The Army has selected the sub compact weapon it will arm its security soldiers with and it wasn’t one of the big companies that have grabbed other recent weapons contracts.
Brugger and Thomet, USA won the competition over Sig Sauer and four other companies that had been vying for the job. Their APC9K was the winner, according to an update on fbo.gov, a government business website.
The small submachine gun is chambered in 9mm and variants of the weapon are in use with police units such as Special Weapons and Tactics, or SWAT teams.
The gun can fire in both semi- and full-automatic modes, has a collapsible stock and rail system for accessories such as aiming lights and lasers.
RELATED
The Army sought a concealable weapon for personal security details that protect high risk personnel such as the secretary of the Army, chief of staff or senior commanders. The aim was to go beyond the pistol and to allow security staff to engage threats “with a high volume of lethal force while accurately firing at close range with minimal collateral damage,” according to the website.
Sig Sauer, winner of the contract to produce the Modular Handgun System for all four services, along with Angstadt Arms, Global Ordnance, Shield Arms and Trident Rifles, competed for the contract.
B&T will manufacture 350 guns and accessories such as spare parts, slings and manuals. The Army has the option to purchase up to 1,000 under the terms of the contract, which is valued at more than $2.5 million.
The Army announced the request in May 2018. Ten companies provided their options. Weapons ranged from M4-style carbines to modern versions of the Heckler & Koch MP5 sub gun design.
The original posting was pulled to adjust the requirements. And gun makers had to submit a weapon that was optimized to fire 147-grain 9mm and include both 20- and 30-round magazine options.
Todd South has written about crime, courts, government and the military for multiple publications since 2004 and was named a 2014 Pulitzer finalist for a co-written project on witness intimidation. Todd is a Marine veteran of the Iraq War.
