06-02-2005, 04:00 PM
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| Member  | SCAR Spec Ops Rifle Passes Review From Defense Aerospace The Special Operations Command Conducts Third Critical Design Review for the Special Operations Forces Combat Assault Rifle (SCAR) (Source: United States Special Operations Command; issued June 1, 2005) HERSTAL, Belgium --- The United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) announced today that it conducted the third critical design review for the Special Operations Forces Combat Assault Rifle (SCAR) with FN Herstal since the contract award on 5 November 2004. USSOCOM's SCAR Program is providing the first, truly modular and reliable assault rifle designed and built from the ground up for the finest fighting forces in the world. The critical design review was spearheaded by the Naval Surface Warfare Center-Crane Division (NSWC-CD), Crane, Indiana, and supported by USSOCOM Operators. FN Herstal displayed several improvements to the existing platform, including a SCAR version in the 'flat, dark, earth' color representation, an anodized aluminum upper receiver rail colored in 'flat, dark, earth,' a polymer lower receiver version and a concept model of the EGLM. As in the previous Critical Design Reviews, FN Herstal provided SCAR rifles in various configurations including a 20" barreled 7.62 SCAR-Heavy (SCAR-H). Troy Smith, SCAR Program Manager said, "With the third critical design review, we continue to emphasize the importance of Operator involvement side- by-side with FN Herstal and Operator developers that will continue throughout the lifetime of the program. We continue to make changes to improve this weapon through an iterative process. In the end, we very much look forward to providing the Operators designed for them in mind with the best solutions technology has to offer." Throughout the meetings, the developer worked side-by-side with the Operators for an iterative design process. The team was able to make immediate changes and improvements to prototypes and designs. Operators tested the weapons on the range to gauge the initial capabilities of what they had previously outlined in the requirements. The program originally had four increments which have been condensed based on early demonstrations of the SCAR-H prototypes. The condensed increments allow the production and fielding of the SCAR-H concurrently with the SCAR-L. The SCAR will be built at the FN Manufacturing LLC, plant in Columbia, South Carolina, which employs approximately 500 people. FN Manufacturing LLC, is a precision machining manufacturer specializing in the production of small arms. Their products include the M16 rifle, M240 machine gun, M249 SAW, and the FNP Polymer 49 pistol for military and law enforcement markets. The USSOCOM plans, directs, and executes special operations in the conduct of the War on Terrorism in order to disrupt, defeat, and destroy terrorist networks that threaten the United States, its citizens and interests worldwide. USSOCOM organizes, trains, and equips special operations forces that are provided to the Geographic Combatant Commanders, American Ambassadors and their country teams. The Naval Surface Warfare Center-Crane Division, the center responsible for the SCAR program testing, is located in Crane, Indiana. NSWC-CD is a shore command of the United States Navy under the Naval Sea Systems Command headquartered in Washington D.C. The focus of NSWC Crane is to harness the power of technology for the Warfighter. NSWC-CD specializes in the Acquisition and Fleet support of Electronics, Ordnance and Electronic Warfare products and systems. The Herstal Group, a 2500-person strong corporation, employs nearly 900 people in the United States. The Herstal Group includes Herstal, the parent company and two main subsidiaries: FN Herstal, active in the Defense and Law Enforcement fields, and Browning specializing in hunting and shooting, marksmanship and outdoor sporting goods. The Herstal Group is headquartered in Liege, Belgium.
__________________ Happiness is a warm gun. - The Beatles Last edited by CV32; 06-07-2005 at 05:41 AM. |
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06-04-2005, 06:22 PM
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| Senior Member  | I think your link should be: www.defense-aerospace.com That SCAR thing is weird looking. I can see the FN guys in meeting right now: Marketing Guy 1: "You know, our rifle looks almost identical to that Robinson Armory XCR we're competing against." Engineer: "Well actually I've got this new rail system idea..." Marketing Guy 2: "Why don't we try something FUN?" Engineer: "Fun?" Marketing Guy 1: "Yeah, like, like, like...uh, we could give it teeth, to make it look mad and mean and scary, like- GRRRRRRAAAARRRGHH" ::makes chomping motions with hands:: Marketing Guy 2: " I said FUN, not scary, you big silly. I know, we could shape the whole thing like a dolphin, and have the dorsal fin be a detachable optic piece, our FN 2000 optics are almost the right profile already..." Engineer: "A dolphin... I dunno, I really don't see the point in all..." This goes on for hours, untill a compromise is made... Marketing Guy 1: "So we're all in agreement now? Everyone happy?" Marketing Guy 2: "Well, I'm still not as happy as I could be, but it's a compromise, and I'll live with it. I mean, heh, I mean, it's not like I'll ever have to get out there and shoot one of these things..." Engineer: Yeah, whatever, replace the current stock with one shaped like a carp tail. Anything else I can do for you guys to get our injection molders some MORE overtime?" Marketing Guy 2: "Ooh, ooh, did we talk about the possibility of the limited edition pastel colored hardware sets?" Marketing Guy 1: "Yeah I think we shot that down pretty early in the meeting actually" Marketing guy 2: "You guys are no fun." If we're buying all this crap from FN, why get them to make more m-16s AND Hk to make their piston driven versions, AND develop the new XM8 thing? Why not just buy that FN2000? It's been out a few years now and looks like the OICW concept that we TRIED to get HK to make, except practical. Surely the development money would be better spent buying a design that's already proven and available.
__________________ It is known that there are an infinite number of worlds, simply because there is an infinite amount of space for them to be in. However, not every one of them is inhabited. Therefore, there must be a finite number of inhabited worlds. Any finite number divided by infinity is as near to nothing as makes no odds, so the average population of the Universe can be said to be zero. From this it follows that any people you meet from time to time are merely the product of a deranged imagination. |
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06-07-2005, 04:17 AM
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| Senior Member | Yeah, seems they figured out the XM8 tends to, for lack of a more appropriate word, melt under sustained fire. I still don't understand why we poured money into the OICW fiasco, THEN more money into this XM8. If we're going HK, buy G36s, they've been in use long enough that most of the kinks are worked out. The FN2000 would complete the whole FN package we got going with the minimi, p90, etc. But really, if they insist on building a superior weapon system BASED around an inferior ammunition, why not just slap pistons into the gas systems of our existing stock of rifles and be done with it for another decade or so? It's sad that all this BS spending isn't REALLY about arming our troops better, it's about establishing properous relations with two of the biggest arms manufacturers in the world. And what fantastic timing for it 
__________________ It is known that there are an infinite number of worlds, simply because there is an infinite amount of space for them to be in. However, not every one of them is inhabited. Therefore, there must be a finite number of inhabited worlds. Any finite number divided by infinity is as near to nothing as makes no odds, so the average population of the Universe can be said to be zero. From this it follows that any people you meet from time to time are merely the product of a deranged imagination. |
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