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| Science & Technology |
| US Army wants $111 million for new NGSW rifle platform to boost firepower, range |
| 2020-02-13 |
| [Defense Post] The U.S. Defense Department is requesting $111.2 million from Congress to develop the so-called Next Generation Squad Weapons (NGSW) to replace the M4A1 Carbine, M16 and M249 Squad Automatic Weapon (SAW) by the end of 2023. The budget request, made public on Monday, February 10, asks more than double last year’s funding for the NGSW program and includes $35.8 million for procurement. One aim of the NGSW is to give U.S. Army infantry greater effective range by replacing the squad’s 5.56 mm NATO-chambered weapons with rifles that fire a new and unique 6.8 mm round. The Army in August 2019 selected Textron Systems, General Dynamics and Sig Sauer to develop prototypes for the new line of weapons. The Defense Department intends the funds to complete prototyping for the new rifle, automatic rifle (AR) and ammunition and will select one of the three versions by the end of 2021. "The new more lethal carbine and Squad Automatic Weapon (SAW) provides Brigade Combat Teams with additional capability when engaging an adversaries [sic] ground forces," the request reads. The M249 SAW was introduced in 1984 to give infantry squads a belt-fed weapon with a high rate of fire. The U.S. Marine Corps has already begun replacing the M249 with the new M27, a variant of Heckler and Koch’s HK 416. The Army has said it has no plans to adopt the M27. The overhaul comes amidst a strategic shift from two decades of fighting insurgencies in the Middle East towards preparation to counter the evolving capabilities of Russia and China. |
| Posted by:Besoeker |
| #11 That's snazzy. |
| Posted by: swksvolFF 2020-02-13 19:43 |
| #10 Take a look at Ian McCollum's (Forgotten Weapons) about the Knight's Armnament company: Knight’s Assault Machine Guns at the Range. It may not be what they want, or need, but it looks like an interesting weapon. |
| Posted by: magpie 2020-02-13 18:49 |
| #9 Can't decide on a ... The Real money is in the cost-plus development projects. Guaranteed cash flow while you "research" and maybe you will sell something at the end... maybe. |
| Posted by: magpie 2020-02-13 15:03 |
| #8 Can't decide on a ... Apparently, the DoD is unable to get inside its own OODA loop. |
| Posted by: SteveS 2020-02-13 14:58 |
| #7 Can't decide on a uniform. Can't decide on a weapon. Can't decide on a vehicle. Can't decide on a helicopter. Can't decide on a division or a brigade. Can't decide on a man or a woman. |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2020-02-13 14:28 |
| #6 Just think if way back when the decision was made to go with a scaled up M3 |
| Posted by: M. Murcek 2020-02-13 14:23 |
| #5 The Army 'planners' didn't want the squads to have an M60 machine gun. About the same reason the Old Army didn't want the troops on the frontier to have repeaters even if the natives got hold of them. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2020-02-13 11:51 |
| #4 When I was in during the early 90s, the SAW was a Belgium made piece of shit. It constantly had springs pop out of the top belt feed cover. Had to carry a bag of the fuckers with you and replace them during firefights. Colt took it over and they got better, but I'm still no big fan of them. |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2020-02-13 08:54 |
| #3 The Army has said it has no plans to adopt the (USMC's new) M27. Of course not! No additional weapons research dollars and lucrative contracts available in doing that. |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2020-02-13 07:21 |
| #2 M16 is a lady - you treat her right - she treats you right, Hoss. |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2020-02-13 05:27 |
| #1 I rotated back to the states from Viet Nam one month before they issued those 5.56 cal girl guns. My TO weapon was the M14 7.62.. |
| Posted by: crazyhorse 2020-02-13 01:26 |