C.J. Chivers at The NY Times has posted a well written article about the M4 reliability controversy …

Given these conditions, while we can’t draw definitive conclusions about the current performance of the M-4 and M-16 lines, it is nonetheless a jolt to find no accounts of significant weapons failures and then to read blog posts that declare that the weapons are either a disaster or at least widely loathed.

This is more so given the account of Chief Warrant Officer Joshua S. Smith, the Marine responsible for weapons training and performance in the Third Battalion, Sixth Marines, which is engaged in daily fighting in Marja. “We’ve had nil in the way of problems; we’ve had no issues,” he said of the M-4s and M-16s. The battalion has about 350 M-16s and 700 M-4s, he said.

Christian’s response at Military.com’s Kit Up blog is also worth reading.

In October last year I analyzed the leaked draft of the Army report on the Battle of Wanat. My conclusion was that no weapon of the M4 Carbine class could have been expected to be problem free under those conditions.

[ Many thanks to Lance for emailing me the link. ]