FN Herstal rolled out the latest update to the company’s light machine gun line, the MINIMI Mk 3. The company stated the new Mk3 was designed around the feedback received from actual combat troops using the gun in the field. Essentially, all updates are focused on improved ergonomics and improved mobility.
While there are undoubtedly small changes under the hood, the most prominent updates are:
The Russian military still uses the SKS at the Ryazan Higher Airborne Command School. These photos were taken by Vitaly V. Kuzmin, a photographer of amazing skill. Kuzmin took these photos at the June 23 graduation ceremony.
There is a new Mosin-Nagant replacement stock being made by Archangel. For a variety of reasons, making a detachable magazine for the Mosin-Nagant rifles has been difficult. The basic rifle design is more than 120 years old, so adapting it to modern conventions is bound to have a few difficulties.
A quick check of YouTube found this video from mixflip on the new Mosin-Nagant stocks from the ProMag/Archangel booth at the SHOT Show:
The FN SmartCore was rolled out at the EUROSATORY 2012 last week. Formerly known as the FN Black Box, the SmartCore is very similar to the recording devices found in airplanes that the project was originally named after.
The SmartCore is an electronic system that records and examines the firearm’s use for a variety of purposes. It does several rather mundane things like help armorers keep track of which weapons are in need of service.
One of the more interesting aspects of the recorder is its ability to transmit use information to military commanders. This allows the chain of command to know specifically which units are engaging the enemy, and at what location, without the need for radio communications.
The following e-mail was forwarded to me by Gunner, a fellow blogger over at Gunner’s Journal. Gunner is a 1911 expert and has contacts with various people who spent some time in the Special Forces community, including Delta Force.
A lot of what Delta does is understandably secret, and there have been much debate about the weapons and tactics they use. There have also been questions about if Delta is still carrying the 1911, or if a complete swap to Glock pistols had been made. Attached is some information from someone who has intimate knowledge of Delta’s operations. None of the information is classified and it was ok’d for publication.