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What hides behind the designation L131A1? In case the pictures didn’t help you it’s the British Army’s name for the Glock 17.
In 2013 the MOD (Ministry Of Defence United Kingdom) signed a £9 million contract to provide the Armed Forces with more than 25,000 new Glock sidearms.
Personnel across all three Services began receiving their new Glock 17s and the troops that deployed to Afghanistan were among the first to use the new weapon.
The Glock pistol replaced the elderly Browning L9A1, which had been in use by the U.K. Armed Forces for more than 40 years.
Viking Arms UK, the company that signed the contract with the MOD, is still going strong and can be found here.
Below you can find the description from the time, complete with British spelling, and reference pictures from the armory.
Pictured in an armoury are GLOCK 17 GEN 4 (L131A1) 9mm Pistols.
Personnel across all the Services were issued this sidearm from 2013, replacing the venerable Browning L9A1 after over 40 years in service.
The MOD signed a £9m contract with the Viking Arms to provide the armed forces with more than 25,000 Glock 17 pistols and holsters.
The Glock 17 was delivered first to troops serving in Afghanistan in January 2013 before being rolled out throughout all arms of the services.
The pistol is carried as a secondary / backup weapon by frontline troops. In British service, it is designated as the L131A1 General Service Pistol.
The GLOCK 17, in 9×19, is one of the most widely used pistols in the world.
Because of its unsurpassed reliability, above-average magazine capacity of 17 rounds in the standard magazine, and its low weight, it is trusted by law enforcement and military units around the globe.
With a revolutionary “Safe Action” trigger system, the G17 9×19 pistol is safe, easy, and quick to deploy.
The L131A1– Glock 17 GEN4 9mm semi-automatic pistol is a single-action semi-automatic weapon system manufactured from steel and polymer. It is very light weight and combines safety, ease of operation and proven durability.
The pistol fires from a mechanically locked breech and the automatic action of the mechanism is achieved with in the short recoil length.
A holding open device (slide stop lever) is incorporated which retains the slide to the rear in the open position when the last round from the magazine has been fired. This facility makes reloading easy and fast.
It has a box type magazine that is fitted into the grip and has a capacity of 17 rounds.
Yes, it takes Glock magazines.
Below: Safe & Fast Level 3 holster, made by the Italian company, Radar 195. http://www.radar1957.it/en/
Yes, this soldier is carrying a Glock as a sidearm as well.
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