POTD: SA80 A2 at eFP Battle Group Estonia

Eric B
by Eric B

Photo Of The Day and we have a pleasant mixture of firearms from various NATO countries taken at the NATO enhanced Forward Presence Battle Group Latvia. Above you have a great image of the SA80 A2 Individual Weapon, with a trigger-happy British soldier.

Italian soldier, with a Beretta ARX160.

SA80 is the designation for a revolutionary family of assault weapons. On its introduction, it proved so accurate that the Army marksmanship tests had to be redesigned.

SA80 A2 comprises the Individual Weapon (IW) and the Light Support Weapon (LSW).

These are the British Army’s standard combat weapons. Made by Heckler and Koch, they fire NATO standard 5.56 x 45mm ammunition.

Participating in field exercises alongside our NATO partners deployed throughout the Baltics is one of the ways we demonstrate our determination and ability to act as one against any aggression.
Ex BOLD AXE took place at Camp Adazi, Latvia, with the participation of the eFP Battle Group Latvia, eFP Battle Group Estonia, the Latvijas Nacionālā aizsardzības akadēmija, and the Sauszemes spēku Mehanizētā kājnieku brigāde

Photos & Captions: Etat-major-des-armées/France and Sgto 1º Alfonso Cortés Pinilla, enhanced Forward Presence Imagery Technician, Ejército de Tierra.
Eric B
Eric B

Ex-Arctic Ranger. Competitive practical shooter and hunter with a European focus. Always ready to increase my collection of modern semi-automatics, optics, thermals and suppressors. TCCC Certified. Occasionaly seen in a 6x6 Bug Out Vehicle, always with a big smile.

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  • NukeItFromOrbit NukeItFromOrbit on Nov 22, 2021

    Third pic looks like L85A3s judging from the new M-LOK handguard.

    The SA80 family will never live down its troubled introduction and general shoddy manufacture of the A1 models but they turned it into something decent in the end.

    • Daniel Kyle Daniel Kyle on Nov 22, 2021

      @NukeItFromOrbit I wouldn't call it "decent". Even after all those fixes and updates, the SA80 platform is still plagued by various problems and there is nothing that can be done about them without redesigning it from the ground up. It weights way too much for what it is - about 5kg or 11lb in its most basic configuration, it cannot be converted for left handed shooters by any means, manipulators such as mag release and charging handle are awkwardly placed and painful to use... It's just not a very good platform overall. It became a pretty reliable and servicable weapon, but nearly every single modern "assault rifle" is running circles around it. Even older bullpups like the AUG or FAMAS are just better, more refined weapons than L85.

  • T243 T243 on Nov 22, 2021

    What kind of bird stucks in the Camo of the ARX160-Soldier? I kinda like it and feel like adding bird feathers to my helmet in the style of a some destingished french Lady of the 1920 to 1930s

    • See 3 previous
    • FarmerB FarmerB on Nov 24, 2021

      @Iggy I’ve seen some of those dudes on the street in Rome, but they wouldn’t let me take their picture.

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