An Army Air Corps Door Gunner onboard a Lynx Mk9A helicopter with 672 Squadron in Afghanistan, is pictured looking through the sights of a Heavy Machine Gun (HMG).
The Army Air Corps are now deploying the Mk 9A variant of the Lynx helicopter, which has a more powerful engine than the MK7 predecessor. The new engine allows the helicopter to fly faster, carry more weight and fly in hotter conditions (the Mk 7 was unable to fly in the day time during the Afghan summer).
Because the Mk 9A can carry more weight it can carry more firepower in the form of a 50 cal Heavy Machine Gun (HMG) rather than the 7.62mm General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG) that the Mk 7 carried, this makes the Mk9A more effective at engaging targets on the ground.