Posted on 12/15/2010 7:44:53 PM PST by Pan_Yan
MARINE CORPS BASE HAWAII, Hawaii - Marine Corps Systems Command personnel and gun maker Heckler & Koch staff delivered more than 80 M27 Infantry Automatic Rifles Dec. 3 to 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment armorers.
The rifles were being assembled and prepared for this week’s operator and maintainer training exercises to be conducted by 1/3 Squad Automatic Weapon gunners and armorers.
The hope is that the M27 IAR will be able to someday replace the heavier, less maneuverable M249 SAW in most situations.
“It’s definitely a good thing because it's lighter and more compact,” said Cpl. Ryan McDermott, an armorer with 1/3.
According to Capt. Edward Leon, Infantry Automatic Rifle project officer, the training will consist of formal classes and repetitions of known-distance and combat marksmanship training ranges.
“Marines will also conduct a transition course designed to begin to develop a skill set of engaging closer targets in full auto and long range targets in semi-auto,” Leon said.
The 1/3 will be testing the weapons throughout a full pre-deployment training schedule to deliver a pre-assessment of the weapon. Once the battalion deploys, they will conduct another assessment based on the performance of the weapon through the first one hundred days of operations.
After all battalions have completed their evaluations, they will be delivered to the commandant for review.
M27 IAR-wielding Marines can look forward to a number of new features while handling the weapon. The rifle has a six position adjustable butt stock, left and right handed sling mounting options, a guide in the magazine well to assist in speed reloads and a recoil-reducing compensator and butt stock pad. The rifle will also be equipped with the new Squad Day Optic.
The SDO mounts on the rifle to assist gunners in target detection and identification and increases accuracy. The optic also has a 3.5 times magnification range.
Also, the rifle has four mounting rails that can hold a forward grip, scope, visible light, infrared laser pointer and illuminator, bipod and more.
Probably the most notable difference between the M27 IAR and M249 SAW is the weight. The M27 IAR only weighs 9.2 pounds with a loaded magazine compared to the 22-pound M249 SAW.
Also testing the weapon system is Camp Lejuene’s 1st Battalion, 9th Marines Regiment, Camp Pendleton’s 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment and 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion and New England-based reservists 1st Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment.
A full analysis of the weapon system should be completed by the third quarter of fiscal year 2011, Leon said.
The rifle has also undergone numerous preliminary tests before being delivered for use on the battalion level.
According to Leon, both a comparison test between the M27 IAR and the M249 SAW and hot and humid and cold weather conditions tests have been completed.
Saturday was the last training day for Marines and their new rifles under the supervision of MCSC and Heckler & Koch. Next week, it will be 1/9 Marines receiving the M27 IAR.
Are you looking at the German soldier in picture 1 or the Taliban in picture 10? I thought I got the link to go directly to the Taliban picture.
5.56. Poodle shooter, according to some shooters that have serious cred beyond any that I could hope to attain. I do have some 5.56 platforms, but my favored are 7.62 NATO and up.
5.56 rounds have put down alot of tangos, but we can do better.
Looks like a belt fed version of the RPK or the PKM. Barrel thickness indicates 7.62x54.
5.56 is good at close range in the right hands, but sucks at longer range. Heck the Israelis use 22’s in some apps. But in afgan the 5.56 is to light.
Well, well. A magazine fed squad automatic weapon in the same caliber as the service rifle.
Sure have come a long way since WWII and the BAR.
Longer ranges need heavier rounds. Lugging around a bunch of heavy ammo sucks. But someone has to do it. House to house fighting can call for the lighter caliber and it can do the job well. Until some tango decides to take you under fire frome 1k yards when you aren’t expecting it. Then its time for the big gun. And the poor guy that has been sweating under the weight is the guy everyone turns to. Everything has its place.
Why would you put a bayonet on an IAR/SAW/machine gun? I thought their job was to keep the bad guys a good ways away or dead... If they're in bayonet range, the weapon and the shooter have failed...
Or run out of ammo?
The rifles were M-16’s, not AR-15’s and there was a problem with calcium carbonate in the powder of the ammunition supplied early in the war.
I never used the M60 in combat, but I can say that without a doubt, one of the best days I had in AIT was firing familiarization with the M60.
The Drill Sergeants had to drag us all of the range that day, and the target vehicles they put downrange were never the same.
There are a couple advantages to the design. The excess gas is vented from ports in the bolt, making it somewhat self adjusting as opposed to the FAL adjustable gas system. Also, there is no reciprocating weight of a piston, which reduces felt recoil and greatly enhances full auto control.
It just seems so hot and dirty. I know the FAL’s adjustable gas port was considered an advantage in long firefights between cleanings.
Edward C. Ezell’s book did state that with the original propellant formulation, the old AR-15 was considered phenomenally reliable among the Special Forces in SVN and the SAS in Borneo back in the early sixties.
If they have a spare SAW they don’t want - I’d be glad to give one a good home.
I’m actually on the qualifying range with a bunch of the guys from 1/3 right now, some of whome are firing the IAR. I haven’t gotten a chance to take a real close look at one yet, but it seems kind of like a modified M16A4 with the Burst selector replaced by an auto switch. They say it’s still a pain in the ass to clean, but they haven’t really had any issues with jamming. I think for any sort of urban operations it would probably be far superior to the SAW. And folks, weight is a huge consideration in this. When you’re carrying that much gear, it’s 110 degrees out, and you’ve got your flak jacket and kevlar on, any lessening of weight is a godsend.
As for the round size, there is still the 249 out there to put out 7.62. This rifle would have probably been great for Iraq. We’ll see how it does in Afghanistan though.
Excuse me, meant to say the 240 is still out there for 7.62 rounds
They jammed, too, until the forward assist (M16A1) helped somewhat.
So they’re back to trusting Marines with full auto?
Neither the “Matty Mattel”/AR15 or the FN FAL seem to be as good a desigh as the Daewoo DR200 or DR300. I am comparing the civilian, not-full auto guns, of course.
Someone posted “Maybe “thousands” died because they are required to have an IQ three points more than a fork to use it.” under your name.
I thought you might want to check out that post/poster. Perhaps it was done by a Colt Industries publicity flack.
I can’t imagine a FReeper putting down the I.Q. of American Vietnam Era soldiers just because they were forced to carry an unproven and egregiously unreliable weapon.
Next thing you know they’ll decide that the squad leader needs a fully automatic PDW, to compliment the BAR, I mean, IAR.
Maybe something with a ROF of about 600 RPM firing a heavy bullet at about 920 FPS, with a thirty round magazine.
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