This famous weapon was developed by John Browning from the M1917 water-cooled machinegun. Usually operated by a crew of two, the air-cooled M1919 served widely with U.S. forces in WWII, the Korean War and the Vietnam War.

The M1919 was commonly deployed in the weapons platoon of infantry companies. For infantry use, the weapon was mounted on a low-slung tripod, plus it was often mounted on vehicles such as jeeps and tanks.

The A4 was the most common variant used in WWII and post-war, while theA6 was a lighter version designed for infantry use.