History M16 rifle

ar-10 rifle

the ar-10 featured innovative straight-line barrel/stock design, forged aluminum alloy receivers , phenolic composite stocks. had rugged elevated sights, oversized aluminum flash suppressor , recoil compensator, , adjustable gas system. final prototype featured upper , lower receiver now-familiar hinge , takedown pins, , charging handle on top of receiver placed inside of carry handle. 7.62mm nato rifle, ar-10 incredibly lightweight @ 6.85 lbs. empty. initial comments springfield armory test staff favorable, , testers commented ar-10 best lightweight automatic rifle ever tested armory.

in end united states army chose t44 called m14 rifle improved m1 garand 20-round magazine , automatic fire capability. u.s. adopted m60 general purpose machine gun (gpmg). nato partners adopted fn fal , hk g3 rifles, fn mag , rheinmetall mg3 gpmgs.

the first confrontations between ak-47 , m14 came in part of vietnam war. battlefield reports indicated m14 uncontrollable in full-auto , soldiers not carry enough ammunition maintain fire superiority on ak-47. and, while m2 carbine offered high rate of fire, under-powered , outclassed ak-47. replacement needed: medium between traditional preference high-powered rifles such m14, , lightweight firepower of m2 carbine.

as result, army forced reconsider 1957 request general willard g. wyman, commander of u.s. continental army command (conarc) develop .223 caliber (5.56 mm) select-fire rifle weighing 6 lb (2.7 kg) when loaded 20-round magazine. 5.56 mm round had penetrate standard u.s. helmet @ 500 yards (460 meters) , retain velocity in excess of speed of sound, while matching or exceeding wounding ability of .30 carbine cartridge.

this request resulted in development of scaled-down version of armalite ar-10, called armalite ar-15 rifle. air-cooled, gas-operated, magazine-fed assault rifle made of steel, aluminum alloy , composite plastics, cutting-edge time.

adoption

in july 1960, general curtis lemay impressed demonstration of armalite ar-15. in summer of 1961, general lemay promoted united states air force, chief of staff, , requested 80,000 ar-15s. however, general maxwell d. taylor, chairman of joint chiefs of staff, advised president john f. kennedy having 2 different calibers within military system @ same time problematic , request rejected. in october 1961, william godel, senior man @ advanced research projects agency, sent 10 ar-15s south vietnam. reception enthusiastic, , in 1962, 1,000 ar-15s sent. united states army special forces personnel filed battlefield reports lavishly praising ar-15 , stopping-power of 5.56 mm cartridge, , pressed adoption.

the damage caused 5.56 mm bullet believed caused tumbling due slow 1 in 14-inch (360 mm) rifling twist rate. however, pointed lead core bullet tumble after penetration in flesh, because center of gravity towards rear of bullet. large wounds observed soldiers in vietnam caused bullet fragmentation, created combination of bullet s velocity , construction. these wounds devastating, photographs remained classified 1980s.

however, despite overwhelming evidence ar-15 bring more firepower bear m14, army opposed adoption of new rifle. u.s. secretary of defense robert mcnamara had 2 conflicting views: arpa report favoring ar-15 , army s position favoring m14. president kennedy expressed concern, mcnamara ordered secretary of army cyrus vance test m14, ar-15 , ak-47. army reported m14 suitable service, vance wondered impartiality of conducting tests. ordered army inspector general investigate testing methods used; inspector general confirmed testers biased towards m14.

in january 1963, secretary mcnamara received reports m14 production insufficient meet needs of armed forces , ordered halt m14 production. @ time, ar-15 rifle fulfill requirement of universal infantry weapon issue services. mcnamara ordered adoption, despite receiving reports of several deficiencies, notably lack of chrome-plated chamber.

101st airborne trooper cleans xm16e1 during vietnam war in 1966.



front cover - m16a1 rifle - operation , preventive maintenance eisner

after modifications (most notably, charging handle re-located under carrying handle ar-10 rear of receiver), new redesigned rifle renamed rifle, caliber 5.56 mm, m16. inexplicably, modification new m16 did not include chrome-plated barrel. meanwhile, army relented , recommended adoption of m16 jungle warfare operations. however, army insisted on inclusion of forward assist push bolt battery in event cartridge failed seat chamber. air force, colt , eugene stoner believed addition of forward assist unjustified expense. result, design split 2 variants: air force s m16 without forward assist, , xm16e1 forward assist other service branches.

in november 1963, mcnamara approved u.s. army s order of 85,000 xm16e1s; , appease general lemay, air force granted order 19,000 m16s. in march 1964, m16 rifle went production , army accepted delivery of first batch of 2,129 rifles later year, , additional 57,240 rifles following year.

in 1964, army informed dupont not mass-produce imr 4475 stick powder specifications demanded m16. therefore, olin mathieson company provided high-performance ball propellant. while olin wc 846 powder achieved desired 3,300 ft (1,000 m) per second muzzle velocity, produced more fouling, jammed m16s action (unless rifle cleaned , often).

in march 1965, army began issue xm16e1 infantry units. however, rifle delivered without adequate cleaning kits or instructions because colt had claimed m16 self-cleaning. result, reports of stoppages in combat began surface. severe problem, known failure extract —the spent cartridge case remained lodged in chamber after rifle fired. documented accounts of dead u.s. troops found next disassembled rifles led congressional investigation.

we left 72 men in our platoon , came 19, believe or not, know killed of us? our own rifle. practically every 1 of our dead found (m16) torn down next him had been trying fix it.

in february 1967, improved xm16e1 standardized m16a1. new rifle had chrome-plated chamber , bore eliminate corrosion , stuck cartridges , other, minor, modifications. new cleaning kits, powder solvents , lubricants issued. intensive training programs in weapons cleaning instituted including comic book-style operations manual. result, reliability problems diminished , m16a1 rifle achieved widespread acceptance u.s. troops in vietnam.

in 1969, m16a1 officially replaced m14 rifle become u.s. military s standard service rifle. in 1970, new wc 844 powder introduced reduce fouling.