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“Former Iraq Security Contractors Say Firm Bought Black Market Weapons, Swapped Booze for Rockets” says the ProPublica headline. They’re talking about a firm called Triple Canopy, a security contractor who replaced Blackwater (now Xe) as the US diplomatic service’s bodyguards in Iraq, and also had other contracts in theater to protect allied bases and installations, some of which were covered here.

Allegations and legal depositions state that the firm traded booze for weapons, and bought weapons and vehicles on the black market in Iraq between 2003-2004. At least one of those employees have expressed concern that the money used to buy these items may have ended up in the hands of Iraq’s Islamists, who were connected to criminal enterprises in Iraq at a number of different levels.

The article itself turns out to be more balanced than its headline might indicate, and the detailed accusations are linked to detailed responses; both are worth reading. Beginning with the revelation that significant responsibility for this state of affairs traces right back to the US State Department…

• State Department Self-Inflicted?
• Triple Canopy: Allegations & Approach
• Policy Issues
  
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SIG P226 Navy
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The US DoD recently announced a 3-year, firm-fixed-price $353.7 million contract to Sig Sauer, Inc. in Exeter, NH. This contract covers Sig Sauer’s P226 and P228 pistols, as well as contractor furnished spare parts. Work is to be performed in Exeter, NH, and the contract will run until April 25/12. One bid was solicited, with one bid received.

The P226 lost out to Beretta’s 92F as the US military’s “M9” main sidearm, but the Navy SEALs subsequently adopted it. The P228/ M11 is a compact version that serves with US Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps flight crews, as well as criminal investigation units like Army CID, Air Force OSI, and Navy CIS. Pistol reviews of the SIG P226 9mm and the P228 9mm can be found on The Arms Site.

Inquiries to TACOM Rock Island, IL, who manages the contract, revealed that this particular contract is not targeted at the American military…

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Base, Bleeding Out?
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Back in July 2005, DID informed its readers that India’s sanctions against Denel and possible disqualification from a $2 billion artillery contract could have a major effect on the South African defense firm as a whole. In August 2005, those sanctions came to pass, barring Denel from a contract it was likely to win and accelerating efforts already underway to radically restructure the firm.

CEO Shaun Liebenberg launched that shift in late 2005 with some frank discussion of the global defense market, and the position of small-medium players like Denel in it. At DSEI 2005 in London, UK, the outline of this new strategy was already apparent. Many of the products Denel is known for will no longer define the firm. But could it find a way to stanch the bleeding and survive in a globalized market?

And how has it done since?

• Denel’s Position
• Denel’s New Strategy
• Updates and Key Events [updated]
  
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FAC Kfir C7
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Colombia’s narco-terrorist FARC army has reportedly lost some of its military shine recently, thanks to years of unswerving pressure from the Colombian army. Much of that pressure has been led by the popular President Uribe, who has apparently ruled out a bid for constitutional amendments and an attempt at a 3rd term of office, but allowed a related referendum proposal to go forward. Delays to that proposal now appear to be solidifying Uribe’s term limit exit. Before that 2010 exit, however, a special tax levied in 2006 is set to finance about $4 billion worth of military hardware, and add stronger backing to those military gains.

Colombia’s El Tiempo newspaper reports that the deals are meant to solidify and modernize the military, and will include a wide variety of equipment from American, French, German, Israeli, and Russian suppliers. Additional research has added more details, and key deliveries have now begun.

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MK13 Mod 5
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ATK subsidiary Federal Cartridge Co. in Anoka, MN received a $49.9 million firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/ indefinite-quantity contract for .300 Winchester magnum ammunition. Maximum quantity is 80,100 boxes of 480 rounds each, minimum is 117 boxes. This ammunition will be used by U.S. forces engaged in combat, and by the US Navy in Match Team competition.

300 Winchester offers longer range, better accuracy, and more hitting power than standard NATO 7.62×51 mm rounds. The MK248 MOD 1 cartridge grew out of the .300 Winchester Magnum Product Improvement Program…

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Dutch MP fires C8
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Use means wear. Wear means maintenance or replacement. Use in combat conditions also generates life-or-death requests for improvements. The Dutch are facing al of these imperatives thanks to combat operations in southern Afghanistan, and so they are turning their attention to the weapons their soldiers carry. Their army currently uses a combination of C7 (M16), C8 (M4), and LSW (M16 CAR sustained fire weapon) rifles from Diemaco (now Colt Canada), and FN Herstal’s Minimi 5.56mm light machine gun. Under Project SRIM-OAD, the Dutch intend to RESET and upgrade 25,000 Diemaco rifles, and receive 2,000 new and upgraded Minimis, in order to re-equip their front line forces. The Dutch also aim to keep a spares reserve of 5% for mechanical elements and 10% for optical elements; the latter figure being because optics are more delicate and have longer repair or replacement times.

This EUR 43.8 million (VAT tax included, about $56 million) project will add at least 2 major upgrades to their weapons, and a contract has now been signed.

• SRIM-OAD Modifications
• Contracts and Key Events
  
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Is it?
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In February 2007, “2006 Carbine Competition: What Happened, Revealed” discussed an Army solicitation for competitive procurement of 5.56mm carbines, which was withdrawn once sole-source incumbent Colt dropped its prices. The DoD’s Inspector General got involved with a critical report, but the Army dissented, defending its practices as a sound negotiating approach that saved the taxpayer a lot of money on the contract. As it turns out, there’s a sequel. A major sequel, that’s only getting bigger with time.

It seemed like a routine request. Order more M4 carbines for US forces in the FY 2007 supplemental, FY 2008 budget, and FY 2008 supplemental funding bills. It has turned into anything but a routine exercise, however – with serving soldiers, journalists, and Senators casting a very critical eye on the effort and the rifle, and demanding open competition. With requests amounting to $375 million for weapons and $150 million in accessories, they say, the Army’s proposal amounts to an effort to replace the M16 as the USA’s primary battle rifle – using specifications that are around 15 years old, without a competition, and without considering whether better 5.56 mm alternatives might be available off the shelf. Meanwhile, the M4/M16 family is both praised and criticized for its current performance in the field.

DID explains the effort, the issues, and the options. The latest developments? The M4 and 3 competitors, including one M4 variant that can be converted from existing rifles, come out of a sandstorm reliability test – and the M4 finishes dead last, with more than 3.5x more jams than the 3rd place finisher. But the US Army publicly says that it doesn’t care. Low-grade political pressure has continued on Capitol Hill, and the Army appears to be backtracking now, with a competition that may even be open to all calibers. Is their latest information request to industry serious, or just a replay of past practices? Meanwhile, single-source contracts to Colt continue…

• The M4 Carbine
• Nobody Loves Me but My Mother – and She Could Be Jivin’ Too…
• The Cry for Competition: How Much Is That HK In the Window?
• Testing, Testing – Fairly?
• UPDATES: The Tests, Reactions, and Subsequent Developments
• Any Last Words?
• Appendix A: M4 Carbine Contracts Announced to Date [updated]
• Appendix B: Additional Readings & Sources – News & Developments
• Appendix C: Additional Readings & Sources – Weapons
  
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M249 SAW, Afghanistan
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The US Marines are looking to replace their M249 5.56mm light machine guns in their infantry and Light Armored Reconnaissance (LAR) battalions. Many have become worn from use, and can be more hindrance than help in some of the close-quarters urban warfare situations dominating current battlefields. They also have a reputation for jamming, and at 15 pounds empty, these belt-fed weapons are rather heavy.

In its initial 2005 FedBizOps.com solicitation for an “Infantry Automatic Rifle” (IAR), the Marines wanted two big things. First, the gun had to fire from either the open or closed bolt position. This would give it the single-shot and “first through the door” capabilities that the M249 lacks, while allowing for more sustained fire than an M16 can handle without risking ammunition “cook off” in a heated barrel. It also had to be considerably lighter than the M249, at just 12.5 pounds maximum and 10.5 pounds desired weight. In exchange, the Marines decided they were willing to trade the SAW’s belt-fed design for switchable 30 round magazines, which are used up much more quickly but can also be changed in battle much more quickly.

The result is not a true light machine gun, but something in between an LMG and an assault rifle. That shift in the 13-man Marine squad has its advocates and detractors. December 2008 saw the initial set of awards for IAR designs, which will eventually be narrowed down to a single winner. DID offers more background concerning the USMC’s IAR contenders and contracts – 2 of which have a US SOCOM background…

• The Contenders
• IAR What IAR: The Choice
• Contracts and Key Events
• Additional Readings
  
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M203 on M4 Carbine
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In March 2008, “Iraq’s Military Requesting $1.39B in Weapons, Vehicles, and Equipment” discussed that country’s decisive shift to the M-16/M4 family of weapons for its soldiers. Previous DSCA purchase requests in October 2007 and September 2006 has also included the rifles, but by February 2008, it became clear that this was a full replacement program for the AK-derivative 7.62mm designs that had become so ubiquitous in that part of the world.

The latest official purchase request announced [PDF] by the US DSCA continues this trend, ans Iraq orders up to $148 million worth of small arms to equip its growing forces. Iraq’s request includes 80,000 M16A4 5.56mm Rifles, 25,000 of the more compact M4 5.56mm Carbines, and 2,550 M203 40mm Grenade Launchers that mount under the rifle’s barrel. The usual spare and repair parts, support equipment, and other forms of support are included, and some US government representatives will be required in theater. Exactly how many and for how long will be determined during contract negotiations, but the aim will be to make maximum use of existing US and Iraqi personnel. The principal contractors are Colt Manufacturing Company in Hartford, CT, who still has an exclusive license for the M4, and and FN Manufacturing Group Herstal, S.A. in Herstal, Belgium.

M203 on M4 Carbine
(click to view full)

In March 2008, “Iraq’s Military Requesting $1.39B in Weapons, Vehicles, and Equipment” discussed that country’s decisive shift to the M-16/M4 family of weapons for its soldiers. Previous DSCA purchase requests in October 2007 and September 2006 has also included the rifles, but by February 2008, it became clear that this was a full replacement program for the AK-derivative 7.62mm designs that had become so ubiquitous in that part of the world.

The latest official purchase request announced [PDF] by the US DSCA continues this trend, as Iraq seeks to buy up to $148 million worth of small arms to equip its growing forces. Iraq’s request includes 80,000 M16A4 5.56mm Rifles, 25,000 of the more compact M4 5.56mm Carbines, and 2,550 M203 40mm Grenade Launchers that mount under the rifle’s barrel.

The usual spare and repair parts, support equipment, and other forms of support are included, and some US government representatives will be required in theater. Exactly how many and for how long will be determined during contract negotiations, but the aim will be to make maximum use of existing US and Iraqi personnel. The principal contractors are Colt Manufacturing Company in Hartford, CT, who still has an exclusive license for the M4, and and FN Manufacturing Group Herstal, S.A. in Herstal, Belgium.