The Stars and Stripes reports that the M4, the rifle that is the mainstay of our troops in Afghanistan will get a significant upgrade.

Key Highlights:

•  Calling it “the biggest overhaul of service rifles in nearly 50

  years,” the Army soon will send soldiers to Afghanistan with new M4A1

  carbines.  Upgrades to the M4 include a more resilient barrel,

  ambidextrous controls and a full-automatic setting. Add better

  ammunition, and soldiers will have a more lethal weapon to fight

  insurgents, according to Program Executive Office Soldier, which

  introduced the improvements.  The new carbines are expected to be

  integrated into the force starting next year. Going fully automatic

  would definitely give each soldier more firepower, Specialist Jake

  Barnhill said. “But being in a firefight will also use ammunition more

  quickly.”

•  Not everyone is convinced that the upgrades are necessary. Adding

  full-automatic fire mode to the M4 is a huge mistake, said Staff Sgt.

  Lincoln Dockery, a combat engineer stationed in Bamberg. “The whole

  purpose of having riflemen is to accurately engage the enemy,” Dockery

  said. “With full auto, soldiers will stop aiming and just point, shoot

  and hope, like the enemy does.” Tamilio, an infantry officer, said

  it’s up to leaders on the ground to ensure soldiers are trained on

  when to use the full-auto option.  And Army officials said the ability

  to fire on full-automatic is less about a higher rate of fire than

  providing a consistent trigger pull in both the semi-automatic and

  fully automatic modes — something soldiers had requested.

• In July, the Army began issuing new ammunition because soldiers

  complained that the old M855 round was not effective at close range.

  Enemies often would endure several bullet strikes before falling.  But

  the M855A1 has been designed with more stopping power, no matter the enemy’s distance, Tamilio said. “The problem with the [old] M855 round was that it was yaw dependent,” he said, meaning the bullet flew in a straight path at close range, lowering its efficacy. If the round is tilted when it strikes the target, it causes the round to break up more quickly, making it more lethal.

SFTT Analysis:  These upgrades will add more weight, increase the basic

load, displace marksmanship as a core infantry task, and fail to

address the reliability and maintenance issues associated with the

currently issued M4.