|Lebanese Civil War{{cite book |title=Technicals: Non-Standard Tactical Vehicles from the Great Toyota War to modern Special Forces |series=New Vanguard 257 |first=Leigh |last=Neville |date=19 Apr 2018 |isbn=9781472822512 |publisher=Osprey Publishing |page=15 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mGlPDwAAQBAJ |access-date=25 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181026064443/https://books.google.fr/books?id=mGlPDwAAQBAJ |archive-date=26 October 2018 |url-status=live}}

|Angolan Civil War{{cite book |chapter= Executive Outcomes Defeats UNITA |title=Mercenaries in Asymmetric Conflicts |first=Scott |last= Fitzsimmons |date=November 2012 |isbn=9781107026919 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sZfGYsrEIBEC |page=217 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |doi=10.1017/CBO9781139208727.006}}

|Cambodian-Vietnamese War

|Western Sahara War{{cite magazine |language = it |title = Il contenzioso del sahara occidentale fra passato e presente |url = https://www.difesa.it/InformazioniDellaDifesa/periodico/periodico_2012/Documents/R4_2012/50_59_R4_2012.pdf |author = Francesco Palmas |issue = 4 |year = 2012 |pages = 50–59 |newspaper = Informazioni della Difesa|access-date = 2018-06-12 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180612141151/https://www.difesa.it/InformazioniDellaDifesa/periodico/periodico_2012/Documents/R4_2012/50_59_R4_2012.pdf |archive-date = 2018-06-12 |url-status = live}}

|Afghanistan conflict (1978–present)

|Sino-Vietnamese War

|Chadian–Libyan War{{sfn|Neville|2018|p=16}}

|1979 Kurdish rebellion in Iran

|Iran–Iraq War

|Second Sudanese Civil War

|Sri Lankan Civil War

|The Troubles

|First and Second Liberian Civil Wars

|Somali Civil War{{sfn|Neville|2018|p=24}}

|KDPI insurgency (1989–1996)

|Tuareg rebellion (1990–1995){{cite book |url=http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/publications/by-type/yearbook/small-arms-survey-2005.html |chapter-url=http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/A-Yearbook/2005/en/Small-Arms-Survey-2005-Chapter-06-EN.pdf |chapter=Sourcing the Tools of War: Small Arms Supplies to Conflict Zones |title=Small Arms Survey 2005: Weapons at War |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2005 |author=Small Arms Survey |author-link=Small Arms Survey |page=166 |isbn=978-0-19-928085-8 |access-date=2018-08-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180830004838/http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/publications/by-type/yearbook/small-arms-survey-2005.html |archive-date=2018-08-30 |url-status=dead}}

|Gulf War

|Yugoslav Wars

|Rwandan Civil War{{cite web | url=https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/rwandan-government-soldiers-fire-12-june-1994-heavy-news-photo/461377381 | title=Rwandan government soldiers fire 12 June 1994 heavy artillery at }}

|First and Second Chechen Wars{{Sfn|Neville|2018|p=24}}

|Kargil War

|Operation Enduring Freedom

|Iraq War{{sfn|Neville|2018|p=30}}

|Cambodian–Thai border dispute

|First Libyan Civil War{{sfn|Neville|2018|p=35}}

|Syrian Civil War{{sfn|Neville|2018|p=37}}

|Operation Linda Nchi

|Northern Mali conflict

|War in Iraq (2013–2017){{cite web |title=ISOF Arms & Equipment Part 3 – Machine Guns |url=http://armamentresearch.com/isof-arms-equipment-part-3-machine-guns/ |first=Miles |last=Vining |date=May 7, 2018 |website=armamentresearch.com |access-date=October 1, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180925020240/http://armamentresearch.com/isof-arms-equipment-part-3-machine-guns/ |archive-date=September 25, 2018 |url-status=live}}

|Second Libyan Civil War

|Russo-Ukrainian war

|Yemeni Civil War (2014–present){{sfn|Neville|2018|p=38}}

|Conflict in Najran, Jizan and Asir

|Tigray War

|Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip (2023–present)

}}

| designer = Vasily Degtyaryov
Georgi Shpagin

| design_date = 1938

| manufacturer = Tula Arms Plant

| unit_cost = US$2,250 (2012)

| production_date = 1938–1980 (Soviet Union)

| number = 1,000,000

| variants = DShK 38/46
Type 54

| weight = {{convert|34|kg|lboz|abbr=on}} (gun only) {{convert|157|kg|lboz|abbr=on}} on wheeled mounting

| length = {{convert|1625|mm|ftin|abbr=on}}

| part_length = {{convert|1070|mm|abbr=on|1}}

| cartridge = 12.7×108mm
12.7×99mm NATO (Romania){{cite web|url=http://umcugir.ro/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/detalii-tehnice.pdf|title=Cal.12.7 x 99 mm Machine Gun|work=Cugir Arms Factory}}

| action = Gas-operated, flapper locking

| rate = 600 rounds/min

| velocity = {{convert|850| m/s|abbr=on}}

| range = {{convert|2,000| m|yd|abbr=on}}

| max_range = {{convert|2,500| m|yd|abbr=on}}

| feed = 50 round belt

| sights = Iron/optical

}}

The DShK M1938 (Cyrillic: ДШК, for {{langx|ru|Дегтярёва-Шпагина крупнокалиберный|translit=Degtyaryova-Shpagina krupnokaliberny|lit=Degtyaryov–Shpagin large-calibre|links=no}}) is a Soviet heavy machine gun. The weapon may be vehicle mounted or used on a tripod or wheeled carriage as a heavy infantry machine gun. The DShK's name is derived from its original designer, Vasily Degtyaryov, and Georgi Shpagin, who later improved the cartridge feed mechanism. It is sometimes nicknamed Dushka (a dear or beloved person) in Russian-speaking countries, from the abbreviation.{{Cite book |last=Green |first=Michael |title=Red Army Weapons of the Second World War |publisher=Pen and Sword |year=2022 |pages=25}}

Specifications

The DShK is a belt-fed machine gun firing the 12.7×108mm cartridge, and uses a butterfly trigger. Firing at 600 rounds per minute, it has an effective range of {{Convert|1+1/2|mi|km|order=flip|abbr=on}}, and can penetrate up to 20 mm of armor up to a range of 500 m. The DShK has two "spider web" ring sights for use against aircraft. It is used by infantry on tripod mounts or deployed with a two-wheeled mounting and a single-sheet armor-plate shield. It is also mounted on tanks and armored vehicles for use against infantry and aircraft; nearly all Soviet-designed tanks with roof or cupola mounts for heavy machine-guns prior to the T-64 use the DShK.{{sfn|Willbanks|2004|p=134}}

History

File:12,7-мм станковый пулемёт ДШК образца 1938 года (3-1).jpg, Saint Petersburg]]

Requiring a heavy machine gun similar to the M2 Browning, development of the DShK began in the Soviet Union in 1929 and the first design was finalised by Vasily Degtyaryov in 1931.{{Cite web|last=Roblin|first=Sebastien|date=2018-11-10|title=How a Deadly Russian World War II .50 Caliber Machine Gun Blasted its Mark into History|url=https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/how-deadly-russian-world-war-ii-50-caliber-machine-gun-blasted-its-mark-history-35762|access-date=2021-12-03|website=The National Interest|language=en}}{{Cite book|last=Willbanks|first=James|title=Machine Guns: An Illustrated History of Their Impact|publisher=ABC-CLIO|year=2004|pages=200}} The initial design used the same gas operation from the Degtyaryov machine gun, and used a 30 round drum magazine, but had a poor rate of fire. Georgy Shpagin revised the design by changing it to a belt-fed with a rotary-feed cylinder, and the new machine gun began production in 1938 as the DShK 1938.{{sfn|Willbanks|2004|p=109}} The DShK and the American M2 Browning are the only .50 caliber machine guns designed prior to World War II that remain in service to the present day.{{Cite book |last=Rottman |first=Gordon |title=Browning .50-caliber Machine Guns |publisher=Osprey Publishing |year=2010 |pages=72}}

During World War II, the DShK was used by the Red Army, with a total of 9,000 produced during the war. It was used mostly in anti-aircraft roles on vehicles such as the GAZ-AA truck, IS-2 tank, ISU-152 self-propelled artillery, and the T-40 amphibious tank. Similar to the PM M1910 Maxim, when deployed against infantry, the DShK was used with a two-wheeled trolley, with which the machine gun weighed a total of {{Convert|346|lb|kg}}.{{cite web|title=Finnish Army 1918–1945: Antiaircraft Machineguns|url=http://www.jaegerplatoon.net/AAMG.htm|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129104900/http://www.jaegerplatoon.net/AAMG.htm|archive-date=29 November 2014|access-date=15 December 2014}} In 1944, a much cheaper muzzle brake patterned after the Polish Wz. 35 anti-tank rifle was introduced instead of the complicated early design.{{cite web | url=https://sadefensejournal.com/dushka-the-soviet-fifty-caliber/2/ | title=Dushka: The Soviet Fifty Caliber – Page 2 – Small Arms Defense Journal }} After 1945, the DShK was exported widely to other countries in the Eastern Bloc.{{Cite web|last=Larson|first=Caleb|date=2021-02-03|title=The Soviet DShK Heavy Machine Gun Won't Go Away|url=https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/soviet-dshk-heavy-machine-gun-won%E2%80%99t-go-away-177565|access-date=2021-12-03|website=The National Interest|language=en}}

In 1946, an improved variant was produced, with a revised muzzle and feeding system. Named the DShK 38/46 or DShK-M, over a million were produced from 1946-1980. The gun was also revised to become more reliable, and easier to manufacture.{{sfn|Willbanks|2004|p=121}} The new DShK was produced under license in Pakistan, Iran, Yugoslavia, Romania, Poland{{cite web | url=https://milmag.pl/en/65-years-of-armament-production-in-tarnow/ | title=65 Years of Armament Production in Tarnow | date=4 September 2020 }} and Czechoslovakia. Czechoslovak variant, most often encountered on quads, is visually distinguishable by a rectangular muzzle brake.{{cite web | url=https://sadefensejournal.com/dushka-the-soviet-fifty-caliber/4/ | title=Dushka: The Soviet Fifty Caliber – Page 4 – Small Arms Defense Journal }} China produced their own variant of the design, designated the Type 54.{{cite book|author=Small Arms Survey|url=http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/publications/by-type/yearbook/small-arms-survey-2008.html|title=Small Arms Survey 2008: Risk and Resilience|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2008|isbn=978-0-521-88040-4|page=21|chapter=Light Weapons: Products, Producers, and Proliferation|author-link=Small Arms Survey|access-date=2018-08-30|chapter-url=http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/A-Yearbook/2008/en/Small-Arms-Survey-2008-Chapter-01-EN.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180830174225/http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/publications/by-type/yearbook/small-arms-survey-2008.html|archive-date=2018-08-30|url-status=dead}}

After World War II, DShKs were used widely by communist forces in Vietnam, starting with the Battle of Dien Bien Phu in 1954. While not as powerful as anti-aircraft cannons, the DShK was easier to smuggle through Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. DShKs were a major threat to American aircraft in the Vietnam War, and of the 7,500 helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft lost during the war, most were destroyed by anti-aircraft guns including DShK.

In June 1988, during The Troubles, a British Army Westland Lynx helicopter was hit 15 times by two Provisional IRA DShKs smuggled from Libya, and forced to crash-land near Cashel Lough Upper, south County Armagh.Harnden, Toby (2000).Bandit Country: The IRA and South Armagh. Coronet Books, pp. 360–361 {{ISBN|0-340-71737-8}}

Rebel forces utilized DShKs in the Syrian civil war, often mounting the gun on cars. In 2012, the Syrian government claimed to have destroyed 40 such technicals on a highway in Aleppo and six in Dael.{{cite web|url=http://sana.sy/eng/337/2012/09/22/442908.htm|title=الوكالة العربية السورية للأنباء|access-date=15 December 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131112141048/http://sana.sy/eng/337/2012/09/22/442908.htm|archive-date=12 November 2013}}

The DShK began to be partially replaced in the Soviet Union by the NSV machine gun in 1971, and the Kord machine gun in 1998. The DShK remains in service, although it is no longer produced.{{sfn|Willbanks|2004|p=134}}

The weapon was used by Ukrainian forces in the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine to shoot down Iranian-made Shahed-136 drones. The DShKs are fitted with a searchlight when attacking drones, which MANPADS have been unable to destroy. As many of the DShKs have been left over from the Soviet Union, they have been both cost-effective and one of the most reliable methods of destroying drones.{{Cite web |title= Ukraine Uses Powerful Searchlights & Anti-Aircraft Guns To Neutralize Russian Geran-2 UAVs Used During Night Strikes |url= https://eurasiantimes.com/ukraine-uses-powerful-searchlights-anti-aircraft-guns-to-neutralize/?amp | author= Parth Satam |access-date=2023-01-06 | date= January 5, 2023 |website=www. eurasiantimes.com |language=en}}{{Cite web |title= Inside Ukraine's Desperate Fight Against Drones With MiG-29 Pilot "Juice" |url= https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/inside-ukraines-desperate-fight-against-drones-with-mig-29-pilot-juice | author= THOMAS NEWDICK |access-date=2023-01-06 | date= December 13, 2022 |website= www.thedrive.com |language=en}}{{Cite web |title= To Stop Killer Drones, Ukraine Upgrades Ancient Flak Guns With Consumer Cameras And Tablets |url= https://www.forbes.com/sites/sebastienroblin/2022/12/11/to-stop-killer-drones-ukraine-upgrades-ancient-flak-guns-with-consumer-cameras-and-tablets/ | author= Sebastien Roblin |access-date=2023-01-06 | date= December 11, 2022 |website= www.forbes.com |language=en}}

Variants

DShK-38: the original version of the DShK.

DShK 38/46: a modernized version of the DShK 38 introduced in 1946. The weapon is commonly referred to simply as the DShKM.

Vz.38/46: a Czechoslovakian license version of the DShKM whose feeding mechanism was modified to allow the breech to be loaded from left or right and allow twin or quad mount.

Type 54: a copy of the DShKM illegally produced by Norinco of China, which continues to be manufactured under Norinco's license in Pakistan and Iran.

MGD-12.7: a Type 54 variant produced by Iran.

Users

File:DShK Users.png

{{flag|Afghanistan}}{{cite book |editor1-first=Richard D. |editor1-last=Jones |editor2-first=Leland S. |editor2-last=Ness |title=Jane's Infantry Weapons 2009/2010 |date=January 27, 2009 |edition=35th |publisher=Jane's Information Group |location=Coulsdon |isbn=978-0-7106-2869-5}}
{{flag|Albania}} "DShKM" locally produced from a Chinese copy.
{{flag|Algeria}}
{{flag|Angola}}
{{flag|Armenia}}
{{flag|Azerbaijan}}
{{flag|Bangladesh}} Type 54.
{{flag|Belarus}}
{{flag|Bulgaria}}
{{flag|Burkina Faso}}{{cite journal|journal=Revista Defensa |issue=495–496|date=July 2019|first=Erwan de |last=Cherisey|title=El batallón de infantería "Badenya" de Burkina Faso en Mali - Noticias Defensa En abierto|url=https://www.defensa.com/en-abierto/batallon-infanteria-badenya-burkina-faso-mali|language=es}}
{{flag|Burundi}}{{cite web |author=Thierry Vircoulon |url=http://blog.crisisgroup.org/africa/burundi/2015/10/02/insights-from-the-burundian-crisis-i-an-army-divided-and-losing-its-way/ |title=Insights from the Burundian Crisis (I): An Army Divided and Losing its Way |publisher=International Crisis Group |date=2014-10-02 |access-date=2017-06-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170521151808/http://blog.crisisgroup.org/africa/burundi/2015/10/02/insights-from-the-burundian-crisis-i-an-army-divided-and-losing-its-way/ |archive-date=2017-05-21 |url-status=dead }}
{{flag|Cambodia}}
{{flag|Cameroon}}{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-30623199|title=Cameroon air strikes on Boko Haram|work=BBC News|date=29 December 2014|access-date=19 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180430161736/http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-30623199|archive-date=30 April 2018|url-status=live}}
{{flag|Cape Verde}}
{{flag|Central African Republic}}
{{flag|Chad}}
{{flag|Chile}}Gander, Terry J.; Hogg, Ian V. Jane's Infantry Weapons 1995/1996. Jane's Information Group; 21 edition (May 1995). {{ISBN|978-0-7106-1241-0}}.
{{flag|China}}: Produced DShKM variant Type 54.
{{flag|Congo-Brazzaville}}
{{flag|Congo-Kinshasa}}
{{flag|Cuba}}
{{flag|Cyprus}}
{{flag|Czech Republic}}
{{flag|Egypt}}
{{flag|Equatorial Guinea}}
{{flag|Eritrea}}
{{flag|Ethiopia}}
{{flag|Finland}}
{{flag|Georgia}}
{{flag|Ghana}}
{{flag|Guinea}}
{{flag|Guinea-Bissau}}
{{flag|Hungary}}
{{flag|Indonesia}}
{{flag|Iran}}: Manufactured DShKM variant named MGD 12.7.{{cite web|url=http://en.calameo.com/read/000127853fed679f5ecec|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120709233048/http://en.calameo.com/read/000127853fed679f5ecec|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 9, 2012|title=G3 Defence Magazine August 2010|work=calameo.com|access-date=15 December 2014}}{{sfn|Neville|2018|p=9}}
{{flag|Iraq}} called the "Doshka" by Iraqis.
{{flag|Iraqi Kurdistan}}{{cite web|author=NRT |url=http://www.nrttv.com/EN/Details.aspx?Jimare=11913 |title=Peshmerga Ministry: There will be no withdraw from liberated areas |publisher=NRT TV |date=2017-01-25 |access-date=2017-06-25}}
{{flag|Israel}}
{{flag|India}} Captured during Kargil War.{{citation needed|date=August 2018}}
{{flag|Côte d'Ivoire}}{{cite report|language=fr|title=Enquête nationale sur les armes légères et de petit calibre en Côte d'Ivoire: les défis du contrôle des armes et de la lutte contre la violence armée avant la crise post-électorale|first=Savannah|last=de Tessières|publisher=UNDP, Commission Nationale de Lutte contre la Prolifération et la Circulation Illicite des Armes Légères et de Petit Calibre and Small Arms Survey|date=April 2012|series=Special Report No. 14|url=http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/C-Special-reports/SAS-SR14-CoteIvoire.pdf|page=97|access-date=2018-08-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181009102938/http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/C-Special-reports/SAS-SR14-CoteIvoire.pdf|archive-date=2018-10-09|url-status=dead}}
{{flag|Kazakhstan}}
{{flag|Kenya}}{{cite web |author=World Armies |url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/world_armies/8067708063/in/album-72157628862405391/ |title=Kenyan Army |publisher=flicker |date=2012-10-08 |access-date=2017-04-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170406203031/https://www.flickr.com/photos/world_armies/8067708063/in/album-72157628862405391/ |archive-date=2017-04-06 |url-status=live }}
{{flag|Kosovo}}
{{flag|Kyrgyzstan}}
{{flag|Laos}}
{{flag|Liberia}}{{cite book|url=http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/publications/by-type/yearbook/small-arms-survey-2005.html|chapter-url=http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/A-Yearbook/2005/en/Small-Arms-Survey-2005-Chapter-06-EN.pdf|chapter=Sourcing the Tools of War: Small Arms Supplies to Conflict Zones|title=Small Arms Survey 2005: Weapons at War|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2005|author=Small Arms Survey|author-link=Small Arms Survey|page=167|isbn=978-0-19-928085-8|access-date=2018-08-29|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180830004838/http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/publications/by-type/yearbook/small-arms-survey-2005.html|archive-date=2018-08-30|url-status=dead}}
{{flag|Libya}}
{{flag|Lithuania}}
{{flag|North Macedonia}}
{{flag|Madagascar}}
{{flag|Mali}} – Armed and Security Forces of Mali
{{flag|Malta}}
{{flag|Mongolia}}[http://www.legendtour.ru/eng/mongolia/ulaanbaatar/mongolian_military_museum_pictures.shtml Mongolian military museum. Ulaanbaatar. Sights of intersest] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131106230627/http://www.legendtour.ru/eng/mongolia/ulaanbaatar/mongolian_military_museum_pictures.shtml |date=2013-11-06 }}
{{flag|Mozambique}}
{{flag|Nicaragua}}
{{flag|Niger}}{{citation needed|date=October 2017}}
{{flag|Nigeria}}
{{flag|North Korea}}
{{flag|North Vietnam}}
{{flag|Pakistan}}: Used by the Pakistan Army. DShKM variant produced locally.{{cite book|last=O'Halloran|first=Kevin|title=Rwanda: Unamir 1994/1995|year=2012|publisher=Big Sky Publishing|isbn=978-1-921941-48-1}}{{cite web|title=12.7mm DShK heavy machinegun|url=http://www.rusmilitary.com/html/dshk_hmg.htm|access-date=15 May 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130516185658/http://www.rusmilitary.com/html/dshk_hmg.htm|archive-date=16 May 2013|url-status=live}}
{{flag|Peru}}
{{flag|Poland}}: Produced locally.{{cite web | url=https://milmag.pl/65-lat-dostaw-uzbrojenia-z-tarnowa/ | title=65 lat dostaw uzbrojenia z Tarnowa | date=3 June 2018 }}{{cite web | url=https://milmag.pl/en/65-years-of-armament-production-in-tarnow/ | title=65 Years of Armament Production in Tarnow | date=4 September 2020 }}
{{flag|Palestine}}
{{flag|Romania}} Produced locally{{cite encyclopedia|title=ROMARM machine guns|encyclopedia=Jane's Infantry Weapons 2002-2003|url=https://archive.org/details/Janes_Infantry_Weapons/page/n3407|page=3407|date=4 May 2001|first1=Terry J.|last1=Gander}} (still used with TR-85 tanks).
{{flag|Russia}}
{{flag|Rwanda}}: Used by Rwandan Peacekeepers in Darfur.{{citation needed|date=October 2017}}
{{flag|Saudi Arabia}}
{{flag|Serbia}}
{{flag|Seychelles}}
{{flag|Sierra Leone}}
{{flag|Slovakia}}
{{flag|Somalia}}
{{flag|Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic}}
{{flag|South Sudan}}{{cite book|url=http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/A-Yearbook/2014/en/Small-Arms-Survey-2014-Highlights-EN.pdf|chapter-url=http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/A-Yearbook/2014/en/Small-Arms-Survey-2014-Chapter-7-EN.pdf|chapter=Weapons tracing in Sudan and South Sudan|title=Small Arms Survey 2014: Women and guns|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2014|author=Small Arms Survey|author-link=Small Arms Survey|pages=224|access-date=2018-08-29|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161014061449/http://www.smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/A-Yearbook/2014/en/Small-Arms-Survey-2014-Highlights-EN.pdf|archive-date=2016-10-14|url-status=dead}}
{{flag|Sudan}}{{citation needed|date=October 2017}}
{{flag|Syria}}
{{flag|Tanzania}}
{{flag|Togo}}
{{flag|Turkey}}{{cite news|title=Reported use by intelligence agency|url=http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/07/turkey-coup-attempt-intelligence-agency-thwart.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160724195008/http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/07/turkey-coup-attempt-intelligence-agency-thwart.html|archive-date=2016-07-24}}
{{flag|Turkmenistan}}
{{flag|Uganda}}
{{flag|Ukraine}}: Also produces a variant with a bipod and large muzzle brake for infantry usage.{{Cite web|url=https://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2017/12/19/ukrainian-modified-dshk-buttstock-picatinny-rail-bipod-ground-role/|title=Ukrainian Modified DShK with Buttstock, Picatinny Rail, and Bipod in Ground Role|website=The Firearm Blog|date=19 December 2017 |language=en}}
{{flag|Vietnam}}
{{flag|Yemen}}
{{flag|Zambia}}
{{flag|Zimbabwe}}

=Former users=

{{flag|Afghanistan|2004}}
{{flag|Czechoslovakia}}: Produced DShKM variant TK Vz.53 which included a four barrelled version.{{cite book |first=David |last=Miller |year=2001 |title=The Illustrated Directory of 20th Century Guns |publisher=Salamander Books Ltd. |location=London |isbn=978-1-84065-245-1}}
{{flag|East Germany}}{{cite web |title=12,7-mm-überschweres Maschinengewehr DSchK Modell 1938 und Modell 1938/46 |url=http://www.militaertechnik-der-nva.de/Waffensysteme/Artilleriesysteme/Artillerie/DSchK/DSchK.html |website=Militaertechnik der NVA |language=de}}
22px Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
{{flag|Soviet Union}}: Passed on to successor states.
{{flag|Yugoslavia}}: Manufactured DShKM variant.

=Non-state users=

{{flagicon|PIJ}} Al-Quds Brigades
{{flagicon|Islamic State}} Daesh
Iraqi insurgents
{{flagicon|Ireland}} Provisional IRA

Gallery

MTU-2 ring mounting (1).jpg|A Soviet {{sclass2|G-5|motor torpedo boat|2}} armed with the DShK machine gun on the MTU-2 ring mount, 1944

Зенитчики бронепоезда «Железняков» у пулеметов ДШК.jpg|The DShK anti-aircraft machine guns mounted on the Soviet armoured train Zhelezniakov, May 1942

12,7-мм станковый пулемёт ДШК образца 1938 года.jpg|The WW2-era DShK M1938 anti-aircraft machine gun in the Artillery Museum (Saint Petersburg)

Mitraliera DShK UM Cugir.jpg|A Romanian DShK chambered in 12.7×99mm NATO on display at Expomil 2005

A soldier with the Ukrainian Land Forces fires a Degtyaryov-Shpagin Large-Caliber heavy machine gun.jpg|A soldier with the Ukrainian Land Forces fires a DShKM

Black Sea Defense and Aerospace 2010 (6).jpg|DShKM TR-85M1

Romanian URO VAMTAC S3 in service with the Romanian military.jpg|DShKM URO VAMTAC

DShK on T-55 DD-SD-01-05147.JPEG|DShKM anti-aircraft machine gun on a T-55 tank loader's roof hatch

Anti-aircraft gun in Museo Giron.jpg|The M53 is an anti-aircraft mounting of four 12.7 mm heavy machine guns vz. 38/46 (Czech copy of Soviet DShKM)

Niger, Mélèk (N'Gourti)(10) (cropped).jpg|DShKM mounted on a Toyota Land Cruiser technical in Niger

References

External links

[https://web.archive.org/web/20050408063852/http://world.guns.ru/machine/mg03-e.htm DShK and DShKM] at guns.ru.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9bQmtaW0L4%20 Video of Operation]

Category:12.7×108 mm machine guns

Category:Heavy machine guns

Category:Machine guns of the Soviet Union

Category:Military equipment introduced in the 1930s

Category:World War II infantry weapons of the Soviet Union

Category:World War II machine guns

Category:Weapons and ammunition introduced in 1938