The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has issued an open tender for a lightweight assault machine gun intended for dismounted troops, according to a tender notice.
Published on 14 February 2025, the notice details Project TROUBLER, which calls for “a 5.56mm lightweight (current system 7.1kg) assault machine gun capability for the dismounted User.”
The contract is valued at up to £4 million. Interested suppliers have until 24 March 2025 at 23:59 to submit proposals.
The MOD seeks to replace or augment existing equipment with a more modern and lighter solution, enhancing mobility and combat effectiveness for troops on foot. Potential contractors will need to demonstrate professional qualifications, as indicated by the tender, and should refer to the Defence Sourcing Portal for further details. A Dynamic Pre-Qualification Questionnaire (DPQQ) is provided via contracts.mod.uk.
Once bids are reviewed, the successful framework will be awarded to supply an assault machine gun that meets specific requirements outlined by the Authority. These include weight reduction, robust performance, and suitability for future operations.
While no precise timelines have been disclosed regarding testing or fielding of the new weapon, the MOD’s notice makes clear that the project aims to improve the effectiveness of UK armed forces personnel in diverse operational environments.
According to the tender, the procurement process includes adherence to the Professional Qualifications Directive, ensuring that bids come from qualified entities. The MOD has also noted that it will use its e-tendering system to manage submissions and queries.
Image PO (Phot) Sean Clee.
Just save more money and break out the Lee Enfields.
I’m old enough to remember when we made machine guns! As well as artillery, Trucks, Rifles, A vehicles etc. Happy days!
I’m old enough to remember when most of those things were a disaster. Look at the 20 plus years it took to fix SA80.
Ah yes, SA80’s, Mini Metros, The APT, those were the days…
Except the Italians took the APT technology and turned it into the Class 390 Pendi
The Germans took the SA80 and delivered a weapon, arguably, fit for service.
True, Mini Metros were pretty crap.
Alstom took over the Birmingham site of Class 390 production… and closed it.
BAE took a lot of production capacity and closed it.
We now manufacture Hitachis from parts for the railway and we are considering a weapons system from America…
How clever have we really been at losing sovereign manufacturing capability?
Aah well a Thatcher said service jobs were just as good so didn’t matter. Now we are desperate to get a few back as service jobs don’t seem to be enough to grow the economy now.
She resigned 35 years ago – plenty of opportunity for countless other Prime Ministers (including 13 years of Labour administrations) to attempt to reverse her policies – they chose not to.
125 one of these best and longest lasting trains ever and a damn sight better than the dreadful Italian Pendolinis based on the IP of the APT, horrible nasty things that did the Virgin Brand no favours whatsoever. Doubt the Italians beat themselves up about it mind they just get on with the next thing. As much as I hated the Metro the performance version actually won Motor Magazines small car of the year. And we do still had Napier Deltic Diesels running not long ago. What about Coventry Climax a dominant F1 engine from a forklift truck maker pretty… Read more »
Well I believe now we are subject to EU procurement for military equipment so we have to put it out to tender there actually is surprisingly small number of company’s that make 5.56mm machine guns I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that FN will win and we will end up with the FN evolys which wouldn’t be a bad thing we could then buy it in 7.62 as well and that would make training easier
Tim, we left the EU 5 years ago so why are we still under some sort of EU procurement rule?
Defence was exempt anyway
Where have you been?
Even when we were in the EU there was an exemption for defence procurement.
And we haven’t been in the EU for 5 years.
It should be made domestically given America had in a sense stabbed us in the back once again
HK416.
Establish a manufacturing line here.
Job done.
This is a tender for a Light Machine Gun, not a replacement for the Rifle. Basically the in service LMG was originally purchased as UOR – and arguably we purchased the wrong version of minimi – the para version. If we’d got the longer barrel it would’ve been better.
However, my experience of the weapon was excellent. It was a key weapon system for me as a commander. I’m glad they are looking at a direct replacement as organic belt fed fire support at section level is vital.
https://images.guns.com/prod/2021/05/14/609e3b6c57f9492e9ef9f00a3a0a29f10a4da8a697036.jpg
FN evolsys pic (guns.com)
Wrong gun, that’s a rifle
Really? How so? Stop watching the BBC it will make you even more addled.
Bet you think the Earth is flat too Stephanie. Jeez what do the yanks stick in the Koolaid and are we i ported here. Tell you what if you can escape from Fox News or its GB counterpart, spend a little time on MSNBC, Meidas and other US, Canadian or indeed Mexican channels or just check out what Musk is doing to avoid the prison sentence he was in line for had he not got into convenient politics or the threats to judges who dare defend the Constitution or the corrupt deal with the New York Mayor, not difficult to… Read more »
MSNBC is not a news service, it’s entertainment. No one in the US takes it seriously, not even the far left.
I hope that the weapon does not end up being flimsy and lacking in robustness in the quest for weight-saving.
It’s a tricky balance that’s for sure, 5.56 is probably as light as you can go for effective range and stopping power, it’ll be interesting to see what comes of this.
Fn evolys I hope
So, I presume this is to replace our Minimi/SAW? I did hear they’re pretty knackered.
I presume there’ll be a few options out there, I think H&K have a new one out. Could even go with the USMC concept of a heavier barrel on their standards assault rifles to allow sustained fire, but to emphasise accuracy over sheer weight of fire. Not convinced of that myself, but hard to argue with the combat experience of the Marine Corps..!
They already did the ‘heavier barrel on standard assault rifle’ Thing:L86
Yes, very true. The USMC are apparently trying the same thing, but with their H&K 416/ M27.
Like I said, I remain to be convinced, partly because the L86 didn’t really work out…
No just recently coincidentally read about that the theory of more but lighter fire over less but heavier though good in theory didn’t work out well at all and could not suppress enemy positions as theory predicted. So has been removed and the weapon it replaced returned to service.
Thanks for the update- makes sense to me.
Will be interesting to see what comes from this competition then- FN and H&K seem to be the only players with a horse in the race.
Minimi is has been gone for a long time. It’s been replaced by the FN MAG.
Really?! I am out of date. Isn’t the MAG 7.62 NATO?
This spec for a ‘close assault machine gun’ sounds like a para model SAW with the telescopic stock etc. I presumed it was for a straight swap.
Yeah, it seems a lot of people missed that, but the Minimi was found to be unacceptably inaccurate and was retired a few years ago. The FN Mag which was already in service as the L7 GMPG for vehicle mounted and fire support roles was then introduced at section level to replace it, and yes it is a 7.62NATO chambered weapon (though I’m not sure that makes a huge difference, as nobody is unbombing magazines to load up belts for a Minimi either, and the L129 is also a 7.62 NATO weapon). My guess is there is a desire to… Read more »
Always the challenge- weight of weapon and ammunition to carry vs range and hitting power. I believe there have been a few attempts at making a 7.62 MG at roughly the weight of a 5.56 gun recently. But I think they do stuff like stamped pieces and titanium widgets etc. which makes them expensive and potentially not as robust. Either way, this competition states 5.56, so they won’t be in the running. You make a good point about how much of an advantage commonality of rounds between a belt fed gun and the service rifle is; not sure where the… Read more »
@Joe Ammunition is generally assembled into packaging at the factory (either boxes of loose ammunition, clips in bandoleers or belts). Belts these days consist of single use claw grip things that get dissasembled and dropped on the ground by the MG, so if you want loose 7.62 you also need loose belt link to assemble the rounds into belts. I don’t think the change from 7.62 to 5.56 is about a saving, I think it’s mainly about making sections more tactically nimble, at the expense of some fire power. I actually am not sure whether the swap would make sense… Read more »
I believe we got rid of the Minimi 10 years ago as a drive to cost save and everyone uses GPMG for heavier punch
The best 5.56 x 45mm chambered replacement for the L85 SA80 Rifle series that the MOD could consider for general infantry issue, in my personal opinion, is the Heckler and Koch HK 416 series of weapons. With the superior reliability of it’s gas piston system, developed by Larry Vickers, an ex- Delta operator, and Delta Force veteran of operations just cause, Desert storm and Gothic serpent, instead of the fatally flawed direct gas impingement of traditional AR-15’s, and superior modular adaptability, versatility, commonality and compatibility with all other currently issued infantry small arm weapon systems across NATO, the 416 series… Read more »
The SA80 is not garbage.
It’s more accurate owerful and reliable than the M4 series
It’s serviceable, but it isn’t good by any measure. They aren’t really any more “accurate” than anything else in their class. Somewhat longer effective range, perhaps, but nothing really noteworthy. Also, for what they are, they are HEAVY. The official 4.5kg which, in itself, is heavier than the rest, is also unloaded and with no sights etc. I trained on the A1 and served with the A2. The A2 was decent, if you kept it very well oiled and had top notch magazines (which even our HK mags were not, despite being better than their RG predecessors). One really handy… Read more »
In trained hands it’s now a good weapon
That’s the problem once anything gets a bad reputation, no matter how good it later becomes that inbuilt prejudice will always kick in sadly. If it’s British that is especially so. On the other hand everyone blindly believes Mercedes are some of the most reliable vehicles and I’m. Ot saying they are poor but in reality they don’t feature in the top 5 and indeed only one German make does surprisingly for me at least Audi in 5th. I rather doubt many people realise that Mercedes F-1 engines are designed and built in Britain as indeed are the electric motors… Read more »
This is not a replacement for the L85, this is a replacement for FN MAG in the Section fire support role and the FN Minime that was retired a few years ago.
As for the L85 vs HK 416, what are the actual benefits that you would gain from investing millions in replacing the L85? It’s a servicable 5.56 Rifle
Agreed. Until the L85A3 is knackered and/or NATO changes service rifle calibre away from 5.56 NATO, not much point in switching out what we have just because everyone else is buying AR-platforms. They’re buying them (Sweden is the latest, I believe), because their current service rifle is older than ours- just a normal part of the cycle.
Sorry, I didn’t actually read the article before commenting, but in terms of the L85 (I had the L85A1), though it’s “serviceable”, the very obvious benefits of the 416 is literally staying alive and surviving combat to tell the tale; not many stoppages per 1000 rounds compared to the L85 ( Even with heckler and Koch A2/A3 upgrades to the SA80A3); this is practically the whole point of the H&K 416……
The L85A1 hasn’t been in service for 20 years, so that’s not a valid comparison point, which kind of invalidates your stoppages point. Which also is you only point, because you can’t seem to name much else that would be gained spending millions on replacing L85A2 and A3 with 416, which, at the end of the day, is just another 5.56 rifle.
Nice essay on the wrong topic.
This is for a replacement for the LSW. Currently we use the Minimi/SAW. They are getting old though, and compared to the L86 LSW (rightly replaced) are utter pigs to carry.
Anyway, the SA80 ia perfectly fine for squaddies now.
Tams the LSW/Minimi/SAW/whatever name you prefer, went out of service a few years ago, and was replaced by the GMPG/FN MAG/M240 as the section automatic weapon, which is probably why a lighter solution is being investigated.
Niall, your post looked detailed and authoritative but sadly two massive errors. This weapon procurement replaces the section level FN MAG (which I used to call the 7.62mm GPMG), not the SA80 ie L85A3 Individual Weapon. In other words we are not replacing an infantryman’s rifle with a MG, we are replacing a MG with a MG. Secondly the L85A3 is not a garbage weapon. Why do you think that? It is one of the best assault rifles in the world. I can only presume that you are an American who gets their information from very old soldiers whose information… Read more »
@Graham, in faireness it’s still called the GPMG in British Service, I was just using the non-British service name to avoid confusion.
Their talking about a squad LMG that they did away with ten years ago. Not the general assault rifle sa80 or m4
The best 5.56 x 45mm chambered replacement for the L85 SA80 Rifle series that the MOD could consider for general infantry issue, in my personal opinion, is the Heckler and Koch HK 416 series of weapons. With the superior reliability of it’s gas piston system, developed by Larry Vickers, an ex- Delta operator, and Delta Force veteran of operations just cause, Desert storm and Gothic serpent, instead of the fatally flawed direct gas impingement of traditional AR-15’s, and superior modular adaptability, versatility, commonality and compatibility with all other currently issued infantry small arm weapon systems across NATO, the 416 series… Read more »
The one flaw with all AR-15 derivatives, as far as I am aware, is that the safety catch has to be disengaged to allow them to be made ready (The action of getting a round into the chamber). This means that they do not comply with the UK safe training system, and therefore cannot be general service issue. They can be issued to experience specialist troops, following further training.
Not entirely, you can make an AR style weapon ready with the safety on that’s not an issue. The actual issue is you can’t engage the safety unless you have made the weapon system ready.
So it’s impossible to tell if someone is walking around with a weapon system that is not made ready and can’t have it’s safety engaged, or someone who’s weapon system is made ready and they’ve been a muppet and haven’t engaged the safety.
You can totally make the weapon ready with the safety engaged on an AR. And you can engage/disengage the safety freely with a loaded weapon. You can’t engage the safety on an empty chamber unless you pull the trigger first to release the spring tension.
So what they aren’t changing general rifles. Does no one read the article?
Even if they replaced the A3 then the whole manual of arms training would be rewritten as it was when the SLR was replaced
The one flaw with all AR-15 derivatives, as far as I am aware, is that the safety catch has to be disengaged to allow them to be made ready (The action of getting a round into the chamber). This means that they do not comply with the UK safe training system, and therefore cannot be general service issue. They can be issued to experience specialist troops, following further training.
Hmmmm, that’s not what the article is talking about. I’m guessing you’ve just read the stories about the SA80, currently the L85A3 in infantry use, and never actually used one. Its major downfall is that it is relatively heavy and can’t be fired from the left hand shoulder. My suspicion is that they are looking to field a lighter weight alternative to the L7A2 GPMG, one per section, which is quite chunky and uses 7.62mm ammunition which in itself heavier than 5.56mm. For use in Herrick and Telic the L110A2, FN Minimi Para, was introduced as a UOR but was… Read more »
We get it thanks, you’re a Hecker & Koch shareholder…
From what I can tell, the HK416 is just the workings of a G36, shoved into the form-factor and possessing the ergonomics of the AR-15/M4. The M16/M4 is essentially a 1960s design, and while exceptional for the time, the ergonomics leave something to be desired in the 21st century. Specifically, the lack of ambidextrous controls, the rear operating handle and the non-folding stock. The last of those is particularly odd, as in the AR pattern, there was a buffer tube in the stock, but I believe in the HK416, it’s empty. The only reason the HK416 has gained popularity is… Read more »
HK416 is not the working of a G-36 shoved into a AR-15. It’s the got a G-36 short stroke gas piston (which itself is derived from the AR-18 which is ALSO a 1960’s design btw), and the bolt carrier assembly has been modified to interact with the gas piston instead of be a direct impingement system, but otherwise it’s basically an AR-15. Ambidextrous controls are pretty common in modern AR platforms btw (both the 416 and the KS-1 have them). Also I have no idea why you think the buffer tube would be empty, unless you’ve literally never taken an… Read more »
The HK416 was modified to.overcome that problem. What I don’t get is that we gave up.the Minimi after research proved that aimed single shots provide better suppression than less accurate bursts. This also lead the USMC to adopt the M27. Has that research now been invalidated, perhaps witb experience from Ukraine?
It wasn’t a pure “aimed shots vs automatic fire” calculation that went to the retirement of the minimi. It was that the Minimi was found to be unacceptably inaccurate. When it was withrdrawn from service in the British Army it was replaced with the FN Mag at section level, still suppression by automatic fire, but a more accurate automatic system. This sounds like it’s now looking for a lighter system as, at section level, the FN MAG is a really heavy system.
No research invalidated, no course correction.
At first glance the spec seems based on the new 2021 FN EVOLYS assault LMG, 5.5 kg in 5.56mm. The Army has already bought a few and assume they like it.
https://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2021/09/21/first-look-fn-evolys/
The “tumbler” safety catch/selector of all AR-15 platform weapons, operated quite rapidly with your thumb, is a much better and quicker design option than the push rod safety ahead of the trigger guard or reaching all the way back to a change lever on the SA80. That speed and memory muscle familiarity, in a firefight, could mean the difference between life and death…
Well given that you’re generally not supposed to use a IW in automatic, the location of the change lever is not a really big deal. And the difference between the button push and the thumb flick is really minimal in terms of how long it takes to do.
Also, you can cock and chamber a round on the AR-15 with the safety catch engaged, no matter what setting the selector is on, as the trigger group in the lower receiver is completely independent of the selector mechanism…
People where referring to not being able to engage the safety unless the hammer is already cocked. Round in the chamber or not, Safe training means you don’t cock a weapon until your ready to fire it. Ideally in the UK we want our weapons uncocked with a safety catch on.
Dern, Yes, I am very aware that; A) an IW is usually on repetition (single shot) and rarely on full auto B) the safe weapons handling you describe and the conversation about the operability of the AR-15 safety with the hammer cocked/uncocked. I am only saying that with the 416 the safety can be operated whatever the state of the hammer, and though perhaps the benefit is minimal, the tumbler selector is (in my opinion) a much better design for the quick and intuitive reasons I describe. Again, without reading the article before commenting, I believed (wrongly) this was a… Read more »
Cool, as you’ve said, you used an A1, so frankly your opinion on whether or not you’d entrust your life to the current version of the L85 is very much irrelevant. I’m currently serving and am, and have been, willing to entrust my L85 with my life.
Why comment before reading the article?
Not that it would have helped you much, the article gives very little information about what is actually being replaced.
(except that the hammer won’t release on “safe” and the sears and disconnector group are set to whatever setting you have the selector on)…..
The problem with having to disengage the safety to cock the hammer was only with older original mil-spec trigger groups, modern AR trigger groups have since overcome this mechanical design problem, and this is not just the new HK416……
CZ Bren 3 would be the best choice for a new build rifle. That or Colt Canada M4s if you’re feeling stingy.
Best comment so far.
Oh I love the idea of a Bren back in Uk service, used to be made down the road from here under licence, a housing estate now though still proudly displays an original one in the museum.
I would largely agree.
Though I should like to see one of our own firms, such as Accuracy International be contracted to make one instead (maybe set the Bren 3 as a benchmark). This way we can start to rebuild our arms industry.
One thing that I would argue we’ve all become naturally distracted by here, including me, is the specified ammunition. 5.56mm/0.223″ immediately draws the mind to some very specific firearms. Let’s face it though, even the most recent iterations of these are based on designs from the middle of the last century. While there is something to be said for the tried and tested, should we not be considering the inherent limits of 5.56mm and perhaps examining the ammunition choice. Once we free ourselves from being limited by the ammunition type then perhaps it will free us to ether adopt a… Read more »
People are brainwashed by 5.56 mate. To me it never had range or the stopping power needed by infantry. The US Army finally admitted it and is moving on. Eugene Stoner even designed the original Armalite for 7.62. I like 6.5 Creedmore, but read issues about barrel wear. 7.62 still does it for me tbh.
Yes I wondered about the 5.56 given the USA seems to be moving towards 6.8 ammunition with the acquisition of the XM7 and XM250 from SIG Sauer.
Everyone agrees that traditional NATO standard 5.56mm ammunition lacks stopping power (though it is still extremely lethal and can still kill outright); the overriding issue is the higher costs of introducing a brand new calibre of ammunition, not to mention the incompatibility issues with other NATO weapons (“NATO standard’ was intended for compatibility across NATO forces). The enduring reason of 5.56mm is mainly it’s abundance and consequently the resulting low costs per round over time…. Given our current economic nightmare situation predicament, the MOD ought to be considering the best and existing off the shelf solutions instead of grandiose and… Read more »
FN EVOLYS it is then. 5.56 nato or 6.5 creedmore
I’ve only had a brief view of 1 and seen the sales pack but
As far as I can tell they’ve taken the modified open bolt from the scar HAM-R. Made it a true open bolt with a trigger impinged firing pin. Therefore solving the runaway issue of open bolts.
The thing to observed on this topic, no Russia or Ukraine posts in the article, and hence a severe lack of troll garbage posts masquerading as concerned citizens. Just decent and informed SMEs commenting. Nice to see.
There is a touch of TDS I note.
In some threads on defence sites some have got into a right tizzy as some have been ranting against both Trump and Putin. Putin is Hitler! Naughty Trump for stopping our war. Moan. Moan. Moan.
It would be amusing if it didn’t show how many on such sites as these are jingoistic ignorant children whose time would be spent reading some history and looking at some maps.
I would hope most of us on this site would want an end to the war in Ukraine. The first aim of military defence is deterring war, so actual fighting can be seen as a failure.
However history has shown that ending fighting at any cost, such as imposing an unjust outcome upon one side does not produce a long-term peace. Instead it simply produces a pause during which both sides frantically rearm, before war breaks out again. Not involving Ukraine, and accepting Russian demands before negotiations begin, doesn’t not augur for a just and lasting settlement.
Some of us know a great deal about history Stephanie spent our lives studying it indeed, nothing you have contributed suggests you have any insightful knowledge whatsoever to offer about it. If you really know history you will know Trumps simplistic approach is moronic in nature and anyone who has studied Putin from the nineties and before and who has read his own writings knows his mentality is absolutely comparable to Hitler, Stalin and various other dictators and indeed that Trump set upon his own well publicised imperialistic dream finds his lead rather appealing. If you have ever watched Rise… Read more »
Ah and here we were having a nice discussion about weapons and now you have to vomit a synopsis of a Guardian comments section.
Ahh too bad Airborne, you spoke their name and summoned them.
How are things in the Really Large Corps these days? Stack any interesting blankets lately Walter?
Oh dear, off by a country mile there Stephanovich.
So many interesting options for a LMG in 5.56.
I would opt for the IWI Negev. Superrb piece of kit.
I doubt Israeli kit is going to be too popular once the Israeli army tries to ethnically cleanse Gaza so Trump and friends can earn more millions to build his delightful Mediterranean holiday resort. No wonder he has sanctioned the ICC for he may be more in line for a war crimes charge than the peace ‘Oscar’ he so craves.
A good machine gun is a good machine gun, if we cared what designers, developers, and founders of companies did we wouldn’t have H&K selling weapons or Thyssen Krupp selling elevators.
At ~7.6kg, it’s heavier than the L110A2 it would be replacing, so I doubt it.
What the hell is an “Assault machine gun” 🤣? I assume they’re looking for a replacement for the LSW which was phased out years ago. The SA80 comes in at a smidge under 5kg and the GPMG is significantly heavier.
I guess we are going to find out, in their eyes what it means as they have tried to establish a compromise between the two for a while but finding the SA80 variant that in simulations would do the job simply didn’t offer the firepower in practice so went back to the too heavy square one solution for the intermediate term. So what’s next? I must admit I leave it to others more qualified there or herd to determine what that might be as a best solution but interesting to hear the suggestions.
Can I offer a few slight corrections: The L86 LSW (the SA80 variant you where talking about) was replaced but not really because of the lack of firepower (at least not in the cartriage). The LSW as an automatic support weapon had some rather heavy drawbacks: For starters it fired 5.56 from the same box magazines that the L85 used, which was great for interchangability, but also meant that reloads would have to be very frequent, the section would have to be very disciplined when it came to not using LSW gunner magazines (in practice every man in the section… Read more »
KAC’S LAMG. I put $20 on it.
But what I tjink they should do is pursue polymer cased 7.62 or hybrid polymer case and polymer link.
Anyway budget and sdr will dictate.
That’s the one I had in mind. Though FN’s EVOLYS would probably be a close runner-up.
I’m wondering if the US is intent on switching to the 6.8x51mm aka “.277 Fury” (I hate that name) cartridge, if KAC would do a version chambered in that based on their 7.62mm version.
They know fine well they should be asking for heckler and Koch acting like children that old moronic attitude that’s fair enough and about current suppliers? Vintage rifle rifle but it’s not for front lines of ukraine like
Loyalty is seriously in question I’d remind the parasites in the mod stop with pretend fantastic cobra committee meeting because sirs you resembles cock roaches.
We should be looking at 6mm like 6.5 or 6.8 for greater distance and leathailty. The states are going that way with Sig with the XM7 rifle and XMZ250 machine gun approved in 2022. You just have to look across the pond for where the US is going with small arms. We should,have our own design, manufacturing and supply bases though, just obtain a licence to produce domestically. Is there a domestic supply route for design and manufacture and keep it all in house, I think these sectors have been decimated sadly. Follow the US , engage with sig, licence… Read more »
I suspect that the new rifle will need a 1 in 7 twist barrel because the army want to utilise the newer 77 grain 5.56 projectile. This gives the round better stability, more foot poundage on impact, better velocity retention as the 77 grainhas a better ballistic co-efficient than the 55 grain or 62 grain nato rounds. With a twenty inch barrel it should be accurate to 650 to 800 metres, depending on atmospheric conditions. It will probably have to shoot 2 moa on semi automatic. Due to the weight restrictions a belt fed weapon or hundred round drum or… Read more »
Don’t you just love “journalism” that’s so min effort, it provides such little information, it adds basically nothing, not even context to the official announcement, requiring the reader to go off and research the topic themselves. For anyone wondering, this isn’t about replacing the SA80 series, but the belt-fed L110A2 Minimi from FN. As for possible replacements, I see 2 likely options: – FN EVOLYS (5.5kg) – KAC LAMG (5.1kg) Both are belt-fed and lighter than the competition (e.g. H&K MG4) and being quite recent designs, are likely decently future-proof too. For reference, an unloaded L85A2 weighs about 4.1kg, so… Read more »
Well, if you’re going to do that you’d better be right:
It’s not replacing the L110. Those left service almost a decade ago. It’s replacing the L7 GPMG. So the target weight to beat is 11kg.