KUALA LUMPUR: The story below from Defensenews is self explanatory. I would like to say I told you so but I do not feel I had won anything. Malaysian Defence and its readers had since 2006 questioned the decision to adopt the M4/M16A4 as the standard Malaysian Army assault rifle and the story from DefenseNews vindicated our concerns. The US Army is to ditch the M4 soon and perhaps within two years, they will be equipped with new carbines and even rifles. It is most likely the rest of the US forces, Marines and others will follow the Big Green transition to the new weapon and ditch the Black Rifle. The Malaysian Army in the meantime, will be using the M4 and M16A4 for at least another 20 years or so. We already accepted some 14,000 rifles and if not for the economic downturn, we could have ordered another 30,000 or more of the Black Rifles.
By next year, the US will field its last batch of M4s and M16A4s , so we will have the dubious honour of fielding new Black Rifles in the foreseeable future. Of course, thousands of M4s will be available within the next two decades, but it will be funny isnt it if we were to start looking for a new rifle to replace the Black Rifle within the next few years so. At the same time, it will also be funny for the Malaysian Army to continue purchasing new M4s and M16A4s as the primary user had declared it redundant.
Also from the story below, it appears that SMEO had paid Colt LLC for nothing by acquiring the exclusive manufacturing rights in the country as the design rights of the M4 had been taken over by the US Army. Does this mean that SMEO now has to sign a new contract with the US Army and perhaps has to fork out extra payment to manufacture the M4 in-country now? I am not sure about that but when I found out I will report it here.
Soldiers could have a new carbine by 2012, unless a Congressional budget impasse slows it down. The Army requested $9.9 million for fiscal 2010, money needed to start the solicitation process for a competition that stands to draw dozens of small arms companies waiting for the chance to unseat the M4 as the Army’s primary soldier weapon.
In July, the service took control of the design rights to the M4 carbine from its sole maker, Colt Defense LLC. The transition of ownership of the M4 technical data package marked the end of an era and Colt’s exclusive status as the only manufacturer of the M4 for the U.S. military for the past 15 years. The transfer of the licensing agreement also frees up the Army to give other companies a crack at a carbine contract. Last November, Army senior leadership announced the service’s intent to open a competition for a new carbine this fall. Then Army Secretary Pete Geren directed the Army’s Infantry Center at Fort Benning, Ga., to update the carbine requirement in preparation for a search for a replacement for the M4. At the same time, the Army is slated to finish fielding the last of its 473,000 M4 requirement some time next year.
Small-arms companies waiting for the chance to compete for the Army’s next carbine view Colt’s loss of the M4 TDP as a new beginning for the industry and for soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.
KUALA LUMPUR: As promised, here is some news from Paris.
First of all, the generous French had agree to extend the RM1.604 billion price for the 12 Eurocopter EC725 until February, next year. Initially, the deadline for the price was set to end next month but apparently they had decided to be more generous during these hard times.
There is no firm word whether the government will make the final decision on the procurement any time soon. Malaysian Defence believes that a decision, if any, would be made when the budget is announced probably after September. I am not holding my breath as the air force is already making plans to upgrade some of its Nuri helicopters to extend their service lives beyond 2015.
And as for A400M, it looks like that the status quo remains unless some extraordinary happened in Europe, which is unlikely.
Apart from those two tidbits, Malaysian Defence had a ” Huh” moment today when told that the Armed Forces chief will be soon visiting China. The visit came hard on the heels of the Dear PM visit to the country once known to Malaysians as the Bamboo Curtain.
Malaysian Defence is not suggesting any arms deals is in the offing as the PAT knows that the quality of the Chinese M4 clones are not that great but there are other things in the PRC’s arsenal’s that might interest us……
Initially Malaysian Defence thought the story was just to justify the issuance of the M4 Carbine to US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, in the face of field reports that the weapon was prone to jamming (which was true but it is easily fixed by fitting a plastic cap on the muzzle and religious cleaning) but the news story when further.
You can get the full story here. One can also download the full survey on the web page. Its about a survey “commissioned by the US Army’s Project Manager for Soldier Weapons to address concerns raised by soldiers returning from combat about the dependability and effectiveness of their small arms” in Iraq and Afghanistan.
As the study will be used by the US Army to “assess Soldier perspectives on the reliability and durability of their weapons systems in combat to aid in decisions regarding current and future small arms needs of the Army” perhaps the Malaysian Armed Forces officers involved in the tender exercise should also use it as a guideline when selecting the weapons to be selected for our soldier usage.
The study also becomes more pertinent to the Malaysian Armed Forces as the survey also touched on the effectiveness of accessories.
“Soldiers who attach accessories to their weapons experienced a disproportionate number of malfunctions, with M249 users nine times more likely to experience a stoppage “if accessories were attached via zip cord, four times more likely if attached with duct tape and three times more likely if attached with dummy cords or rails.”
“Accessory attachments had a significant impact on reported stoppages,” the report said. “Those who attached accessories to their weapon were more likely to experience stoppages, regardless of how the accessories were attached.”
Malaysian Defence on several occasions stated that we must learn from the experiences of US and NATO forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. Learning from them does not mean that we are supporting their operations in both countries. Definitely not. ‘ But as another imperialist use to say before “Learning from the enemy is a virtue”
As for the other two? The mag is already in service in Malaysia but the HK gun was never used here, it is already been replaced the newer MG4. Just enjoy the show! If the YouTube link is slow go here
The story below speaks volume. Every one else apparently chose something esle. Our forces. meanwhile, are following the US military by opting to use the M4 despite the well publicised problems with it.
The US military has a good reason. It is willing to wait for a laser gun to replace the M16/M4 series. Our excuse? None, although I have some idea why. It is libelous though!
News story and picture from hkpro.com
4.13.2007: The Norwegian Army adopts HK416 and places order for 8,200 units. After 11 years, the search for a rifle to replace the AG-3 is over. First units expected to be delivered in November. Order is worth $16.7 million. New rifles to be fitted with Aimpoints in an order worth $8.3 million.
Malaysian Defence is the ramblings of Marhalim Abas, a senior writer with The Malay Mail. Malaysian Defence hopes to fill the void by the mainstream media which regard defence and security as a passing fad. Covering Malaysian Defence without fear or favour and with dignity
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