On 19 April the US Army announced the selection of SIG Sauer’s entries into the Next Generation Squad Weapons program. Despite an official announcement and a media event to unveil the weapons to the press, details on weight, loadout and capabilities have been [Read More…]
We, here at TFB, have been closely following the US Army’s Next Generation Squad Weapon program since it began back in 2018. Today, it has been announced that SIG Sauer have won the contract to provide both the NGSW-Rifle and NGSW-Automatic Rifle. An initial [Read More…]
The US Army is yet to officially announce the winner(s) of the Next Generation Squad Weapons (NGSW) program but we know how many weapons they’ll be ordering between October 2022 and September 2023. The US Army’s weapon system program acquisition costs for [Read More…]
Vortex Optics’ submission to the US Army’s Next Generation Squad Weapons – Fire Control procurement program has been selected and is set to become the XM157 NGSW-FC. The optic will equip the winning submission from the US Army’s Next Generation [Read More…]
Winchester has been awarded a contract to prepare to produce the ammunition for the US Army’s Next Generation Squad Weapons. The type of the new 6.8mm ammunition manufactured at the Winchester-run Lake City Army Ammunition Plant depends on the winner of the [Read More…]
SIG Sauer have announced the completion of the final delivery of their Next Generation Squad Weapon System prototypes and ammunition to the U.S. Army. The delivery includes finalised weapon prototypes which have been optimised following Army feedback from the [Read More…]
Textron Systems, one of the three vendors in the running for the US Army’s Next Generation Squad Weapon program held a media panel earlier this week. The panel was lead by Wayne Prender, who is Textron’s Senior Vice President, Applied Technologies and [Read More…]
Its been a little while since we last saw Textron’s Next Generation Squad Weapon prototypes but with the 2020 Annual Meeting and Exposition coming up Textron have released a new promo video. Check out the video below: Earlier this year at SHOT Show 2020 we caught [Read More…]
It has been 11 months since the US Army awarded three OTA contracts as part of its Next Generation Squad Weapon program. Despite the uncertainty around the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic, the program remains on track and set to begin its next major phase. TFB had the [Read More…]
The US Army is forging ahead with the evaluation of the prototype Next Generation Squad Weapon rifles and automatic rifles and it has been confirmed that U.S. Special Operations Command is both involved in the program and watching its developments closely. SOCOM has [Read More…]
With the US Army’s Next Generation Squad Weapons program pushing ahead, despite the ongoing Coronavirus Pandemic, the three companies involved have shipped their prototype weapons. SIG Sauer commemorated the dispatch of their NGSW-Rifles and NGSW-Automatic Rifles [Read More…]
The US Marine Corps has recently undergone a top down doctrinal reevaluation of its future role. As part of these changes in the make up of the Corps have been planned and now a brand new initiative has also been launched – Marine Corps Systems Command’s [Read More…]
Earlier this week we reported that the US Army had issued its first OTA for the Next Generation Squad Weapon Fire Control optic to Vortex Optics. We now learn that L3Harris Technologies has also been awarded an OTA. L3Harris Technologies have prior experience in [Read More…]
Despite the Coronavirus pandemic the US Army continues its Next Generation Squad Weapon program and has issued an OTA (or Other Transaction Authority) award to Wisconsin-based Vortex soliciting them to produce a prototype Next Generation Squad Weapon-Fire [Read More…]
From the Department of Defense’s budget justification books for the fiscal year 2021 we get an idea of the procurement scale and timescale for the winning entry/entries to the Next Generation Squad Weapon program. We also get an idea of how many Next Generation [Read More…]
This year’s SHOT Show was the first to have models representing all three of the US Army’s Next Generation Squad Weapon program prototypes. While SIG had actual prototypes on display (which TFB got our first look at back in September at DSEI 2019) both [Read More…]
TFB’s Matthew Moss did an excellent article about the RM277 – General Dynamics’ Next Generation Squad Weapon and in today’s Photo Of The Day we will follow up with some more speculations. And the photo above of course, which is the main attraction! [Read More…]
US Army Seeks Next Generation Squad Weapon for the Digital Age The United States Army is on track to select a defense contractor in 2020 for its Next Generation Squad Weapon. Defense contractors General Dynamics, SIG Sauer, and the Conglomerate Textron have been [Read More…]
General Dynamics have closely guarded their Next Generation Squad Weapon prototypes, despite my best efforts they stuck to their guns and saved the big reveal for this year’s AUSA Exposition in Washington, D.C.There have been murmurings that their submission would [Read More…]
As we have recently reported the US Army’s Next Generation Squad Weapons program has moved into its next phase, with three companies downselected, one of these was SIG Sauer, who had their NGSW prototypes on display at this year’s 2019 Defence & Security [Read More…]
Earlier this week Textron was one of three companies down-selected by the US Army for the Next Generation Squad Weapon program. TFB had the chance to have a brief chat with Wayne Prender Textron Systems’ Senior Vice President of Applied Technologies & Advanced [Read More…]
The US Army has launched their official Prototype Project Opportunity Notice (PPON) inviting design submission for both the Next Generation Squad Weapon-Rifle (NGSW-R) and the Next Generation Squad Weapon-Automatic Rifle (NGSW-AR), both chambered in the Army’s [Read More…]
With the launch of a new draft Next Generation Squad Weapons (NGSW) PON a couple of weeks ago, I suggested this might be a reboot of the Army’s flagship small arms programme. The Army has now responded to that suggestion. Last week during a question and answer [Read More…]
The NGSAR is dead, long live the NGSW. We haven’t heard much from the US Army about its next generation infantry weapons programme since the announcement of six contract awards for the Next Generation Squad Automatic Rifle (NGSAR) back in June. Just a week before [Read More…]
The US Marine Corps are working with the US Army to find a replacement for the 5.56x45mm ammunition currently available. The Army, has for some time been arguing that even the 5.56x45mm Enhanced Performance Round is insufficient to combat emerging threats. The Marine [Read More…]
In the Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Wednesday, top Army officers talked about their plans to modernize the force, and, as part of that, replace both the M249 SAW and the M4 Carbine, the latter of which has been in service since the early 1990s. The [Read More…]
Despite the suggestion being raised more than once in Congress, the United States Army will not be buying M27 Infantry Automatic Rifles from Heckler & Koch, but instead is devoting its small arms resources towards the Next Generation Squad Automatic Rifle program, [Read More…]
TFB has been running our very special Photo Of The Day for years, sharing great photos from around the world and the world of firearms. Sometimes the selected pictures involve a lot of action and shooting, sometimes there’s another reason behind the choice. Like [Read More…]
Textron have announced the delivery of their first Next Generation Squad Weapon prototype to the US Army, the first of five to be delivered. It should be noted that the prototype is in fulfillment of what is now being termed the Next Generation Squad Weapon-Technology [Read More…]
Confirming our report back in June that the US Army’s future Next Generation Squad Automatic Rifle program has identified five current contestants and awarded opportunity notice awards to facilitate prototype development. Back in June Miles reported that five [Read More…]
