One of the problems with current military vehicle weapon stations is that many of them require the gunner to be fully or partially exposed to enemy fire. Another problem is if you have to abandon the vehicle, you can many times be abandoning a serviceable weapon system which may get turned back on you, either in the fight you are in, or in a subsequent fight.
One way to address this is a remote weapons station. The Army is currently developing one call CROWS, the Common Remotely Operated Weapons Station. It addresses, at least in a partial fashion, both problems. The gunner is not exposed, and, with the removeable joystick, the crew can 'un-ass' the vehicle, take the joystick with them, and the weapon can't be used with the 'under armor' protection and fire control. The weapon is still designed to be dismountable and useable by the crew, so a captured weapons carrier could still yield a useable weapon, but not with the sensing/targeting/engagement enhancements provided by the mount itself.
Downside? More things to break. One thing about a M-2 or Mk19 on a pintle - pretty simple. Click the pic to see the rest of the brief.
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