Multiple-barrel firearm

Type of firearm with more than one barrel A U.S. Air Force rotary-wing crewman fires a Minigun during the Vietnam War. A multiple-barrel firearm is any type of firearm with more than one gun barrel, usually to increase the rate of fire or hit probability and to reduce barrel erosion or overheating. History Volley gun The mitrailleuse, a 19th-century volley gun Multiple-barrel firearms date back to the 14th century, when the first primitive volley guns were developed. They are made with several single-shot barrels assembled together for firing a large number of shots, either simultaneously or in quick succession. These firearms were limited in firepower by the number of barrels bundled, and needed to be manually prepared, ignited, and reloaded after each firing. In practice the large volley guns were not particularly more useful than a cannon firing canister shot or grapeshot. Since they were still mounted on a carriage, they could be as hard to aim and move around as a heavy cannon, and the many barrels took as long (if not longer) to reload. They also tended to be relatively expensive since they were structurally more complex than a cannon, due to all the barrels and ignition fuse