Ammunition magazine and loading device thereof

An ammunition loading system, for enabling the replacement of an ammunition magazine of a machine gun of a combat vehicle by an operator located within a protected hull region of said combat vehicle, the system comprising:

• a rotatable turret at a non-protected region of said combat vehicle;
• an exposed machine gun, mounted on an external gun mount coupled to said turret;
• a magazine compartment coupled to said turret, said magazine compartment configured to retain a plurality of ammunition magazines comprising ammunition belts for feeding said machine gun, where the loaded ammunition belt extends from said magazine compartment and into said machine gun;
• a hatch of said combat vehicle, situated between said hull region of said combat vehicle and said magazine compartment, said hatch configured to be opened when said turret is rotated to a selected orientation;
• and
• such that an empty ammunition magazine, emptied from the contained ammunition belt, is removable from said magazine compartment through the open hatch while said operator is located within said hull region,
• such that a new ammunition magazine containing an unused ammunition belt is liftable up through said open hatch and placeable onto said magazine compartment while said operator is located within said hull region, and
• such that the leading end of said unused ammunition belt of said new ammunition magazine is linkable, when located at said hull region, by said operator located within said hull region, with the trailing end of an ammunition belt contained within an ammunition magazine previously placed in said magazine compartment, to allow continuous feeding of said machine gun without exposing the operator to a non-protected region of said combat vehicle.