Tag Archives: Precision Sniper Rifle

Barrett Ships First New MK22 Army Precision Sniper Rifles

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The MK22 is a version of Barrett’s popular MRAD bolt gun, which can be swapped between three different calibers on the fly, hence the “Multi-Role Adaptive Rifle” abbreviation.

Tennessee-based Barrett Firearms recently announced the first batch of new MK22 Precision Sniper Rifles have been shipped to the U.S. Army.

The U.S. Special Operations Command in 2019 tapped Barrett to produce what were then termed new Advanced Sniper Rifles identified in SOCOM’s budget justification book as part of an effort to continue “development of enhanced capabilities to improve performance” of “individual sniper weapons to engage out to 1500 meters.”

They soon followed up with this award earlier this year with a five-year $49.9 million contract under the Army’s Precision Sniper Rifle program for Barrett’s MRAD (Multi-Role Adaptive Design) MK22 MOD 0 rifle, paired with a Leupold’s Mark 5HD 5-25×56 optic, complete with a flat dark earth coating and the Army’s patented Mil-Grid reticle and sniper accessory kit. The MK22 will replace several currently fielded Army sniper rifles.

A special operations sniper participating in the MK22 Precision Sniper Rifle (PSR) test conducts vertical wind tunnel testing with his MK22 in the “front-mount” configuration. (Photo: Mr. Michael Zigmond, audiovisual production specialist, U.S. Army Operational Test Command)

More in my column over at Guns.com.

Cracking the Army’s Budget Book on SmallArms

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The Army’s recently announced budget request for the fiscal year 2022 includes at least $114 million for new rifles, handguns, and the next generation of small arms. 

While the overall FY2022 Defense Department Budget is $112 billion, most of the non-operational dollars are for high-level R&D and big-ticket items like the F-35 fighter. The Army’s budget book for weapons and tracked combat vehicles meanwhile has a low nine-figure ask when it comes to individual small arms. 

The bulk ($97 million) is to go to the Next Generation Squad Weapons, with much of the balance to acquire new Barrett-made Precision Sniper Rifles, and a few crumbs for M4s, M17s, and the like.

More in my column at Guns.com.

SOCOM Getting More Precision rifles

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When it comes to new guns for SOCOM, the command’s FY21 budget justification book details that over the past two years 1,562 MK27s (Glock 19 Gen 4s) were acquired along with 1,930 Upper Receiver Groups-Improved (URG-Is), 250 new Personal Defense Weapons, and 450 new ASRs.

ASR?

Oh, that would be the Multi-Role Adaptive Rifle/MK22 Advanced Sniper Rifle award issued by the U.S. Special Operations Command in 2019 to Barrett as part of an effort to continue “development of enhanced capabilities to improve performance” of “individual sniper weapons to engage out to 1500 meters.”

The MK22 is a version of Barrett’s popular MRAD bolt gun, which can be swapped between three different calibers on the fly, hence the “Multi-Role Adaptive Rifle” abbreviation.

Barrett just pulled down a $50~ milly contract for ASRs from the Army, btw.

Sig: Next-Gen Weapons Delivered to the Army

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Sig Sauer this week announced it has completed the delivery of the company’s Next Generation Squad Weapons system to the U.S. Army.

The company is one of three contractors who in 2019 got the nod from the Pentagon to continue with the NGSW program. The sweeping initiative aims to replace the Army’s 5.56mm NATO small arms – the M4 Carbine and M249 Squad Automatic Weapon. Sig’s program consists of an in-house-designed lightweight high-performance 6.8x51mm (.277-caliber) hybrid ammunition, NGSW-AR lightweight machine guns, NGSW-R rifles (based on the MCX carbine), and next-gen suppressors.

They certainly look the part and, if selected, would give Sig the small arms hattrick as their P320s have been adopted as the DOD’s standard handgun to replace everything from the USAF’s lingering K-frame 38s to the Marine’s M45 CQB railguns and everything in between. At that point, the only man-portable system used by the Army not made by Sig would be the M240 and M2, which FN still has a lock on.

More in my column at Guns.com.

Meet the MK22, the Neapolitan Ice Cream of Precision Rifles

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Murfreesboro, Tennessee-based Barrett Firearms this week announced that the United States Special Operations Command has placed an initial production order for their new MK22 rifle.

The MK22 set for delivery to the military is based on Barrett’s MRAD bolt-action precision rifle in .338 Norma Mag, .300 Norma Mag, and 7.62 NATO. The MRAD uses a monolithic upper receiver with caliber conversion kits utilizing a separate barrel assembly and bolt that can be changed on the fly in minutes by the user.

More in my column at Guns.com

NGSW? Don’t Hold Your Breath

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The current NGSW field 

The U.S. Army is full-speed ahead on an initiative to select a new series of innovative 6.8mm-caliber Next Generation Squad Weapons to phase out its 5.56mm platforms for combat troops. However, it would seem the Department of the Army is hedging their bets with traditional systems just in case things don’t work out like planned such as in past ambitious programs for futuristic small arms.

In April, FN won a 5-year $119 million contract for new M4/M4A1 Carbines from the company’s South Carolina factory– where 500 of the shorty 5.56s roll out every, single, day.

And this week, Big Army likewise issued a $78 million award to FN for more M249s, the squad-level U.S-made variant of the FN Minimi light machine gun that has been standard since 1982.

Just google the Individual Carbine (IC), Objective Individual Combat Weapon (OICW), or the Advanced Combat Rifle (ACR) programs to see why keeping the legacy infantry arms in production until things work out is a good idea.

The army advanced combat rifle ACR prototypes.

After SPIW, ACR, and OCIW, is NGSW the charm?

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Despite past programs such as SPIW, ACR, and OCIW that left the U.S. Army still fielding successive generations of Eugene Stoner’s AR platform at the end of the day, today’s NGSW program could be different. The new Next Generation Squad Weapon program is moving right along and its competitors read like a who’s who of modern rifle, ammo, and optics makers.

Names like Beretta, Heckler & Koch, Leupold, Sig Sauer, Vortex, and Olin-Winchester are enumerated among the current vendors of what could end up as the most revolutionary small arms award of the 21st Century thus far.

The current field

More in my column at Guns.com

Army Goes Leupold for glass to put on new MK 22 rifles

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Oregon-based Leupold announced they have been selected to provide the day optic for the U.S. Army’s Precision Sniper Rifle (PSR) program.

The PSR, dubbed the MK22 Mod 0 in Army service, is based on the Barrett MRAD bolt-action multi-caliber system chambered in 7.62 NATO, .300 Norma Magnum, and .338 Norma Magnum. The glass of choice on the new platform, used by SOCOM, will be Leupold’s Mark 5HD 5-25×56, complete with a flat dark earth coating and the Army’s patented Mil-Grid reticle.

Leupold’s Mark 5HD 5-25×56 will be provided in a flat dark earth coating and utilize the Army’s Mil-Grid reticle. When mounted on the Barrett MRAD, it will be the standard day optic for the MK22 PSR. (Photo: Leupold)

More in my column at Guns.com.