French Army Choose H&K416 to replace FAMAS
Updated: January 9th, 2013
A trusted source has revealed to me that the French Army has adopted the Heckler & Koch HK416 to replace the FAMAS. I will endeavour to find out which model has been adopted.
The Norwegian version of the HK416
I fully believe my source, but you should treat this as rumour until it has been independently confirmed.
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Nicks87 said: "I think you guys are missing the point with this 5.56 vs larger caliber weapons and their use in combat.
Killing people is not an exact science. What kills person A, might not kill person B. Look at how many people have died as a result of being shot with a .22LR cartridge. Evidence and statistics would indicate that .22LR is very deadly ammunition. On the other hand people have survived horrific wounds from large caliber ammunition, including .50 BMG.
So, hate to burst your bubble but there is no concrete evidence that 5.56 is ineffective against human targets.
I’ve personally taken a 220 lbs. white tail deer with a 62 gain soft point 5.56 round. I’ve also shot coyote with the same round and watched them run away and tracked them for miles without so much as a significant blood trail to follow."
What you say is correct, but you say it in such a way to imply that calibre and projectile mass don't really matter. The rule of thumb is the larger the bullet and more energy its carries, the greater the probability of incapacitation. Larger is better.
Back to the question: is 5.56 mm too small. Most NATO armies don't use the US M855 let alone the Mk 318 SOST or M855A1 EPR. The latter two rounds are both recent updates developed precisely to enhance the soft target performance of 5.56 mm. If there hadn't been a problem neither would have appeared.
In order to get decent lethality out of its 5.56 mm ammo, the US has made sure it either flattens (Mk 318 SOST) or fragments (M855A1 EPR). Rightly or wrongly (insanely in my opinion) legal counsel in the EU deems these characteristics as amounting to expanding ammunition, which is explicitly banned by the Hague / Geneva Conventions.
5.56 mm lethality will go on being a moot point until the day it is replaced. The real issue with 5.56 mm is a lack of range. It's good for 300 metres, even 400 metres on a calm day with no cross winds. Unfortunately, we often need to engage enemy targets at 600+ metres. In the final analysis, we don't need better ammunition to improve our ability to kill "innocent people", but to stop "innocent people" engaging us at ranges we can't shoot back from.
By contrast good old 7.62 mm M80 ball which has soldiered on almost unchanged since 1951, neither yaws nor fragments, but more often than not it gets the job done. My choice of weapon is not an HK416, but the HK417. If it's too heavy to carry, then I suggest you get yourself down to the gym.
I can guaranty anyone here that THALES will not replace the FAMAS.