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DEVELOPMENT
The United States Army's Delta Force, at the request of R&D NCO Larry Vickers, collaborated with the German arms maker Heckler & Koch to develop the new carbine in the early 1990s. During development, Heckler & Koch capitalised on experience gained developing the Bundeswehr's Heckler & Koch G36 assault rifle, the U.S. Army's XM8 rifle project (cancelled in 2005) and the modernisation of the British Armed Forces SA80 small arms family. The project was originally called the Heckler & Koch M4, but this was changed in response to a trademark infringement suit filed by Colt Defense.
Delta Force replaced its M4s with the HK416 in 2004, after tests revealed that the piston operating system significantly reduces malfunctions while increasing the life of parts. The HK416 has been tested by the United States military and is in use with some law enforcement agencies. It was adopted as the standard rifle of the Norwegian Armed Forces in 2008, the French Armed Forces in 2017 and is used by many special operations units worldwide.
A modified variant underwent testing by the United States Marine Corps as the M27 Infantry Automatic Rifle. After the Marine Corps Operational Test & Evaluation Activity supervised a round of testing at MCAGCC Twentynine Palms, Fort McCoy, and Camp Shelby (for dust, cold-weather, and hot-weather conditions, respectively). As of March 2012, fielding of 452 IARs had been completed of 4,748 ordered. Five infantry battalions: 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion and 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines, out of Camp Pendleton, Calif.; First Battalion, 3rd Marines, out of Marine Corps Base Hawaii; 1st Battalion, 9th Marines, out of Camp Lejeune, N.C.; and 1st Battalion, 25th Marines, out of Fort Devens, Mass. have deployed the weapon. In December 2017, the Marine Corps revealed a decision to equip every Marine in an infantry squad with the M27 IAR.
The M27 Infantry Automatic Rifle (IAR) is a lightweight magazine-fed 5.56mm select-fire weapon based on the HK416 rifle designed and manufactured by the German company Heckler & Koch. It is used by the United States Marine Corps and is intended to enhance an automatic rifleman's maneuverability. The U.S. Marine Corps initially planned to purchase 6,500 M27s to replace a portion of the M249 light machine guns employed by automatic riflemen within Infantry and Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalions. Approximately 8,000–10,000 M249s will remain in service with the Marine Corps to be used at the discretion of company commanders.
DESIGN
The HK416 uses a HK-proprietary short-stroke gas piston system that derives from the HK G36, forgoing the concentric to bore gas piston system standard in AR-15 rifles. The HK G36 gas system was in turn partially derived from the AR-18 assault rifle designed in 1963. The HK system uses a short-stroke piston driving an operating rod to force the bolt carrier to the rear. This design prevents combustion gases from entering the weapon's interior—a shortcoming with direct impingement systems. The reduction in heat and fouling of the bolt carrier group increases the reliability of the weapon and extends the interval between stoppages. During factory tests the HK416 fired 10,000 rounds in full-auto without malfunctioning. The HK416’s piston system was originally self-regulating in theory, but in the default position tends to give increased recoil over an adjustable gas system. A user adjustable gas regulator was added in later variants. The HK416 is equipped with a proprietary accessory rail forearm with MIL-STD-1913 rails on all four sides. This lets most current accessories for M4/M16-type weapons fit the HK416. The HK416 rail forearm can be installed and removed without tools by using the bolt locking lug as the screwdriver. The rail forearm is "free-floating" and does not contact the barrel, improving accuracy. The HK416 has an adjustable multi-position telescopic butt stock, offering six different lengths of pull. The shoulder pad can be either convex or concave and the stock features a storage space for maintenance accessories, spare electrical batteries or other small kit items. It can also be switched out for other variations like Magpul stocks. The trigger pull is 34 N (7.6 lbf). The empty weight of a HK416 box magazine is 250 g (8.8 oz). The HK416's barrel is cold hammer-forged with a 20,000-round service life and features a 6 grooves 178 mm (7 in) right hand twist. The cold hammer-forging process provides a stronger barrel for greater safety in case of an obstructed bore or for extended firing sessions. Modifications for an over-the-beach (OTB) capability such as drainage holes in the bolt carrier and buffer system are available to let the HK416 fire safely as quickly as possible after being submerged in liquids like water. To reduce the risk of slam-firing, the HK416 features a proprietary firing pin safety in the bolt. This firing pin safety limits the HK416 upper to working with standard AR-15 type full height hammers in the fire control group of the lower.
ADOPTION
In July 2007, the U.S. Army announced a limited competition between the M4 carbine, FN SCAR, HK416, and the previously-shelved HK XM8. Ten examples of each of the four competitors were involved. Each weapon fired 60,000 rounds in an extreme dust environment. The shoot-off was for assessing future needs, not to select a replacement for the M4. The XM8 scored the best, with only 127 stoppages in 60,000 total rounds, the FN SCAR Light had 226 stoppages, while the HK416 had 233 stoppages. The M4 carbine scored "significantly worse" than the rest of the field with 882 stoppages. However, magazine failures caused 239 of the M4's 882 failures. Army officials said, in December 2007, that the new magazines could be combat-ready by spring of 2008 if testing went well. In December 2009, a modified version of the HK416 was selected for the final testing in the Infantry Automatic Rifle program, designed to partially replace the M249 light machine gun at the squad level for the United States Marine Corps. It beat the three other finalists by FN Herstal and Colt Defense. In July 2010, the HK416 IAR was designated as the M27, and 450 were procured for additional testing. The Turkish company Makina ve Kimya Endustrisi Kurumu ("Mechanical and Chemical Industry Corporation") has considered manufacturing a copy of the HK416 as the MKEK Mehmetçik-1 for the Turkish Armed Forces. Instead, the new MPT-76 rifle has been developed by KALEKALIP with MKEK as the producer, with the Mehmetçik-1 dropped from adoption into the Turkish military. The French armed forces conducted a rifle evaluation and trial to replace the FAMAS, and selected the HK416F as its primary firearm in 2016. Of the 93,080 rifles, 54,575 will be a "short" version with a 280 mm (11 in) barrel weighing 3.7 kg (8.2 lb) without the ability to use a grenade launcher, and 38,505 will be a "standard" version with a 368 mm (14.5 in) barrel weighing 4 kg (8.8 lb), of which 14,915 will take FÉLIN attachments; standard rifles will be supplied with 10,767 HK269F grenade launchers. 5,000 units are supposed to be delivered in 2017, half of the order delivered by 2022, and the order fulfilled by 2028. The first batch of 400 rifles was delivered on 3 May 2017. The HK416 was one of the weapons displayed to U.S. Army officials during an invitation-only Industry Day on 13 November 2008. The goal of the Industry Day was to review current carbine technology prior to writing formal requirements for a future replacement for the M4 carbine. The HK416 was then an entry in the Individual Carbine competition to replace the M4. The weapon submitted was known as the HK416 A5. The Individual Carbine competition was cancelled before a winning weapon was chosen.
HK416
Here you see an example of the classic 10.4" HK416. Noteworthy features include the folding front sight mounted on top of the gas block, the squared off style magwell and the iconic drum diopter style rear sight.
On the right side of this weapon you'll notice a fire control lever for left handed shooters and a specialized bolt to retain the quadrail style handguard that can be removed using a lug on the bolt head. This rather clever feature allows the user access to the gas system without having to carry a separate tool to remove the handguard.
On the 14.5" version you can see that the gas system is the same length as the 10.5" HK416, only the length of the barrel itself has changed.
The added barrel length of the 14.5" HK416 delivers a noticeable increase in velocity over the 10.4" extending the effective range of the weapon.
Here we have a 16.5" HK416 with all the standard features and the added benefit of the longer barrel.
On this 16.5" HK416 A3 rifle you can see white "N" and "S" marking beneath the front sight for the adjustable gas block, the defining feature of the A3 variant.
Looking at the top of the handguard you see the rear diopter sight has been replaced by a more compact, folding rear sight and a front sight that folds forward into the handguard.
M27 IAR
In 2011 the HK416 was competitively selected by the US Marine Corps (USMC) for their Infantry Automatic Rifle (IAR) program and designated the M27. The M27 (HK416) replaced the M249 belt-fed Squad Automatic Weapon (SAW) issued to the Automatic Rifleman within the squad. In 2016 the U.S. Marine Corps authorized the MagPul PMag 30-round magazines NSN 1005-01-615-5169 (black) and NSN 1005-01659-7086 (tan) after 20,000+ round tests with the M27, M4, and M16A4 weapons and various service-related USMC and US Army ammunition.
In 2017 the service authorized the use of the M27 as the M38 Squad Designated Marksman Rifle (SDMR)/Special Purpose Ri e (SPR) at the infantry squad/platoon level with the use and integration of existing service level accessories which include a designated marksman optic, suppressor, and precision ammunition meeting the requirements of the MK12 SPR. In 2018 the service authorized the use of the M27 (HK416) across the entire Infantry within the infantry squads.
HK M27 IAR SPECIFICATIONS
Weight: 7.19 lbs (empty) 9 lbs (loaded with 30-round magazine)
Length: 36.9 inches (stock extended fully) 33 inches (stock retracted)
Barrel length : 16.5 inches
Action : Gas-operated short-stroke piston, rotating bolt
Rate of fire : Sustained: 36 rpm Cyclic: 700 to 850 rpm muzzle velocity : 2,550 feet per second
Effective range : 550 meters (point target 600 meters (area target)
Caliber : 5.56x45mm NATO
Magazine : 30-round STANAG magazine
An HK M27 IAR field stripped
HK416 A5
The HK416 A5 is a further development of the HK416 assault rifle in 5.56 x 45 mm NATO calibre. The most striking changes compared to its previous versions as well as to market available AR platforms include an improved and tool-less gas regulator for suppressor use, a redesigned, user-friendly lower receiver, which allows complete ambidextrous operation of the weapon and ensures optimised magazine compatibility, as well as numerous technical improvements to maximize the operator safety, reliability, ammunition compatibility and durability under real operating conditions.
Variants | Options
- 11“, 12.5",14.5“, 16.5“ and 20“ barrel lengths available
- Black and green brown colour scheme
- Compatible with HK 40 mm low velocity GLM/M320
- Compatible with HK steel and polymer magazines
Distinctive features of the variants
- The 20" Variant has a long handguard with a gas regulator window
- Handguard with integrated flip up sight on 11"
- Variant Modular interface for Bayonet and foldable front sight on barrel of the 14.5", 16.5" and 20" variants
FEATURES
- Modified and toolless gas regulator for suppressor use
- Safety-/Fire selector lever can be set to safe when the hammer is in the cocked or uncocked position
- Over the beach (OTB) capability
- Completely ambidextrous operating controls (bolt catch-, Magazine release-, safety-/fire selector lever and charging handle)
- "Winter" trigger guard for use with gloves and cold weather clothing
- Non-stop NATO-Stanag 4694 top rail for use of various mechanical and optical sights (incl. night vision/thermal)
- Redesigned ergonomic pistol grip with storage compartment for field stripping tool
- Enlarged Bolt catch lever and protective barrier against accidental discharge
- "Slim line" Telescopic buttstock
- Optimized receiver geometry, modified assembly interfaces and improved receiver connections
- Receiver extension to stabilize and accomplish drop test criteria under real conditions
- Increased magazine compatibility in accordance with NATO-STANAG-DRAFT 4179 (M4/M16 Magazines)
- 40 mm Low velocity GLM/M320 interface
HK416 A5
HK416 A5 with 11" barrel and B&T Rotex suppressor.
HK416 A5 with lightweight 12.5" barrel and skeletonized, quick detach, M-Lok handguard fitted with offset ERATAC BUIS.
HK416 A5 with 20" barrel and extended handguard .
HK416 A5 with 20" barrel configured as a medium range sniper system with a scope and bipod.
Heckler & Koch G38
This HK416 A5 known as the G38, was configured at the request of the Police in Hessen, Germany as a middle distance weapon. Fitted with a Steiner M5Xi scope a super light weight, vented Hkey style handguard, and a rail mounted, double loop sling attachment point normally seen on the French HK416F.
This G38 was specially equipt for the Hessian Police with a quick detach handguard.
Notice the vertical lever where normally one would see a bolt. By pulling this lever out and down 90 degrees the end user can easily remove the handguard by pulling it straight out and off, no tools required.
This 11" select fire G38 has been configured with low profile folding sights and the standard HK Hkey handguard.
H&K 416 Française
For a period of over 10 years France will phase in the Heckler & Koch HK416F, in two different versions, to soldiers in the Army, Air Force and Navy.
The HK is referred to as the “Arme Individuelle Future (AIF)”, which roughly translates to Individual Firearm for the Future.
According to the French Ministry of Defense 93 080 pieces of Heckler & Koch 416F will be delivered between 2017 and 2028.
HK416F
The HK416F Standard fitted with an HK269F (40 x 46 mm) grenade launcher.
Barrel Length: 36.5 cm or 14.5″
Weight: 4 kg or 8.8 lbs.
HK416F (Court) Short or HK416 F-C
Barrel Length: 27.94 cm or 11"
Weight: 3.7 kg or 8.1 llbs
French soldier from the 40th Artillery Regiment's specialized support light section armed with an HK416 F outfitted with an HK269 F grenade launcher
