USMC’s New M-32s/ MSGLs: Hitting the Field

No worse enemy…(click to view full) While high-tech weapons items get a lot of billing, the Global War on Terror is very much an infantry war. Firepower overmatch matters in those situations, which explains the corresponding popularity of 40mm grenade systems on the modern battlefield. Enter, then, the US Marine Corps’ M-32 six-shot 40mm grenade launcher. During an annual symposium several years ago, Marine gunners decided that they needed an option that was more powerful than the ubiquitous M203 one-shot launchers that mount under their M4 or M16 rifles. The M-32 won out as an experimental weapon for each marine battalion – and now a variant appears to have won a larger formal competition. Milkor’s M-32/ MSGL Loading up…(click to view full) The USMC joined the South African, Brazilian, Italian and Philippine militaries in fielding MGL-140 derivative multi-shot 40mm grenade systems. Law enforcement models are also available, though they would be used to shoot incapacitating rounds instead. The M-32 began fielding with the USMC in 2006. It’s a modified Milkor MGL-140 with additional features. Key modifications include the fore-grip, the collapsible modular buttstock and recoil pad, a MIL-STD-1913 “Quad Rail” set of fore end Picatinny Sight Rail. The weapon also […]