stancrist said...

As I recall, the Army did not want the M16.  It was forced to adopt the M16 by the Secretary of Defense.

My recalling is the same.

The USAF lobbied the Sec Def for issuing the M16 as a replacement for the M1/M2 carbines instead of the Army M14, the M16E1 was put into Air Force service, and when it was clear that the M14 was a dead end the Sec Def forced the Army to adopt the M16 which was already in service in the Air Force...

Army Times article - https://www.armytimes.com/off-duty/gearscout/irons/2019/08/30/the-army-just-got-closer-to-ditching-the-m4-and-saw-for-a-next-generation-weapon/

stancrist said...

Army Times article

Funny how the lethal range of the 5.56 mm weapons keeps going up and down depending on the point the authors want to make   Despite the much better performance claimed for the M855A1, it's now down to 300 m again...

"Funny how the lethal range of the 5.56 mm weapons keeps going up and down depending on the point the authors want to make   Despite the much better performance claimed for the M855A1, it's now down to 300 m again..."

These type of articles are typically short on technically accurate info. 

Not too many are going to delve into BC, frag range, etc. 

M855A1 .152 G7 @ 2950fps

1700fps frag range = 450yd / 410m

Supersonic Range = 715yd / 650m

Breacher attachment, with a little sharpening. ;)

Or follow the British lead, and use a bayonet with hollow handle that fits onto the flash suppressor.

Some more photos and info from SIG:

https://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2019/09/03/sig-sauer-ngsw-prototype/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zU_asWoy_q8

“The U.S. Army challenged the industry to bring forward significant improvements to the legacy weapons. The SIG SAUER NGSW-AR is lighter in weight, with dramatically less recoil than that currently in service, while our carbine for the NGSW-Rifle submission is built on the foundation of SIG SAUER weapons in service with the premier fighting forces across the globe.  Both weapons are designed with features that will increase the capabilities of the soldier,” commented Cohen. “The final component of the SIG SAUER Next Generation Weapons System is our suppressor, which through exhaustively researched design enhancements, reduces harmful backflow and signature.”

 From the sound of it, the 6.8 LMG features a novel recoil reduction system, while the carbine does not, and instead based on SIG's existing MCX series of rifles. 

Overall their new lightweight LMG - which is backwards compatible with 7.62 and 6.5 Creedmoor - looks very promising. Their carbine looks pretty meh though, and is likely going to be pretty harsh in 6.8.