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The Spectacle Blog
News reports often cover the sadness, brutality, and ugliness of war. It is right and desirable that this side of war be presented in an honest straightforward way. But there’s more to the picture.
This post won’t list all of the recent changes brought by military necessity and science, but it will list a few that may have escaped notice.
Without a doubt the greatest spin-off from the recent wars on Islamists terrorists in Southwest Asia, is the bandage approved by the FDA in 2002. Prior to the U.S. Army’s search for a more effective way to stop hemorrhaging, it used the century old method, direct pressure and gauze. Since 2002, a bandage using shrimp shells and vinegar has been used to “clot a bullet wound in under a minute.” Chitosan, a polysaccharide in shrimp shells, has anti-bacterial properties as well, making it ideal for its designed purpose. Obviously, lives are saved on the battlefield with this bandage, and equally obvious this bandage has applications beyond the battlefield.
In the more common area of concern for militaries, guns and ammo, the right bullet and rifle combination for snipers has continued to be an area of testing and fielding since the war in Afghanistan began. In an evolution bound to please many a virgin-seeking Talibani, the round of choice setting records is the .338 Lapua Magnum. How good is it? No round is better than the rifle and the rifleman shooting it. On May 2, the Times of London reported on what is now believed to be the longest kill-shots ever with a sniper rifle — at a distance of 1.5 miles. The sniper used the .338 Lapua Magnum, and he duplicated the shot immediately after the first to kill a second Taliban machine gunner. Corporal Craig Harrison of the UK’s Household Cavalry, using an Accuracy International L115A3, clearly is an exceptional shot. But equally clear is that the militaries defending the West are doing their best to research, test, and field the best equipment to enhance capabilities. The days of a hidebound military are long gone. The .338 Lapau Magnum is replacing the .308 Winchester (a.k.a. the 7.62mm) and the much larger .50 caliber bullet because of its practical advantages having more range than the .308 and being much lighter than the .50 caliber.
Fox News reports that the U.S. Army is taking a second look to the M4 Rifle, the rifle that replaced the M16. The impetus for this review is as old as the M16. That is its bullet versus the one fired in the famous AK-47. Concerns about the terminal ballistics of the lighter 5.56 mm bullet versus the heavier 7.62x39mm bullet no doubt means this debate will go on for a long time, possibly with the Army adopting a new caliber for its main rifle. I’d think the .260 Remington would be a good choice. The round won’t shoot as flat as a 5.56mm bullet. Servicemen won’t be able to carry as many rounds, but the round is not difficult to shoot because its recoil isn’t abusive; it retains energy in flight and has excellent terminal ballistics. The Army’s Test Command will likely look at many different options if there truly is consideration ongoing to replace the 5.56mm bullet.
As long as we have boots on the ground, mundane weapons like small arms will matter.
View all comments (19) | Leave a comment
More Blog Posts by C.H. Fowler
http://spectator.org/blog/2010/05/26/war-caused-innovations
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ken (Old Texican)| 5.26.10 @ 1:22PM
Mr. Fowler,
don't most fireteams have a "mix" of long arms?
That seems to be the answer doesn't it?
Alan Brooks| 5.26.10 @ 3:40PM
Mr. Fowler,
Call it DARPA-- not all the readers here are dopes.
C.H. Fowler| 5.26.10 @ 6:27PM
Mr. Brooks,
I do not believe any of the readers of American Spectators are dopes.
Respectfully,
C.H. Fowler
C.H. Fowler| 5.26.10 @ 6:24PM
Yes, they do. But the one used for the sniper rifle will not be mixed among the many posibilities. As much as possible, there will be a desire to limit the variety of ammunition for interoperability.
John - TMF| 5.26.10 @ 2:07PM
Actually the most likely candidate for replacing the 5.56 mm NATO is the 6.8mm Remington SPC. It is a cartridge based on the old .30 cal Rem, and seems to be the best compromise because with very few modifications (re-manufactured upper receivers and barrels...) the existing M4/M16 series can be easily upgraded for relatively low cost. The amount of ammunition that can be carried is smaller, but only slightly so. Recoil is slightly more stout but not nearly as much as a similar AR-10 in 7.62mm
My father was a battalion S3 in Vietnam (1966-1967) during the switch over from the M14 to the M16. He didn't have much good to say about the M16. He like the CAR15, but as a carbine sized weapon he understood the difference in performance.
r/TMF
Lullaby's, Legends and Lies| 5.26.10 @ 3:46PM
The M4 didn't exactly replace the M16, it's the same weapon, except that the M4 is collapsable, therefore smaller, and a bit lighter too. But what I'm really impressed by though is, the shot this sniper took at 1.5 miles (twice)? Holy crap!! I can barely hit the 300 meter target, (my bad back, that makes my hands shake when I'm in the prone unsupported), but I can sure get that fast Freddy when he shows himself!! Bam!! You're dead Fred!! But I guess that's why I'm not a sniper!!
John| 5.26.10 @ 5:45PM
You might want to reconsider touting the HemCon Dressing. The Army did once they discovered it didn't stop bleeding, merely absorbed the blood neatly then dropped off. It also dropped off the Army's supply lists, and according to the Baltimore Sun (March 29, 2009)
"Here are The Sun's findings:
Finding: An $89 bandage distributed to combat soldiers and honored as one of the service's greatest inventions was deployed despite two unpublished studies from the Army's research lab showing that the dressing was no more effective than plain gauze. After mixed reports from the battlefield, it was recalled and replaced."
The Sun also found evidence that data from the studies used to support the approval of the HemCon dressings was altered by a Researcher in the Army.
Some "Innovations" we could do without!
Dixie Pixie| 5.26.10 @ 6:32PM
For an in-depth discussion on rifle and light cannon technology see Anthony G Williams website at:::
http://www.quarry.nildram.co.uk
See “Assault Rifles and their Ammunition” at ::::
http://www.quarry.nildram.co.uk/Assault.htm
C Bowen| 5.26.10 @ 6:58PM
Two Cheers for the Military Industrial Complex?
Poor old AmSpec.
C.H. Fowler| 5.27.10 @ 11:09AM
C Bowen,
I prefer to call it the Arsenal of Democracy, as FDR named it. What it produces helps make it possible for servicemen and women to maintain our liberty. That liberty allows you and me to disagree without our liberty being stifled. Without what you and many others (including Eisenhower) call the Military Industrial Complex, pluralism is a pipe dream.
Respectfully,
C. H. Fowler
6.5x55| 5.26.10 @ 9:49PM
Too self-absorbed to appreciate those work to protect those who fight for us?
Poor old C Bowel.
Neal Butler| 5.26.10 @ 10:06PM
Come on C. Bowen, don't be such a B.L.
Quartermaster| 5.27.10 @ 6:49PM
Back in the 50s the Brits did a study to determine the optimum caliber for infantry small arms. They concluded a bore in the neighborhood of 7mm (0.276 specifically) would offer the best in performance vs the load the troops would have to carry. If you obtain a copy of the "Shooter's Bible" you can look at the ballistic tables and compare the 30-06, .270, .243, and the .223 (5.56x45). You lose little with the .270 over the 30 caliber round, and keep a lot more compared with the 6mm and smaller rounds. Terminal ballistics are important, and the 5.56 is not a good choice. If the bullet tumbles, or "Keyholes" the damage is fearsome, but it will not do so reliably.
The 6.8mm SPC is hard on weapons. Tests of the round used AR-15 uppers and the round beat the upper badly. Without a much heavier bolt/carrier, which leads to other problems, you won't solve that problem.
The best solution I can see is a new weapon. I like the handling of the AR-15 design, but I also like the Korean equivalent sold as the Daewoo DR-200 back in the 90s. The form can be retained, but upsizing it into the AR-10, with modern materials, and a 7mm class round would yield what the Infantry needs.
The Military needs to ditch the 9mm as well and go back to the .45 ACP, preferably in the reliable M1911A1.