The history of the Croatian rifle, brought to the market by the HS Produkt company of Karlovac (named after their first market hit, the HS9 semiautomatic pistol, known in America as the Springfield XD) started in 1992, during the Croatian War of Independence.  The ancestor of the company, IM Metal, built a prototype bull-pup rifle based on the M70 Kalashnikov AKM copy manufactured by the Crvena Zastava for the pre-war Yugoslavia.  The limited technological capabilities of the war-time company and lack of experience on the side of designers doomed the rifle from the start, but the military was hooked on the easy-handling bull-pup and more prototypes appeared, along a hectic development timeline, revisiting almost every automatic rifle design concept ever devised.  The first prototypes (1992 and 1996) were AKM developments, gas-operated with a long-stroke piston.  Then in 1999, the first French connection took place when the designer, Marko Vuković, put a delayed blowback mechanism straight out of “Le Clarion” (the Bugle) into it.  This was not necessarily a success, as just a year later he beat a hasty retreat to the gas-operated gun, this time making it a direct gas impingement with novel forced ventilation feature forming a pneumatic cushion behind the bolt.  The patent was applied for in that form, and its vague description coupled with a blurry drawing misled many authors to form a myth of a “gas cushion” feature with powder gases being bled behind the bolt – which was never the case.  Externally the 2000 rifle was a very much cluttered eclectic mix resembling somewhat the Singapore’s SAR-21 or Israeli Tavor coupled with a HK G36 style enormous carry handle, armed to teeth with 1913 rails in such a quantity, that one could hang an impressive array of fashionable tactical extras all over.  This was the form of the VHS that was shown in a series of promotional photos in 2005.  But even as that display was taking place, a final form of the VHS was eventually taking shape as of 2004.  This time it was a bare-bones short-stroke piston-driven gas-operated weapon with all the frills of the prototypes gone.  And surprisingly, then the French connection came back with a vengeance, but this time only in external features of the rifle.

Safety-fire selector lever of the VHS: ‘SAFE’ with lever in longitudinal axis of the weapon – note the cancelled bullet ideogram; ‘SEMI’ rotated fully to the right – note single bullet molded on the side above; ’FULL’ rotated fully to the left – note three bullets molded above.

The first 50 VHS-D rifles (20-inch barrel) and VHS-K carbines (16-inch barrel) were for troop testing in Croatia, but also in Iraq and Afghanistan, when Croatian contingents were deployed with NATO forces, were ordered on November 19, 2007, and handed-over on November 24, 2008.  The testing (including a service-life testing, reportedly aborted after 50,000 rounds with no main parts breakage) took part in the first quarter of 2009, followed by a decision announced by Croatian MoD, Mr. Branko Vukelić, to accept the VHS into the inventory of the army and initially order 1,000 each of both variants, at a unit price of ca. 1,500 EUR (since then lowered to ca. 1,000).  The Croatian Army announced their intentions to replace 60,000 aging ex-Yugoslav Kalashnikovs with the VHS, which were eventually also to replace the HK G36 carbines (G36K and G36C) bought for the Special Forces and foreign deployments in order to achieve interoperability with NATO.

With such ambitious intentions the purchasing rate fails to overwhelm so far: after initial 2,000, the next batch of 3,000 were, due to budget austerity measures, ordered in 2011, and then 2012 procurement figures are as feeble.

Bugle On the Outside
The external looks of the VHS reveal the source of inspiration to be the French FA MAS rifle, but even the first glance inside makes it obvious, that the inspiration is only on the outside – thankfully.  Instead of the Király-style lever-delayed blowback bolt, the VHS has an honest rotary bolt head, and is a gas-operated weapon with a short-stroke piston.  The military VHS is a selective-fire weapon, capable of semiautomatic and fully automatic fire, with no burst option.  The civilian-legal version would be available in semi-only configuration.

Both D and K barrels are fitted with a birdcage-style flash-hider, and the D offers rings turned into the barrel to control the rifle grenade launching range.  According to the photographs of the Croatian military in action, their version also has got a French-style sliding grenade boom guide impaled on that barrel, as well as a swing-arm grenade high-angle launching sight, which can be used with the rifle held turned on the side.  Contrary to the French model, which is bolted to the receiver under the carry handle, the Croatian grenade sight is bolted to the underside of the carry handle.  Both features are absent from the export model.

Fifteen shots Federal American Eagle 55 grs FMJ-BT, rested, semiautomatic, at 100 meters with BUIS-quality sights, straight out of the box. The VHS-K carbine shoots better than the VHS-D rifle, but this is most probably due to better sights. Anyway, amazing performance considering the circumstances.

Gases are bled from the bore to a gas chamber above the barrel.  There, they are channeled through the gas regulator, inserted from the front.  The regulator has three positions, ‘normal,’ ‘high’ (larger opening for reliable operation with weaker ammunition) and ‘cut-off’ for grenade launching.  The regulator is impaled on the gas piston, fitted with a return spring of its own.  Due to different barrel lengths, VHS-D and VHS-K each has its own regulator, with different diameters of the ‘normal’ and ‘high’ channels, so each is marked accordingly on the front bar.  The bar (or rib) is marked ‘1’ on one end, serving as a regulator position indicator (points to barrel on ‘normal’) and ‘K’ or ‘D’ depending on weapon’s type.

The regulator body has got three retaining/positioning lugs around the circumference, and is (piston) spring-loaded.  To change the position one has to press it inwards enough to withdraw the lugs from the abutments, then turn towards the next setting through 120° and release, letting the spring reposition it in the gas chamber.  If the gas assembly is released before the next abutment has a chance to catch the lugs, the whole assembly will pop-up from the rifle, and can be withdrawn for cleaning.  How’s that compared to the gas piston removal procedure from the SCAR?

Channeled trough the regulator, the gases push against the gas piston.  The piston hits the operating rod, extending all the way forth, from the bolt-carrier – similar to the SCAR.  The operating rod is hollowed to cut down weight, and houses the return assembly – a captive spring on a guide rod anchored in the receiver back plate.  The bolt-carrier is hung beneath the operating rod.  The bolt is of the recently (i.e. for almost half of a century) most popular system – turning bolt head with a multiple locking lugs engaging into the barrel’s locking ferrule.  It is popularly associated with Eugene Stoner, who was indeed a great fan of it (AR-10, AR-15, AR-16, AR-18), but in fact it was first used by Melvin Johnson, albeit for the short-recoil operated weapon.

And while they’re at it, each year this little known team trains and certifies about a dozen highly proficient practitioners in what may be the smallest Military Occupational Specialty in the Marine Corps, members said to number only about sixty currently on active duty.

SADJ is privileged to be allowed “inside the razor wire” for a visit to Weapons Training Battalion’s Precision Weapons Section, aboard Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia.  PWS builds and maintains to that kind of razor sharpness what many consider to be some of the world’s most effective military sniper and special-purpose rifles, the toughest combat pistols and a line of tack-driving match weapons; all the proud handiwork of an ultra-exclusive fraternity of Marines who proudly claim the title Precision Weapons Repairman, MOS 2112.

Home of Precision Weapons
Located due west of main side Quantico on the spacious campus and range complex of Weapons Training Battalion, PWS has been comfortably housed since 2005 in about 34,000 square feet inside Harlee Hall and Twitchell Test facility.

This is an ideal location, says Chief Warrant Officer 5 Roderick Fiene (pronounced “Feeney“), Officer in Charge of PWS, noting the close proximity within short walking distance from both the Sniper School and the Corps’ Rifle and Pistol Teams.  This makes it easy, he told us, for regular and close collaboration between these super shooters and his meticulous craftsmen.

December 2010, MCB Quantico, VA. In a corner of the sprawling campus of Weapons Training Battalion, intimidating coils of stainless steel razor wire top the high fence surrounding Harlee Hall, specially built and dedicated in 2005 as home for its Precision Weapons Section. It‘s named in honor of Brigadier General William C. Harlee, known in the Corps as ‘father of Marine Corps rifle practice.’ At the time of our first visit to PWS, Chief Warrant Officer Fiene, Officer In Charge, was awaiting formal notification of his promotion to CWO5. (Robert Bruce)

Its current manning includes 27 Marines and six Civil Service technicians, augmented at this time by four civilian contract personnel working on specific short term “surge” projects.

PWS is one of the specialized platoons in Weapons Training Battalion’s Headquarters Company that, in addition to administration and supply, has elements specializing in combat shooting, competitive marksmanship, foreign weapons, breachers, and snipers.

SADJ’s information gathering for this report spanned more than a year, beginning with an invitation to meet Chief Warrant Officer Fiene and key members of his team.  This also included the opportunity to receive the formalized Command Briefing that’s usually reserved for military and government VIPs, and getting up close and personal with a display of historic and current examples of PWS handiwork.

Show ‘n Tell
On our initial visit, Staff Sergeant Jose Herrera, Sniper Section Senior NCOIC, had set up more than a dozen weapons in the conference room, mostly sniper rifles, spanning decades from a wooden stocked 1970s vintage Remington 700 to today’s super refined M40A5.  With pride and professionalism, he walked us in step by step detail through PWS’ contributions to the evolution of this venerable bolt action sniper rifle.

Herrera also treated us to a lesson on how the M14 rifle, discarded in favor of the M16 in the Vietnam War, was resurrected by the Corps early in the Global War on Terror.  PWS took mothballed “Fourteens” in for a tuneup and some custom parts to arm the new “Designated Marksmen,” filling the gap between riflemen and snipers.  DMs quickly got a cost effective, hard hitting, semi-auto solution to the problem of multiple targets at ranges that challenged the capabilities of the current standard-issue M16A4 rifles.

While the combat performance of the M14 Designated Marksman Rifle was good he said, it got better in M39 Enhanced Marksman Rifle configuration, readily identified by its chassis stock.  We were also shown the 7.62mm AR10 type SR25 rifle that PWS modified in response to requests from Marines downrange routed through Systems Command.  This, Herrera said, was part of a program that eventually led to the Corps now buying quantities of the Mark 11 rifles.

December 2010, MCB Quantico, VA. The special VIP display that PWS provided for SADJ’s initial visit included four variations of John M. Browning’s inimitable M1911. This side by side view allows close comparison of an early MEU (SOC) .45 made by PWS (top) and the M45 CQBP (Close Quarters Battle Pistol) they’re now building. While this sample has a Caspian Arms frame, most are built from old M1911A1s upgraded with commercial parts. Note the non-snag ramp rear sight and deep serrations fore and aft on the civilian Springfield Armory slide to assist cocking with wet and gloved hands. PWS’ limited purchase of commercial-off-the-shelf frames was made to meet the intense surge in demand by Marine Special Operations units. (Robert Bruce)

It’s worth noting here that the MK11 – originally developed by Knight’s Armament for U.S. Navy Special Operations – became today’s M110 from Knight’s, now slated to replace the current line of 7.62mm semi-autos for Designated Marksmen and Scout Snipers in the Marine Corps.

Pistols were also on the curriculum, with Herrera showing us the differences between two distinct versions of the venerable M1911A1 .45 that are hand-crafted by PWS gunsmiths.  Hard-chargers of Marine Corps Special Operations Command and Reconnaissance Battalions get the tough and rugged-looking M45 – formerly known as the MEU (SOC) Pistol.  World class competitive shooters on the USMC Pistol Team get a finely honed and beautifully finished National Match version of John Browning’s masterpiece.

Meet the PWS Pros
We returned to PWS some months later for in-depth interviews, guided by a long list of detailed and specific questions that we submitted well in advance.  This, we strongly believe, yields extra value to answers that are well thought out and rich in detail.

While most feature stories in gun magazines are spiced up here and there with a few quotes, SADJ’s approach is decidedly different.  We sit down with key personnel and give them the opportunity to tell us what they think is important about the subject at hand.

What follows here can be seen as a chance for our readers to pull up a seat at the table and join us in meeting Marines at three levels in the hierarchy of PWS.

Officer in Charge
A conversation at PWS with Chief Warrant Officer 5 Roderick N. Fiene (pronounced ‘Feeney‘), on 9 May 2011.  The 44 year old CWO5, a native of Cambridge, Nebraska, took command as Officer in Charge of PWS on July 1, 2010.

SADJ:  Tell us about your long journey to OIC of PWS.  

Fiene:  I didn’t intend to join the Marine Corps or the military but I ran into a recruiter who happened to be a 2111 Small Arms Repairman.  In the course of talking to me he found out I was a ‘gun nut’ and filled my head with all the ideas that the Corps would send me to all the schools to learn how to fix the guns and even that there’s a place at Quantico called the Rifle Team Equipment Shop and if you’re really good you can go there and build match guns.  Sounded pretty good to me and I figured I’d give it a try.  That’s how he got his hooks into me and I joined the Marine Corps.

1950, Korea. A 1st Marine Division sniper-spotter team work together to pick off the enemy with a telescope-equipped M1C rifle. Most of the Marine Corps’ snipers in the Korean War were armed with scoped M1 and M1903 rifles, good weapons but not nearly as accurate as today’s precision tools from PWS. (Lt. (Junior Grade) H.H. Searls, 1st Marine Division)

It took me 26 years to get here as PWS Officer in Charge.  I’m still not a precision weapons repairman but at least I got to the shop.  I had applied a couple of times and every time I applied the monitor told me it looks good but every time I got my orders it was to Okinawa, Japan.  I kind of gave up asking if every time I did they’d send me to Okinawa.  I went the Warrant Officer route and as a result I got to end up here.  I wanted to come to PWS as a repairman, to sit on a bench and build guns.  Now I sit behind a desk and read; doing all the administrative things relevant to PWS.

I came into the Corps as a 2111 Armorer, trained at the Army Ordnance School for Small Arms Repairman.  I got lucky and my first duty station was with the Marine Barracks at the Naval Station in Sicily.  Then a tour with the Air Wing as an armorer, mostly aircrew weapons, their pistols and rifles.  Tours in Okinawa with Engineers and Combat Engineers.  A couple tours with the 1st Marine Division, 3rd Assault Amphibian Battalion.  I got selected for the Warrant Officer program and went back to Twentynine Palms as the maintenance officer for an artillery battalion.  I always kinda bragged as a 2111 coming up, ‘If it shoots I can fix it,’ but there I was and I hadn’t seen a real artillery piece in my life.

Went from there to the Maritime Pre-position Force out of Blount Island, Florida, inspecting equipment on the ships, making sure it was ready to go.  From there to 1st Marine Division at Camp Pendleton, doing two combat deployments to Iraq as the Assistant Ordnance Officer.  Then to Quantico as Ordnance Officer for The Basic School and then up here to PWS.

SADJ:  How did you get selected to the position of chief of PWS?

Fiene:  In my Military Occupational Specialty – Infantry Weapon Repair Officer – there are only two Chief Warrant Officer 5 billets; one at PWS and the other at Systems Command in the Infantry Weapons Program office.  I was the senior CWO4 at the time and I finally got thrown into the ‘briar patch’ when they moved me into PWS.  Soon afterward I was selected to CWO5.

SADJ:  Are you personally interested in firearms and shooting?  

Fiene:  I’ve always been interested in firearms and shooting.  I grew up hunting on a family farm in Nebraska, started developing my interest in firearms.  My first weapon was a single shot bolt action .22 caliber JC Higgins rifle.  I learned how to shoot on that, my little brother learned how to shoot on it, when my kids got old enough I taught them how to shoot on it and my brother did too.  He’s still got that rifle in a gun cabinet back home.  As I got older and got more interested in how things work – not just that they work – it kinda came together.  I like to know how things work, what makes them work.

21 January 2011, Helmand Province, Afghanistan. Providing security in combat operations in the hotly-contested Sangin District, USMC Corporal Jordan Gerber is armed with a rugged, versatile, accurate, hard-hitting 7.62mm M39 Enhanced Marksmanship Rifle, built from mothballed M14 rifle receivers by skilled Marine gunsmiths at Quantico’s Precision Weapons Section. All of the Corps’ fast-firing, hard hitting 7.62mm M39s, identified by their skeletonized chassis stocks, typically shoot with two MOA or better accuracy. Gerber is a sniper with Scout Sniper Platoon, Headquarters and Headquarters Service Company, in support of India Company, 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 2. According to Captain Rich Barclay, this battalion’s Operations Officer, ‘All Marines have ‘gotten some,’ but the snipers are especially the heavy hitters….’ (USMC photo by Corporal David Hernandez)

I own about thirty weapons and they’re all favorites.  When I get a firearm we have a contract for life, I haven’t gotten rid of a single firearm that I’ve purchased from the time I was eighteen until now.  Two of the latest are a .44 caliber 1860 Colt Army revolver, black powder, cap and ball, and a Caspian .45 ACP M1911 officers model.

I’m not a competitive shooter.  I still enjoy hunting.  I like seeing what industry is doing; the changes in the firearms world.  Things that people come up with.  A lot of things change but some not that much.  A bolt action rifle that Paul Mauser made before the turn of the century is still kind of what everybody else chases to make a bolt action rifle.  To see the changes in the way firearms are made and manufactured has always kept my interest.

SADJ:  As far as your professional interest in the latest developments in the small arms field, is there anything in particular that has caught your attention?  

Fiene:  Long range accuracy.  We have the sniper school here and we talk with those folks regularly.  When you get into extreme long range accuracy and what that takes I find that very interesting.  Just because a bullet will travel that far doesn’t mean that it’ll be accurate that far.

SADJ:  Tell us about your nickname, ‘Primitive Pete.’  

Fiene:  I kind of find myself regressing now.  I’m starting to like black powder guns a lot more.  One of my favorite guns to shoot is the Model 1885 ‘High Wall’ lever action, single shot in .45-70, with black powder cartridges.  I cast the lead bullets for it and do my own hand loading.  It’s something gratifying about making the bullet, building the ammo, getting everything right and being able to hit a target downrange when you’re done with it.

SADJ:  What are your duties at PWS?

Fiene:  They’re primarily administrative.  I make sure my Marines have the tools and equipment they need to do their jobs.  I fight for the money to get ‘em what they need.  Other than that it’s just basic leadership – take care of your Marines.  Probably one of the biggest challenges here is keeping them engaged in what’s going on and what they’re doing.  It’s kind of ‘Groundhog Day’ (referring to the movie) around here; ‘What are you doing today?  I’m building guns.  What’ll you do tomorrow and next week?  Building guns.’  To sit at the same bench day after day and do nothing but assemble guns, that grind can wear some people down.  It’s a challenge to keep things mixed up, find other things for the Marines to do.  Break up that tedium a bit so they’ll get re-energized.

Generation 1
The first generation Glock 17 pistols had a smooth polymer grip.  They had a 2-piece spring guide and recoil spring.  The magazine was designed so it would not drop free when the magazine release was pressed.  Although this proved to be problematic for American users, the Austrian Army required it.  Rumour had it that it was so the magazines could not be lost in the snow.  To be able to import the gun into the United States a few modifications had to be made.  In Europe the serial number had to be on the slide and barrel.  In the U.S. it is required on the frame, so Glock moulded a tab into the frame.  Also to meet the points for importation, Glock added an adjustable sight.  The first generation was in fact the Austrian Army model P-80 although it would be sold else where as the Glock 17 (Gaston Glock’s 17th patent).

The Glock 17 pistol is striker fired omitting any external hammer.  The striker has a partial load on it when the pistol is ready to fire.  Approximately 25% of the load is taken up.  When the trigger is pulled, the remaining 75% of the striker is taken up and released to fire the cartridge.  Mr. Glock called his pistol “Safe Action.”  No external safeties are used.  However, the pistol has 3 internal safeties.  To gain a realistic perspective, you must understand that military and law enforcement personnel carried revolvers with no manual safety for many years.  This was never deemed unsafe.  However, with double action semiautomatic pistols, it is common for firearms instructors to find it difficult to train inexperienced people.  Reason being the first heavy pull of the trigger is often a flyer due to the extreme amount of force required to depress the trigger.  The follow-up single action shot is often also a flyer due to anticipation of the heavier trigger pull, even though the pistol is now firing in the lighter single action mode.  The Glock pistols have one constant trigger pull from first to last shot. Removing the element of anticipation, the shooter has enhanced accuracy and more accurate first shot hits.

Gaston Glock’s first pistol and the one that started it all, the Glock 17 which became the Austrian Army’s P-80 pistol. This pistol would forever alter the materials military and police handguns would be made and take the entire market by storm.

The 3 safeties in the “Safe Action” Glock pistol are all passive and function in order.  The first safety is the trigger safety.  There is a lever in the center of the trigger that unless disengaged prevents any rearward movement of the trigger.  The trigger safety is disengaged only by the trigger finger.  The second safety is the firing pin safety.  The firing pin safety physically blocks the strikers’ movement until the trigger is pulled to the rear.  When the trigger is pulled rearward, the trigger bar pushes upward on the firing pin safety disengaging it.  The final safety is the drop safety.  This is a track which the trigger bar/cruciform moves.  When the trigger is pulled all the way to the rear the trigger bar is pushed down, releasing the striker to fire the cartridge.  When the trigger is released, all 3 safeties automatically engage.  The Glock pistol has been dropped 100 feet in the air from a helicopter with a primed cartridge in the chamber.  When examined, it did not fire.

The slide is manufactured from a bar of solid steel and is finished by a process called gas nitration.  This clear finish penetrates .05 inches into the metal.  The slide of a Glock pistol is so hard it is just under a diamond on the Rockwell scale (55 to 60).  This finish is so hard that Austrian soldiers sharpen their bayonets on the slide. This finish is corrosive resistant as well.

The barrel of the Glock 17 is cold hammer forged.  After a pilot hole is drilled through the center of the barrel a mandrel, which contains the rifling and chamber, is placed inside the barrel blank.  Multiple hammers exert tons of force on the outside of the barrel, forming the polygonal bore and chamber.  Unlike conventional barrels with cut rifling, there are no sharp lands and grooves.  The bore diameter is tighter than a conventional barrel as well.  This does two things.  First, due to no sharp lands and grooves the barrel does not wear much at all increasing long term accuracy/barrel life and making the barrel easy to clean.  Second is a tighter bullet to barrel seal increasing velocity.

The Generation 2 Glock 17 shows many changes to the frame of the pistol including the checkering on the front and backstrap of the pistol. Some changes would be made to the trigger group as well. This pistol would also be made available with the new drop free magazines.

Generation 2
The second generation Glock was made for the desires of the American consumer.  First, the grip was changed to add checkering to the front and back strap of the pistol.  Additionally slightly rougher sides were added as well.  Internally, the recoil spring and spring guide were changed to a captive assembly.  Later second generations received an upgrade on the trigger group and firing pin block for improved safety.  Glock provided this for free based on the serial number range of the pistol.  The pistol was offered with fixed sights, adjustable as well as tritium night sights.  Perhaps the most significant change was for the American consumer with the drop free magazine.  The internal metal body went around all sides of the magazine preventing the magazines from swelling whether empty or full.  With the introduction of other calibers, an additional pin was added to secure in the locking block on all non 9×19 caliber pistols.  During this generation calibres in .40, 10mm Auto, .45 Auto, .357 and .380 Auto were introduced.

The International Air and Defense Fair (FIDAE) that takes place in Chile every two years rebounded from the quake that shook the region in 2010 with the exhibition in 2012 proving to be 25% larger than the previous event.  Two years ago, FIDAE took place against all odds and only a few days after the country was hit by one of the biggest earthquakes and tsunamis in history.  The exhibition took place as a showpiece to demonstrate that Chile had fortitude and organizational skills to allow the show to go on, as relief assistance was taking place in parallel to the fair.  Jose Higuera, from FIDAE 2012 News, tells us that more than 624 companies were represented in the event, making the exhibition the biggest and most important defense and security event in Latin America and one of the most important in the world.  FIDAE CEO, Lt. Col. Jean Pierre Desgroux, declared that the fair does not fuel the prospects of an arm race in the region, and qualified the fair as a multi-spectral, encompassing defense, commercial, and military aviation, as well as general aviation, space and homeland security.

The U.S. in particular had a heavy presence, with over 70 companies being represented at the show.  Most prominent was the display from the U.S. Department of Defense, along with the presence of the U.S. Embassy in Pavilion C, one of the seven large hangars used for the exhibits.  This being mainly an air show; received the Latin American debut of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, a huge wide body carrier of which LAN airlines from Chile has opted for 32 examples.  There were a number of F-16 fighters from the Chilean Air Force (FACh) and Texas Air Guard.  It was highlighted that the FACh F-16 force is now at full strength, with three operational squadrons to include 10 Block 50 C/D variants, and 36 upgraded A/B MLU models.

An evolution of the MGL. (J. Montes)

The European industry countered with the presence of the Airbus A380, and the impressive A-400M transport, one of the four testing examples now in operations In addition, Alenia-Aermacchi presented its C-27J, which shared tarmac space with C-130s, and its rival C-295.  In the fighter category, there were two Mirage 2000s from the Brazilian Air Force in representation, plus the Chilean Mirages on the side (now retired), which were exhibited along a still operational A-37B.

There were two machines that are particularly interesting and important strategically in the region that were present in FIDAE.  The AT-29 Super Tucano, represented by an example from the FACh, had won a few months ago the Light Air Support capabilities (LAS) from the USAF for procurement to the Afghan and other allied air forces under the designation of A-20.  The AT-29 has been selected by Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador, as well as their preference to replace the A-37B; in addition, the plane has proved itself in its native Brazil, as well as Ecuador, Colombia, and Chile.  However, soon after the LAS competition, Hawker Beechcraft, the company responsible for the AT-6C contender, filed a lawsuit.  As result, in February, the Air Force scrapped the $355 million contract it gave the Brazilian’s Embraer and U.S. Sierra Nevada Corporation for 20 Super Tucano light attack turboprops.

The gap left by the ill-fated A-20 could still be filled by the A/T-50 Golden Eagle, which was also represented in FIDAE.  This is a light multi-purpose jet trainer developed between the Korean Air Industry (KAI) and Lockheed Martin.  The basic T-50 has evolved into the A-50, a light fighter equipped with a multi-dimensional AN/APG-67 radar, originally developed by GE for the F-20 fighter.  The radar has also been selected to equip other light fighters such as the Argentinean IA-63 Pampa and the Taiwanese AIDC F-CK-1 Chingkuo.  A more advanced radar from Israel has been selected to equip the follow-on variant, the FA-50.  The Golden Eagle series are equipped with a Samsung-Techwin built engine, which is the GE F404-102 turbofan with FADEC (Full Authority Digital Control) built under licensed.  The engine allows a maximum speed of Mach 1.5.  The Guatemalan Air Force has already mentioned the AT-50 as potential replacement of the A-37B, and Chile is also considering it as replacement of its aging fleet of A/T-36 and A-37B.  It is noted that the series F/A/T-50 would be ideal replacements of the mentioned worn out A-37B, providing for a true high performance machine to Central and South American countries.

The MK-47 AGL. (J. Montes)

Many other industries, to include the U.S. and Israel, highlighted their technological achievements in AUV at the fair.  Many robotic drones are being used in homeland security tasks, surveillance, intelligence gathering and others.  There were several mockups of the successful Predator, to include B, and C Avenger, Gray Eagle, and Sea Avenger variants, and associated systems such as Lynx radar, Claw Payload Software and Griffin Eye surveillance systems.  On the other hand, even the U.S. has made use of several Israeli designed and built AUVs such as the Heron.  Several of these drones have been deployed in drug-surveillance flights in the continent.  U.S. and Israeli systems are operational not only along the border, but also in security tasks along oil installations in the Gulf and Colombia.

Eurocopter displayed one EC-275 from the Brazilian Air Force.  This model is a twin-engine, 11-ton evolution of the Super Puma/Cougar family.  The Brazilian and Mexican forces have ordered the EC275, and the aircraft is competing for orders from several other air forces.  Numbers of other helicopters and light aircraft adorned the tarmac.

Ground Forces
Although the show is geared to air and space, there is considerable presence of ground equipment on display; anywhere from harnesses and infantry equipment to artillery systems.

In the 1980s, the U.S. replaced many soft-skinned vehicles with the Humvee.  One of the replaced items was the M151 MUTT.  The demise of this little do-it-all 4×4 appears to have been premature, and has resulted in the introduction of a large list of light all terrain wheeled vehicles in the 500kg payload category to fill the gap.  In this field, General Dynamics provided information on the JAMMA (Joint All-Terrain Modular Mobility Asset), built as a first response high performance platform, with an innovative rollover protection and modular, threat-specific armor for multiple mission profiles.  This small silhouette vehicle can be used as reconnaissance, rescue/recovery, medevac, mobile security and rapid response vehicle.  The JAMMA can fit the bay cargo of the V-22 Osprey or larger aircraft, and comes in a Narrow Track Configuration (NTC) or in a Wide Track Configuration (WTC).  The vehicle can travel at a speed of 85 mph (136.8 kph), at a range of 450 mi (724.2 km), provided by a 3.2L V6 180hp Turbo Diesel engine and a automatic transmission.

A Mini Uzi in detail. (J. Montes)

Polaris is another company that has developed a number of ATVs that fill the gap left by the demise of the M151.  The Sportsman MV850, present in FIDAE, for instance, featured an 850cc / 77hp 4-stroke SOHC Twin cylinder gas engine; it has an 11.75 gal / 44.5 L fuel capacity, electronic power steering, black-out drive and is IR capable, has a 1,500 lbs. / 680.4 kg towing capacity, and it comes with front & rear metal racks.  The 2012 Ranger Military Diesel Crew refers to a small troop transport with room up to 6.  It comes with a 24 HP .9L/904cc Yanmar diesel engine, metal foldable dump box, keyless ignition, and a 1,000 lb (453.6 kg) rear box capacity plus a 2,000 lb (907.2 kg) towing capacity.

IAI presented the larger RAM MKIII, with an empty weight of 5.3 tons, and a payload of 1.2 tons, giving for a combat weight of 6.5 tons.  Although the RAM is a larger vehicle than those two previously mentioned, the initial concept of the RAMTA RBY MK-1 was to field a jeep size vehicle, lightly armored, and highly maneuverable, armed with machine guns, RCLs, and TOW missiles to attack heavy armored formations in southern Lebanon.  The RBY-MK1 became successful in Central and South America during the 1980s, and its lines inspired others such as the Carrancho from Chile, which used a Chevy S-10 pickup truck chassis; the Salvadorian built Cashuat light attack vehicle, based on the Dodge M-37B chassis, also follows similar lines and concept.  The RBY would eventually transform as weapons platform, with adaptation of the TCM-20 turret and the M40A1 106mm RCL.  The RAM-Mk III, at FIDAE, was presented as a tank killer equipped with NIMROD SR missile with an 8KM range.

– – – Part One of this article appears in SADJ Volume 4, Number 3. – – –

As threat forces match the firepower of the current rifle squad, the Marine Corps must maintain the innovative edge for which it is famous.  While experimentation is still required, the evaluations undertaken by Second Battalion, Seventh Marines, definitively indicate that the Marine Corps should place the M249 into a light machine gun role and add a true automatic rifle to the squad’s inventory.  (Conclusion to AUTOMATIC RIFLE CONCEPT, an unsigned monograph circa 2001, circulated in the USMC Infantry community)

Friends and foes of the M249 Squad Automatic Weapon in the U.S. Marine Corps’ infantry fire teams have been engaged in often fierce verbal firefights dating back years before this innovative light machine gun entered Leatherneck service; soon after the Army adopted FN’s MINIMI in 1984.  While the reasons for this are many and varied, astute observers often cite two main points of contention:

• Advocates of belt fed weapons like the M249 admire their relative portability and high volume of fire at critical times in offensive and defensive actions.
• Critics say the 5.56mm SAW‘s hefty 20+ pound combat weight slows movement and reliability issues too often degrade the gun’s claimed firepower advantage.

This second group has argued long and strenuously for an “Infantry Automatic Rifle” that’s both lighter and simpler than the SAW, with similar combat effectiveness from better accuracy and realistic capability in full auto and sustained fire.

Now, more than a quarter century after the Belgian belt-fed joined the Marines, and a decade after the infantry automatic rifle tests by 2nd Battalion 7th Marine Regiment, the IAR camp has won the argument.

“After a rigorous testing process, both in garrison and deployed environments, and in-depth consultation with weapons experts through the Corps, the Commandant approved the fielding of the M27 Infantry Automatic Rifle.  Fielding of the IAR will significantly enhance the ability of infantrymen to gain and maintain fire superiority, reduce the fighting load and provide them with a more ergonomic and accurate weapons system that can keep up during the assault.”  (USMC press statement, June 2011)

The winning IAR is a lightly modified HK416, beating out dozens of rivals along the way to earn Heckler & Koch an initial contract for as much as $23.6 million to supply up to 6,500 M27s.

More than 400 of these are already in the fight in Afghanistan and full fielding to all of the Corps’ Infantry Battalions and Light Armored Recon units should be complete in 2013.

January 2005, Camp Habbaniyah, Iraq. Iraqi soldiers aim in their magazine-fed 7.62x39mm RPK light machine guns during the Iraqi Small Arms Weapons Instructor Course taught by the Marines of the 2nd Marine Division Training Center here. Admiration of the combat efficiency of the Soviet-designed RPK was a factor in persistent and growing requests from rank-and-file Marines for a true automatic rifle. (USMC)

Back Story
What follows here contains only brief note of the tactical pros and cons of SAW vs. IAR because these have long been and are likely to remain an ongoing debate.  This is, we believe, best left to the Corps’ combat-hardened professionals who have a ‘Devil Dog,’ so to speak, in the fight.

Instead, it is intended to be a close look at how the Marine Corps went about the process of fielding what is hoped will be a worthy successor to the iconic “B.A.R.” – John Moses Browning’s Automatic Rifle.

In addition to official program documentation, our primary sources of information for this feature include three career Marines, each with detailed knowledge and relevant perspectives.  They are CWO5 (Ret) Jeffrey Eby, recently Senior Gunner for the Corps, Major (Ret) Charles Clark III, USMC Infantry Weapons Capabilities Integration Officer at Marine Corps Headquarters, and Gunnery Sergeant (Ret) Robert Reidsma, HK’s M27 IAR Project Manager.  Reidsma’s interview served well as the backbone for the first installment of this two-part series.

Additional input has come from other knowledgeable individuals who, not surprisingly, have asked not to be identified due to sensitivities both professional and personal.

Gunner Eby, now Advanced Technology Programs Manager for the cutting-edge weapon sighting systems innovator Trijicon, moved up steadily in rank and responsibilities from CWO2 with 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, to the pinnacle of this career field in the USMC.

An outspoken, principled and tireless advocate of the IAR from the time he was involved in the first real IAR trials around 2001 and continuing through the M27’s adoption, Eby offers us his detailed perspective on the Corps’ recent decision:

“The primary focus of replacing the M249 with a true automatic rifle stemmed from the understanding that the M249 is a Light Machine Gun that was adopted by the USMC because the Army had a contract method that we could use.  The goal of the effort that led to the M27 stemmed from a desire to reduce system weight from 26.5 lbs to 10.5 lbs, increase lethality by increasing the hit ratio of all shots fired and increase the portability of a system in the hands of an offensive force that is trying to “close with the enemy” as opposed to attempting to use a weapon such as the M249, better designed for defensive engagements.

“The Commandant of the Marine Corps, along with many other Marines, was concerned about the loss in pure volume of fire when moving from a belt fed weapon to a magazine fed weapon.  Experiments by Marine Corps Operational Test and Evaluation Activity (MCOTEA) proved that the M27 significantly outperformed the M249 in suppression, used significantly less ammunition and had less downtime during reloads when total down time was measured through a full combat load of ammunition.  This was especially true at night due to the complexity of the M249 function/operation creating a greater frequency of stoppages and malfunctions.

“The Marine Corps believes, as do I, that the M27 will prove to be a key component to:

• Level the movement, portability and maneuverability across all personnel,
• Reduce the visible indication of the location of automatic weapons to the enemy,
• Utilize a common ammunition source,
• Streamline all training tasks,
• Enhance the automatic rifleman’s direct fire contribution in Counter Insurgency environments when the volume of fire is not necessarily desirable (collateral damage),
• Allow the squad to maintain the ability to provide a high-volume of fire when required.

“The squad will be more lethal from accurate fires.  The squad will be more mobile from significant weight reduction of both weapon and total ammunition requirements.  The tempo of the rifle squad can now be set by the squad leader instead of the slow moving light machine gun.

Okinawa, 1945. A Marine of the 1st Marine Division draws a bead on a Japanese sniper with his .45 caliber Thompson submachine gun while his companion, armed with a .30-06 caliber Browning Automatic Rifle, ducks for cover. Although heavy and having only a 20 round magazine, the accurate, hard hitting and long-reaching BAR is held in highest regard by many veterans of WWII and Korea. The Corps’ subsequent tries at its replacement started with a bipod-equipped M14. When this proved unsatisfactory and ‘Fourteens’ were replaced during the Vietnam War with M16s, certain riflemen in each fire team were designated as ‘automatic riflemen.’ That didn’t work very well either so the Corps fielded the M249 in 1985. (US Marine Corps photo/National Archives)

“The loss of the psychological effect of a high volume of inaccurate fire provided by the M249 will NOT be an issue, as any combat veteran who has heard gunfire can attest to, as after the first “dive to cover” occasion has been conducted, the sound of inaccurate fire passing somewhere nearby no longer impresses the veteran to the point of taking cover.

“I do not believe there are any negatives to the M27 replacing the M249 from any aspect that has been considered.”

Some of the M27’s Main Marines
Success of the IAR initiative in the form of the M27 is the result of a team effort with many players in addition to Eby, Clark and his immediate predecessor, Patrick Cantwell.  These men and others, notably Major (now Lieutenant Colonel) John “Ethan” Smith, IAW Project Officer, labored long and hard in the honored tradition of quiet and selfless service to the Corps.

While the scope of this report doesn’t permit identifying all of them, some of the key personnel brought to our attention are Lieutenant Colonel Mark Brinkman, MARCORSYSCOM’s Product Group 13 Program Manager for Infantry Weapons, along with Captain Edward Leon, succeeding Smith as IAR/M27 Project Officer.  Also, working patiently and steadily behind the scenes was PMIW Engineering Team Leader Salvatore Fanelli, well known and respected for decades of important work in the world of military small arms.

Our initial requests through USMC public affairs channels to interview any of these men proved unsuccessful until persistent efforts eventually paid off with permission to conduct only one – a telephonic interview with Clark, speaking from his office at MCB Quantico, Virginia.  This retired Marine Major is the Infantry Weapons Capabilities Integration Officer for the Deputy Commandant for Combat Development and Integration, a three star command at Headquarters, Marine Corps.

Identifying himself as the “user representative” inside the acquisition process, Clark was well positioned in the latter stages of moving the IAR requirement through the bureaucratic maze.  The IWCIO and his five person team cover all infantry weapons, individual and crew served weapons, optics, sniper capabilities, and remote weapons stations.  They’re not only responsible for the requirements for each of those capabilities, but also for all the Marine Corps doctrine relating to those weapons systems.

However, the heavy 30-round drum proved to be unsatisfactory in service, and by 1938 the gun designer Shpagin developed an ‘add-on’ belt feed unit for the DK.  The modified DK with belt feed passed the usual trials and was subsequently adopted as DShK-38 (Degtyarov – Shpagin Krupnokalibernyj – Degtyarov and Shpagin large caliber, model of 1938).  While the DShK was a satisfactory weapon with reasonable power (at least to deal with low-flying aircraft and lightly armored vehicles), it had some peculiar properties, of which the most notable was the very heavy universal wheeled mount, which, despite its weight, could not provide the necessary gun stability and vibration dampening for accurate long range fire.  Overall, the DShK was a decent weapon, but it was built in relatively small numbers – by 1945 the USSR had only about 40,000 HMG’s in land and naval service (including U.S. made Browning M2HB supplied through the lend-lease program), mostly in Army AA units and on smaller naval crafts.  However, like the SG-43 it also was upgraded during the immediate post-war period, and also experienced a long service life, especially in so-called ‘Soviet satellite’ countries, as well as in many other Asian and African countries.

During the late 1930s, Soviet army experts developed a very powerful round for anti-tank rifles.  Known as 14.5×114, this round provided significant penetration and flat trajectory, and as soon as first anti-tank rifles entered the service, the Army requested development of a machine gun firing this potent round.  The first machine gun firing 14.5mm ammunition was developed in 1941 at the Red Army Small Arms Proving Ground near Moscow.  Designed by Simonin, it was a gas-operated weapon fed by Hotchkiss-type rigid strips with 10-round capacity.  Ten specimen of this gun were produced early in 1942, with five tested on T-60 light tanks and five more – on Kolesnikov mounts originally produced for DShK HMG.  The Simonin machine gun proved to be a formidable weapon, but was far too expensive for mass production.  It set the base for official requirements, issued by Army, and at least three design teams entered the race to produce an effective 14.5mm machine gun.

The eventual winner of the contest was designer Vladimirov, who quickly developed a belt-fed, air-cooled 14.5mm machine gun using the short-recoil action of his own experimental 20mm aircraft cannon V-20.  Development of the new HMG commenced in 1942, and the first working prototypes of the KPV were built by 1944.  They were initially tested on DShK wheeled mounts.  It must be noted that this design had some opponents in the Red Army ranks, who believed that a recoil-operated firearm would be less reliable than a gas-operated one.  Despite that, the KPV won the trials and after much refinement work it was adopted in 1949 in an infantry version (on a wheeled mount) and in three towed AA mountings (single, twin and quad).  Later on, its ‘tank’ version was used as the primary armament of some armored reconnaissance and personnel carrier vehicles such as BRDM, BTR-60D, BTR-70 and BTR-80.  In the AA role, KPV guns saw considerable action in the hands of the North Vietnamese armed forces, supplied from the USSR and China as military aid.  Later on, AA mounts with KPVT guns were used by the Soviet Army in Afghanistan, to fire up at Mujahidin hiding in the mountains and firing at Soviet bases and convoys from above.

Modified 12.7mm DShKM heavy machine gun on Soviet tank.

Quest for Squall Firepower
It is a well-known fact that Soviet designers routinely tried to produce various super-fast-firing machine guns (and later automatic cannons) since the late 1930s.  The prime use for such guns was to arm airplanes, although anti-aircraft tasks were also proposed for such weapons.  After much experimenting with single-barreled weapons and mechanically coupled ShKAS guns, another solution was tried.  Around 1936, designer Slostin developed a prototype rotary machine gun in 7.62x54R.  This weapon had a rotary cluster of 8 barrels a-la Gatling, but unlike most such systems it was self-powered, using gas pistons attached to each barrel.  Development of this “squall-firing gun” (in contemporary Russian terminology) with rates of fire reaching 6-8 thousands of rounds per minute, continued up until 1944 or 1945.  In 1944 the same designer started development of a much more formidable weapon, a 6-barreled self-powered (gas-operated) Gatling-type gun chambered for the powerful 14.5x114mm API and API-T ammunition.  This monstrous weapon was intended to serve as remotely-operated AA weapon for the super-heavy IS-7 tank then in development. At least one prototype machine gun was built, but tank designers choose the slower-firing but significantly lighter and probably more reliable KPVT instead.

In fact, the prototype IS-7 tank (as made in 1947) was one of the most heavily armed tracked vehicles of its time – in addition to its rifled 130mm main gun it carried two 14.5mm KPVT machine guns (one on a remotely-controlled AA mount and one co-axial with the main gun) and six 7.62mm SGMT machine guns.  Development of the Slostin multi-barrel machine guns was terminated shortly after WW2, but the general idea lived on.  During the 1970s, Soviet designers Yakushev and Borzov developed a 4-barreled self-powered (gas operated) rotary machine gun, known as YakB-12.7.  It was and still is widely deployed as a primary armament of the Mil Mi-24 “Hind” attack helicopter.  To ensure increased effectiveness of this weapon against massed unprotected infantry (typical for Chinese army of 1960s and 1970s), Soviet Air force adopted special duplex loading for YakB-12.7 along with more common ball, API and API-T rounds in 12.7×108.

Post-WW2 Developments
The venerable 12.7mm DShKM served well into the 1960s, but it was far too heavy for mobile warfare, and proved to be insufficiently accurate over longer ranges.  Therefore, a new requirement was drawn up for an improved 12.7mm HMG, which could be used as an infantry support weapon (on a tripod), as a tank defensive weapon (cupola-mounted) or as a short-range AA weapon (on dedicated mounts).  Development of a new weapon was initiated in 1969, and in 1972 the Soviet Army adopted the design by Nikitin, Sokolov and Volkov.  Known as the NSV-12.7, this weapon is also known as “Utjos” (Cliff; the original codename of the development program).  This weapon was significantly lighter than the DShKM especially in its infantry support configuration.  On a tripod and with 50 rounds in a belt the NSV weighed some 100 kg / 220 lbs. less than the DShKM on its wheeled mount with the same amount of ammunition.  It was also more accurate and better suited for contemporary production techniques.  The NSV quickly replaced the DShKM on Soviet tanks, as well as with infantry units as a heavy support weapon and in certain non-infantry units as a short-range AA weapon (on dedicated low-profile AA mounts).  It saw considerable action in Afghanistan, and later in Chechnya, being used at stationary posts and, sometimes, mounted on the MT-LB tracked armored vehicles and army trucks to provide convoys and small mobile units with additional firepower.

The last decade of the 20th century was rather turbulent.  The fall of the Soviet Union left some military factories located outside Russia; worse still, some of these factories were the primary makers of certain weapon types, such as the 12.7mm NSV and NSVT HMGs.  The Metallist factory that made these guns for the Soviet army remained in the now-independent Kazakhstan, and it kept all master drawings and other manufacturing documentation for this important weapon.  It was therefore decided to take the opportunity to develop an improved HMG for use both by infantry and on vehicles (mostly tanks), and this task was handed over to the designers of the Degtyarov plant (ZID, the former Degtyarov machine gun factory) in the city of Kovrov.

The new 12.7mm weapon was to retain the same mounting interfaces as the NSV, while providing better long-range accuracy.  The ZID team did not have to start from the ground up – actually, the factory’s design team had been working on an improved 12.7mm HMG since 1987 – but the fall of the USSR delayed its development.  The new Russian Army requirement allowed them to shake the dust from their older design drawings, and while development was rather slow (because of the constant lack of funding), the finalized gun was adopted by the Russian Army in 1997 and put into mass production in 2001.  Known as KORD (Konstruktsija ORuzheinikov-Degtyarovtsev – design of Degtyarov plant team), or under the official index 6P50, this weapon is now issued to infantry troops and is mounted on most modern Russian tanks, such as the T-80U and T-90, as well as on jeeps and on ground mounts.  Because it uses the same firing and mounting interface, KORD can be also retrofitted to older tanks (i.e. T-64 and T-72), to replace worn-out NSVT-12.7 weapons.  One unusual feature of the KORD is its relatively low recoil, which allows it to be used not only from the same lightweight tripod as the NSV, but also from a proprietary bipod mount, creating what could be called a lightweight heavy MG.  In this configuration the KORD weighs ‘only’ 31kg / 68 lbs. less ammunition, thus allowing it to be carried on the battlefield by a single soldier, although obviously for short distances only.  This makes the KORD useful during ‘limited warfare’ operations in urban and forest environments, as the HMG team can change positions almost as fast as the infantry it supports, and is able to fire from almost anywhere, including the high stories of urban buildings (through the windows) or even from the rooftops.