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| Iraq |
| Iraq Adopts the M16 and M4 |
| 2007-05-17 |
| I think the Iraqis would be better off with G36, HK416 or FN SCAR. Direct gas operation and inshallah maintenance leads to unhappy encounters. |
| Posted by:ed |
| #10 STRATEGYPAGE/DEFENSEDAILY > also getting 00's of M60 Pattons, M113's, and lessor USDOD surplus [Cold War]. One of my old ideas to the USDOD for modernizing the Pattons was to "Abram-ize" its turret and armor. |
| Posted by: JosephMendiola 2007-05-17 22:21 |
| #9 Part of the decision is based on what the Iraqis perceive to be the inherent superiorities of the M-16 : the US uses them, and US troops kill the enemy in great numbers using rifle fire. The fact that those kill numbers are based mainly on the basic shooting skills demanded of all American troops nowadays, and not the weapon/caliber itself, is lost to much of the Iraqi public and military. Also, most of the Iraqi military is switching to US equipment ASAP : helmets, body armour, light armoured vehicles, etc. After seeing how poorly Soviet/Russian equipment faired against American equipment, the Iraqis have decided to dump the old and bring in the new. So much of the US/Western equipment is so superior to the Soviet/Russian equivalent, that any single weapon's deficiency are lost in the crowd. Plus for the foreseeable future, the Iraqis figure that they are going to be dependent on the US logistical system, and so using US equipment makes sense that way as well. |
| Posted by: Shieldwolf 2007-05-17 15:29 |
| #8 Firearm decisions seem to be more political than military. I never liked the 9mm handgun as a military sidearm--the 45 cal is a much better weapon. |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2007-05-17 11:06 |
| #7 P.S., I'm just a civilian but I've seen the same thing happen with laptops in the civilian cubicle world in which I operate, hence my question. |
| Posted by: JAB 2007-05-17 10:44 |
| #6 Maybe we're trying to dump our used rifles on them so we can upgrade? |
| Posted by: JAB 2007-05-17 10:43 |
| #5 They should sell them some of the old M14's instead of paying machine shops $50 apiece to cut them in half. |
| Posted by: bigjim-ky 2007-05-17 09:45 |
| #4 I agree on that. The HK416 would have been the better choice. Hell, if we're staying with 5.56 its the better choice for us as well. You can fire a couple of magazines rounds down range, pop open the upper, slide the bolt out and put it in your bare hands. Try that with a 16 or conventional M4. Keeping gas away from the bolt and carrier means no carbon or fouling there, the lube stays intact not cooked and crud, meaning a clean extraction and longer life of those components - remember, its these parts that are the very ones that cause failures the most in an unmaintained weapon. I wonder which corporate drone in Ordnance sold the poor Iraqis on using the same weapons? Buy the 416, uses US lowers, and US ammo and magazines, so logistically it has all the advantages as well, with the plus of being more reliable. |
| Posted by: OldSpook 2007-05-17 09:44 |
| #3 losers use. Damn, need more coffee this morning. Fred, you need to add a "edit" comment function. |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2007-05-17 09:26 |
| #2 The AK-47 is seen as something looser use. Heh. I would like train of though to extend to the rest of the arab world too. hehehe |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2007-05-17 09:26 |
| #1 I think they should have gone with something they'd be assured of in getting replacement parts and ammo. I'm sure the Czechs and Poles could keep the inventory of Aks adequately up to standard. The 16 requires operator maintenance that is not consistent with the social norms of what passes as muzzie military formations. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2007-05-17 07:34 |