor 7 • MDR | FAL • ACE 52 • M1 Garand |
| Machine guns | M249 • M60E4 • M240B • M250 | RPK • PKM • MG3 • H21 |
| Shotguns | M870 • KSG • S12K | KS-23 • TOZ-194 • US12 |
| Sniper rifles | M24 • TAC-338 • M110 SASS | Mosin-Nagant • L96A1 • SVD |
| Anti-materiel rifles | M82A1 CQ | M99 |
| Handguns | Tariq • L106A1 • M45 • PF940 • MR 73 | Welrod • Makarov • Browning HP • M1911 • M9 • Desert Eagle |
| Melee | Baton • Combat Knife • Tactical Axe | Kukri • Shiv • Handjar |
Trivia[]
General
- The bipod is mounted to the M249 by default and cannot be taken off.
- The M249 has the largest magazine and the largest maximum ammo capacity compared to any other weapon in all video games from the Insurgency series.
Insurgency
- The M249 cannot attach a suppressor in PvP games, but can in some custom theaters in Cooperative game modes.