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Depending on who you choose to believe, theSpecial Operations Forces Combat Assault Rifle(SCAR) program is either on the cusp of successor the precipice of failure. On the Kumbaya

side, youve got FN Herstal, the Special Operations Forc-es (SOF) Weapons Team at the Naval Surface WarfareCenter (NSWC), Crane Division, and the Program Exec-utive Office for SOF Warrior Systems (PEO-SW) withinUSSOCOM. Theyre all touting the features, attributesand performance of the developmental FN MK 16 MOD0 SCAR-Light (SCAR-L) and MK 17 MOD 0 SCAR-Heavy(SCAR-H) like theyre the small arms equivalent of thesecond coming.

On the other side, there are active and retired SpecialForces personnel and industry observers who are lessthan sanguine about SCARs future.

As a journalist, its my job to dig out the facts and reportthe truth fairly and impartially, to the best of my ability.So, with that in mind, Im going to present both sides ofthe argument and let the chips fall where they may.

SCAR Program Origins

The SCAR program actually began in 2002, whencombat developers from each of U.S. Special Opera-tions Command (USSOCOM, better known as SOCOM)

component commands drafted the Joint OperationalRequirements Document (JORD) defining a weaponsystem to specifically meet their needs. This initial draftrequirement was posted for industry (i.e., gun manu-facturers) to review and comment on and became thebaseline for the SCAR Industry Conference held in

August 2003.This conference with leading companies in the fire-

arms industry led to the final JORD submission. The SCARJORD was approved by SOCOM in September 2003, andan official Program of Record was established. In Janu-

ary 2004 they officially released the SCAR solicitation.Currently, were actually over four years into the effort.

The immediate goal of the SCAR Program is to replaceall current assault rifles, carbines, subcarbines, battlerifles and light sniper weapons with the SCAR weapons.

Specifically, the goal is to replace the Colt SOPMODM4A1 Carbine, the MK12 SPR (Special Purpose Rifle),MK18 MOD O CQBR (Close Quarters Battle Rifle), theM14 battle rifle, the MK 11 MOD 0 Sniper Support Rifle(SSR) and the M203 underbarrel-mounted grenadelauncher with three modular weapons: the MK 16 SCAR-L (5.56x45mm NATO), the MK 17 SCAR-H (7.62x51mmNATO), and the MK 13 Enhanced Grenade LauncherModule (EGLM).

(A quick note on nomenclature here: the MK in MK16 or 17 is an Army designation; when it is written asMk, its a Navy designation.)

However, the programs future and ultimate goaland this is an FY08 initiative is to develop and utilizeone modular, common receiver platform for the MK 16and MK 17 that can be configured to accept any cur-rent or future caliber ammunition, depending on themission requirement. In other words, the ultimate goalis just one modular, open-architecture weapon withmulti-caliber capability, what the SOF Weapons Team

calls the Objective SCAR System, instead of two sepa-rate weapons.

Six Versions

The SCARs intrinsic modularity is the key to thiscapability. For even though there are two models, theLight and Heavy, there are actually six total variantsbecause the extruded aluminum receivers (upper receiv-ers) incorporate a quick-change barrel system and canaccept different trigger modules.

Three barrel lengths are available, depending on

SCAR was designed by Special Forces tier one operators and its features have been modified and improved based on real-worldtesting and feedback from the actual men who will use the rifle in the field.

By David CranePhotos courtesy FN USA

You want details, you want facts, you want the most complete accountever published of the four-year development of the Special [Operations]Combat Assault Rifle? Here it is.

the mission-specific requirement: CQC, Standard andSniper Variant (SV), also known as the Long Barrel (LB).This allows the operator to field-modify the weapon toaccommodate the mission. For the MK 16 MOD 0 SCAR-L, barrel lengths are 10" (CQC), 14" (standard) and 18"(LB). Barrel lengths for the MK 17 MOD 0 SCAR-H are13" (CQC), 16" (standard), and 20" (LB).

The trigger module on the SCAR is essentially thelower receiver in that it contains the trigger assembly,magazine well and pistol grip. However, the reason itscalled the trigger module and not the lower receiver isthat, on the SCAR, the upper receiver is the serial-num-bered part the gun, as it were unlike the AR-plat-form where the lower receiver is the gun and thereforethe serial-numbered receiver component.

FN Herstal, Colt Defense, Knights Armament Co.(KAC), Lewis Machine & Tool (LMT), Cobb Manufac-turing, Robinson Armament (Robarm), and Diemacoall competed for the contract, but it was FN Herstalthat was unanimously awarded the indefinite-delivery-indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract for SCAR in Novem-ber 2004 by a Source Selection Board made up entirelyof Special Forces operators for each of SOCOMs com-ponent commands.

There were rumors floating around at the time thatSOCOM favored FN Herstal from the beginning and

the smaller companies like Cobb and Robinson werbounced out of the competition as quickly as SOCOMcould manage it, since these two companies i n particular were small, new and didnt have products already ithe procurement system. They lacked political connetions and were deemed to be incapable of deliverinsuch a large order anyway. However, according to Tucer Campion, PEO-SOF Warrior, retired SEAL and Proect Manager SOF Small Arms and Ammunition, Ther

was no difference to the opportunities provided to onvendor over another. Each was provided ample oppotunity to provide questions or concerns and get a PMreply. All the submitting vendors were present at thIndustry conference, where they presented their comments and concerns on the JORD, and what they weplanning on submitting to the board of SOF operatoand program personnel present in a Q&A scenario. ThSOF panel was anxious to see all the weapons and picthe best, period.

Whither The XM8?

Before we move on, though, I should cover an inteesting and perhaps lesser-known side note to the competition, involving a modified version of the HK XM5.56mm assault rifle. I was curious as to whether or noHK had submitted the gun for the SCAR competitio

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so I asked a SOCOM rep, who told me they had not. Thisis, in fact, true.

No HK SCAR candidate was submitted in theSCAR competition, but, on a hunch, I decided todig a little deeper and got in touch with an indus-try contact of mine who was involved at HK in theplanned XM8-R submission for the SCAR competi-tion. Heres a portion of the reply he sent me via e-mail:PEO Soldier [Program Manager SW Individual Weap-ons Lt. Col. Matt Clarke] ag reed to submit a Govt-to-Govtsubmission of XM8 with rails (called XM8-R) to SOCOMfor the SCAR solicitation. PEO SP [at SOCOM, Col. TomSpellissy] agreed to accept it in the competition.

HK GmbH prepared a full set of 5.56mm XM8s thatwere 100 percent compliant with the SCAR specs aswell as a version of the HK 40x46mm GLM [XM320] forthe EGLM portion. All of the rifles had Picatinny railsalong the top of the receiver and on four sides of thehandguard.

The guns arrived at HKD [HK Defense] in time forsubmission, and we prepared the necessary supportpackage, manuals and documents. Five days before thesubmission deadline I contacted Crane to arrange fordelivery and was told by the PM there that SOCOM hadchanged their mind and decided not to accept a Govt-

to-Govt submission after all, allegedly due to directionfrom legal counsel at SOCOM.

I believe this was all BS because there have beenmany such G-to-G submissions in the past, like theCrane and USMC WTB submissions of modified M21sto the USMC DMR test in the 1990s and others.

This is all fact. I was there and directly involved.The really ironic fact is that PEO S [Brig. Gen. Moran]and PEO-SP [Tom Spellissy] were classmates at theUSMA. The two requirements for the 5.56mm XM8 and Full-Page Ad

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SCAR Light, long barrel configuration

MK 16 series MK 17 series

SCAR L were 95 percent compati-ble, yet they made every effort notto work together on what shouldhave been a joint effort.

PM SW and HK even agreed tobuild the XM8 in 7.62x51mm and6.8x43mm for the heavy portion, ifrequired. $50 million spent on XM8and $20 million thus far on SCARsince 2005, and not one is fielded.Zero U.S. Government dollars[have been] spent in its develop-ment or testing, and the HK416 is,and has been, fielded and killing

bad guys across the globe since2005 in the hands of our most eliteunits, and others like them, aroundthe world. Ironic, isnt it?

At roughly the same time the

above situation was going on, I waspretty hard on the XM8 (possibly abit too hard, based on recent dis-cussions about it with respectedprofessional contacts of mine who

were involved in its development).That said, I havent been a big fanof the way HK does business ingeneral, and especially how theytreat the U.S. civilian tacticalshooting market. Frankly, I dontthink they give the U.S. civiliantactical shooting market the prop-er amount of respect and priority

due, so its hard for me to have alot of sympathy for them over theirlack of success with Big Army andSOCOM small-arms procurement,respectively.

Understand that, to this day,the HK416 is still not commerciallyavailable in the U.S., and its beenaround since 2004! Believe me

when I tell you that this is not dueto a lack of demand or enthusiasmfor the HK416 in the U.S. commer-cial sector. But back to the SCAR

SCAR Testing

There are two primary typesof testing that the SCAR weaponshave had to endure: developmen-tal testing (DT) and operational

testing (OT). During develop-mental testing, thats when we getall the environmental type stuffout of the way endurance, lon-gevity of the weapon system, saltspray, sand, et cetera, explainedGabe Bailey, FNH USA MilitaryDivision Director.

During initial operationaltesting, in the form of Early User

Assessments and Evaluations(EUAs), thats when they really domission-type profiles, so theyregoing out in [combat] environ-ments and testing the weapon sys-tem out.

The operators provide subjec-tive data [in the form of operatorfeedback] as well as the objectivedata thats more in the form ofnumbers.

Bailey went on to describe how,prior to the operational test, theyhad a total of seven program man-agement reviews, which consistedof approximately 40 people. These40 people were comprised of engi-neers, FN reps, SOCOM reps, pro-gram management office reps outof NSWC Crane, and Special Forcesoperators basically sitting arounda table and telling the designers,developers and program folks

what they wanted changed, whythey wanted it changed, and whatthat change would do for the end-user operationally.

According to FN, every changealong the way was purely demo-cratic and they were based oninput from all the operators. Soto anyone who says he doesntlike a particular change that was

made in the systems evolution-ary development, Bailey takesthat criticism with a grain of salt,since he was involved in six outof the seven program reviews andall the changes and modificationsthat occurred were justified forthe operational betterment of the

weapons system.After FN initially presented the

weapons to SOCOM and priorto the formal operational testingphase that the weapons are cur-rently in there were four user

assessments (EUAs) by SOCOMoperators to see how the weaponssystem functioned and operated,not just mechanically but alsoergonomically, with regard to thelayout of the controls, balance,handling and other shootabilityfactors.

Operator Input

User assessments took placeover the course of a year and ahalf, starting with the first userassessment in July 2004 and run-ning through January 2006. Inter-mingled between the develop-

mental testing and environmentaltesting, the user assessments werebasically used as check points tomake sure the designers at FN

were doing what they needed todo, and that the weapons system

was doing what it was supposedto do.

The user assessments werealso designed to ensure that, ifthe operators had any changesthat needed to be made beforeFN went to production guns, FNcould make those changes.

To put it another way, the for-mal evaluations, along with thesubsequent operational testing,

were designed to make sure thatthe operators got the weapon thatthey wanted and needed, whichis why FN and SOF Weapons atNSWC Crane describe SCAR as anoperator-envisioned, tested andchosen weapons system.

For SCAR weapons testing, pro-gram managers at SOF Weapons,NSWC Crane has typically run

guns at NSWC Crane, while FNManufacturing, down in Colum-bia, S.C., and FN Herstal person-nel in Belgium simultaneouslyconduct the same testing.

SOF Weapons has lived by thisfiring schedule since they put outthe initial solicitation for SCAR. Itensures that all the developmen-tal partners and players are testingthe weapons system in the samemanner, to show up any problemsor areas in need of improvement,

which they can then communi-

cate to the other partners.So, its not just one group test-

ing the weapons, its a multi-teameffort of SOCOM and FN, bothtesting and exchanging infor-

mation gleaned on high-riskaspects like weapon durability andendurance, high/low temperaturetesting, and other functionallycrucial aspects. According to SOF

Weapons, this multi-team testingaspect has worked out well.

Production Phase

Once these four user assess-ments were completed and a finaldesign was agreed upon, the pro-gram moved into the Low Rate Ini-tial Production (LRIP) phase. This

Milestone Decision was madeby the leadership of SOCOM andtransitioned into the Initial Opera-tional Test and Evaluation (IOT&E)phase. The purpose of IOT&E is to

SCAR Light, CQC configuration

SCAR Light, standard configuration

SCAR Heavy, CQC configuration

SCAR Heavy, standard configuration

SCAR Heavy, long barrel configuration



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allow for any required changes or adjustments to futuredeliveries to be made prior to full assembly.

This IOT&E period is designed to have operationalelements from within each SOCOM component run the

weapon through the ringer and test it out in real-worldcombat environments such as desert, jungle, alpine,arctic, ocean, riverine, airborne and others to find outif there are any deficiencies in the weapons system froman end-users perspective.

An LRIP delivery order was made for 712 units of theMk 16 MOD 0 5.56mm assault rifles, 593 units of the MK17 MOD 0 7.62mm battle rifles, and 302 units of the MK13 MOD 0 EGLM underbarrel-mounted 40mm grenadelaunchers. Of these quantities, 32 SCAR Lights and 32SCAR Heavies, along with 16 grenade launchers, werefully assembled and delivered for IOT&E.

The first OT took place from August through Decem-ber 2007 and was conducted in four phases, most of

which were two and a half weeks long. Operational con-tingents of U.S. Army Rangers, USMC MARSOC, U.S.Navy SEALs, Air Force Special Operations, and U.S. ArmySpecial Forces tested the weapons in their respectiveoperational environments.

The Rangers went first in August, then MARSOC inSeptember, then SEALs in October and November, and

finally Army SF in December. Intermingled in theseoperational contingents were some Air Force Ravenspersonnel. Each of these phases and the planned con-duct of them were developed by and agreed to by eachrespective SOCOM component command.

Operational testing is conducted by the SOF testersunder the authority of an operational test project officerout of Marine Corps Operational Test and Evaluation

Activity (MCOTEA). They have data collectors follow-ing along while the operators are doing mission-typeprofiles, i.e. real-world-type testing. These tests are con-ducted CONUS (inside the CONtinental United States).

The combined test and evaluation process conductedby FN, the SCAR program office, and SOCOM operatorsrevealed a number of design, materials, and manufac-turing aspects that needed to be modified or improved.

In general, if the operators wanted a change on theweapon, they had combat developers with whom theywould work to implement the changes. These combatdevelopers are force modernization representativesand are the subject-matter experts on weapons for theirrespective contingent.

So, as everyone is sitting around a table, there will bea representative (sometimes two representatives) fromeach contingent, and theyll bat around the various

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Modularity is the name of the game for SCAR. A short barrelcan be exchanged for a long sniper barrel in the field.

changes that each feels are necessary. While there havebeen rumors flying that not everyone has been satisfied

with all the changes and modifications that have beenmade along the way, FN maintains that every changehas been fully vetted by every SOCOM contingent forthe betterment of the weapons system.

If a change is made, it has to be made forthe right reasons, so that it enhances the com-bat capability of the weapons system, Bailey said.

Successful Development

Two points should be made here before we get into

the specific design changes that were made or points ofcontention that were discussed. First, successful infan-try small- arms design and development is much moredifficult than people might think. The difficulty in creat-ing a mechanically reliable, select-fire firearm lies in thefact that theres a rather complex interaction betweenthe multiple weapon components (gun, magazine, andammo), each of which utilizes multiple parts.

There are many things that can go wrong, some ofthem quite small yet totally arresting if they happen.

Youve got the main action or mechanism of the weaponand all related parts, the magazine and all related parts,and the ammunition and all related components. Anyproblems with the functioning of just one of these com-

ponents can cause a malfunction, so you need to havea highly competent engineering team to develop the

weapon intelligently and progressively to troubleshootany and all problems that arise.

It also shouldnt be overlooked that most of the greatmilitary firearms throughout history have been createdby one or two individuals. Think of John Browning, JohnGarand, Eugene Stoner, Mikhail Kalashnikov. Gun com-

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panies themselves are only as goodas their engineers. If you dont havegood talent in-house, youd betterfind it outside and contract it.

If you want to achieve the bestpossible design and the most com-bat-effective small arm, the major-ity of interaction should be betweenthe engineers and the operators

who will be employing it in combat.It should be a direct and unrestrict-ed relationship with as little outside

interference as possible from man-agement, program managers, beancounters and administrators.

Thats not to say that com-pany management and programmanagers cant also contributetheir opinions and guidance dur-ing development, but the bulkof the communication regardingdesign and performance shouldbe between the engineers and theoperators, period.

When I communicated thisopinion to Bailey, he readily agreed,adding, I can tell you this: at mostof our program reviews, thats

where the interaction takes place.

Obviously theres other folks thatweigh in. But, for the most part, itsthe operators talking to the engi-neers. Thats where it really comesacross.

SCAR Design Features

Lets get into the nitty-gritty. Letsstart with the SCARs operation.Both the MK 16 Light and MK 17Heavy operate via short-stroke gas-piston systems and utilize a rotat-ing bolt. This means that insteadof relying on direct gas impinge-ment to push the bolt carrier grouprearward and cycle the gun, like

with the M16, a gas piston insteadutilizes an operating rod (op rod)to physically push the bolt carriergroup back and cycle the weapon.

An op rod system runs inherentlycleaner and cooler than a direct-gasimpingement because youre notsending hot gas, carbon and foul-ing back into the weapons action.Cleaner operation means that the

weapon requires less maintenance.Theoretically, the cooler-runningaspect of an op rod system shouldassist in lengthening the life of thegun. The advantages of short-strokegas-piston operation have receiveda fair amount of publicity of late dueto the operational success of theHK416 (and now HK417) already inSOF use.

Finally, with a short-stroke gas

system, barrel length is much lecrucial than it is for a direct-gaimpingement system. With diregas, you have to worry about gapressure. You need enough gas presure to cycle the weapon, withoucreating an over-pressure situatioIn order to have enough gas presure, you need to have a certaamount of barrel in front of the gaport, which has to be the corre

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IFyoure developing a new family ofbattle rifles, you dont want to forgetan underbarrel-mounted 40mm gre-nade launcher, and the SCAR devel-

opers certainly didnt. In fact, theyve devel-oped a new side-loading Enhanced GrenadeLauncher Module (EGLM) designated as theMK13 MOD 0).

Reportedly based on the FN F2000s under-barrel-mounted grenade launcher, the MK13sbreach not only slides forward, but also swingsout to either side for ambidextrous use. It alsoallows the operator to load longer-length,enhanced-lethality, low-impulse/velocity and

medium impulse/velocity grenade rounds,which the Mk13 is designed to handle.

The unique feature about the MK 13 EGLMis that it can handle the 40mm grenade ammu-nition that the military uses right now, whichis all low velocity, but its designed to handlethe medium-velocity stuff which basically hastwice the range of the low-velocity round,David Merrill, former Director of Military Mar-

keting and Communications at FNH USA said.So the design and the architecture of the

weapon are very unique in that it can handlethis extra-heavy kick when the military finallydecides that this is the munition that it wantsto move to.

Based on Merrills statement, it would seemlogical that the MK 13 EGLM would be capa-ble of handling rounds like the HellHoundHE/HEDP and Mercury HEDP multi-purposerounds from Martin Electronics which arelonger in length than standard 40x46mm low-velocity grenades.

The HellHound actually comes in two ver-

sions: High-Explosive (HE) and High-Explo-sive Dual-Purpose (HEDP). Both versions ofthe HellHound contain twice the fill amount(A5 explosive) of a standard-length M43340mm round as well as an outer fragmentationband component around the outside, giving i ta 40 percent greater shrapnel pattern than theM433 and a lethal diameter of 10 meters.

The HellHound has a maximum range of 400

SCARsDark Under-Belly

Or is that under-barrel? While the Light and Heavy rifles wereunder development, so was a new grenade launcher module.

By David Crane

meters (437.6 yards), and it utilizes a point-initiating,base-detonating fuse with Safe Arm technology. TheMercury HEDP round is essentially the medium-velocity version of the HellHound HEDP round,except that it has a shorter fragmentation/shrapnelouter band component and a correspondingly short-er overall length. The Mercury can reach out andtouch the enemy out to 800 meters (874.9 yards), so ithas double the max range of the HellHound.

Gabe Bailey, Marketing Director, Combat Rifles &Technical Support, FN Military Operations, informedme that the EGLM hasnt actually been tested withmedium-velocity 40mm ammo yet.

The MK13 also features a double-action trigger,allowing the user to strike the rounds primer againand again as necessary in case of a misfire, withouthaving to re-cock the weapon by opening and closingthe breach like on the M203. The MK 13 also utilizes arotating, locking barrel to close and lock the breach.

An advanced Fire Control Unit (FCU) is beingdeveloped for the MK13 that appears to operate insimilar fashion to the developmental Aimpoint BR8FCS (Fire Control System), which is essentially acomputerized combat optic that will allow the warf-ighter to hit targets accurately out to 600 meters.

Heres how the BR8 works: While looking through

the site, find your target. Then, aim at your target bypuyting the solid red dot on it and measure the range.

A secondary blinking red dot will appear beneath theinitial solid red dot. This blinking red dot is the new,corrected aiming point. So, now just super-elevatethe weapon until the lower blinking red dot is on thetarget, and fire. The target should go away.

Like the M203, the MK13 can be operated as astand-alone unit when the launcher tube and triggerassembly component is combined with the stand-alone stock component, which consists of an inte-grated Mil-Std-1913 rail and telescoping buttstock.

The requirement states that the EGLM shall havea functional and effective barrel life of5,000 rounds.

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size. By contrast, an op rod-drivensystem frees you up from having to

worry about this precise gas pres-sure balance with subcarbine-lengthbarrels and gas port-erosion.

The SCAR weapons utilize a recip-rocating charging/cocking handle.A lot of operators are not used tohaving the charging handle goingback and forth, said Bailey. Once

you explain it and you show themimmediate action drills, should the

weapon malfunction, its all grossmotor skills. With a carbine or M16rifle, you have to take your hand and

your head off the weapon to reallyperform an immediate action drill.

With our weapon system, and withthe charging handle located in theposition its in, its very, very easy toconduct an immediate action drill.

And, once they learn this, theylove it. Ive seen several reports thatthe government has put out. At theonset of a user assessment, theycomplain about it. By the end, theysay they wouldnt trade it for the

world, because it just makes sense.Since SCAR is now into the fourth

or fifth generation of development,a number of features have evolvedover time, particularly aspects thatpertain to weapon ergonomics. Theselector switch is one of these items.The SCAR selector switch has a90-degree thr ow from Safe to Full-

Auto, as opposed to the M16A4/M4A1s selector switch, which hasa 180-degree throw. To get to Semi-

Auto from Safe, its a 45-degreethrow, and then another 45-degreethrow to Full-Auto.

The advantage of the shorterthrow is that, once the operatorgets used to it, it is quicker andeasier to get to Full-Auto becausea 90-degree throw is half the dis-tance. The crucial element here was

to make the selector click securelyenough into position on all of thesettings so that it doesnt get moved

without the operator deliberatelymoving it from position to position.

The selector is ambidextrous andfeatures a long paddle on the leftside for thumb actuation and a shortpaddle on the right side for indexfinger actuation. During testing,the developers and testers foundthat the ambidextrous selector lever

was catching on operators clothingand gear on the primary side (leftside), so the developers changedthe detent spacing on the tumbler,

which cut down on it kicking over tothe next position.

They then lowered the profileof the manual thumb selector so it

wasnt as prone to catching on an

operators gear. They also made theselector switch reversible for leftiesso they can have the long paddle onthe right side of the weapon, and theshort panel on the left side.

Materials Evolution

Some of the changes have beenbased on an evolution in materi-als. Due to the requirement that the

weapons be able to fire 15,000 roundswithout any parts breakage, some ofthe parts had to be strengthened viamaterials changes. An example ofthis is the MK 17s bolt, which wasinitially breaking prematurely dueto excess sulfur in the steel.

The barrel extension and lugsalso apparently had a bit too muchsulfur in them. According to PaulMiller, NSWC-Crane, SCAR Dep-uty PM and Lead Crane Engineer,the high-round-count test sched-ule revealed pretty much any typeof materials brittleness problem,including this one.

Our test schedule calls for, say,

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Since SCAR is now into the fourth or fifthgeneration of development, a number offeatures have evolved over time.



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10,000 rounds in a test, then 5,000 rounds that are infull-automatic mode, and 2,500 rounds are suppressed.

And, under those firing conditions, its a very severe firingschedule, which, if youve got any issues with the designor the structure, youre going to see it during our endur-ance phases.

And what we were seeing was, with this sulfur con-tamination, we were getting some cracks prior to ourexpected service-life limit, Smith explained. FN cor-rected the formula for the material, and that solved theproblem.

On one of the early generations of SCAR, there weresome problems with the folding/telescoping buttstock. Acontact of mine out of U.S. Army Speci al Forces explainedthat when his group tested the weapons, the hinge on thebuttstock wasnt robust enough, and they were able tobreak it. As it turns out, this problem occurred on a firstgeneration gun and was fixed shortly thereafter.

This same SF contact informed me that the SCAR stockwas too chunky for his tastes, using words like big,thick and crappy to describe it.

FN just went about it a little bit wrong, my sourceexplained. They tried to please everybody by givingthem length-of-pull and cheek-to-stock height with abad hinging system. And, its all just a big, thick, plastic,crappy you know. Somebody can do much better withan aftermarket version for that, and they will. When itbecomes mainstream, somebody will make a betteraftermarket stock because nobody likes that thing.

It should be noted that, with any infantry small-arms

development program, problems are going to show upthat have to be solved. In addition, various aspects willhave to be tweaked or improved, based on operationalrequirements. Also, its very difficult for any companyto make repeated changes and modifications based oncontinuous operational testing and operator feedback.

The Costs

The procurement cost by itself is a major issuebecause not only is SCAR intended to replace everyinfantry rifle, carbine, subcarbine and underbarrel-mounted 40mm grenade launcher currently in service

with SOCOM, but its also seen by some as a potentialreplacement for every rifle and carbine in the Big Armyand the Marine Corps. Thats a lot of weapons!

When I interviewed Bailey, he spoke directly to theprocurement cost issue: I dont think a lot of peopleunderstand the SCAR pr ogram. When were talking aboutthe weapon system, were not talking about just the gun.

Were talking about the magazines, were talking abouta vertical grip, were talking about a rail panel kit, weretalking about a bipod, were talking about a suppressor.

Thats what the weapon system is, and theres someother things that I probably left out. When we talk aboutcost, you have to look at what were replacing.

And thats really the name of the game cost. Bot-tom line, the SCAR will be less expensive to produce as afamily than competing weapons, particularly the HK416and HK417, especially after SCAR moves to a single com-

mon receiver for the MK 16 and MK 17, which, again, isthe goal.

SOF Weapons at NSWC Crane is already claiming 83percent parts commonality, even without a commonreceiver. In terms of the commonality between theparts, youre looking at an increased benefit with thecost to the government for purchasing these weaponsand also an increased benefit in terms of logistical foot-print of a deploying unit, because you have to considerhow many components theyre going to have to takeand what weapons are they replacing with that, saysDavid Merrill, former Director of Military Marketingand Communications at FNH USA.

The program managers argue that SCAR would alsocut way down on training costs. Bailey touched on thisvery point during the interview, while also addressing

system performance. One of the first things that youretalking about when you look at the weapons betweenthe M16 and the SCAR-Light and the SCAR-Heavy, theylook very similar. All the ergonomics are the same, theadjustments are the same, for the most part, if you trainto one, you train to the other.

So, when you have three different barrel lengthsin two different calibers, [when] you train to one gun,

youve basically trained to six guns. And if you know thecurrent SOF arsenal right now, theres a lot of differencesin those weapons systems that were replacing.

Its not just a replacement ofthe M4. Youve got the Mk 18 with a10-inch barrel, the M4 and the Mk12, and then on the 7.62 side, youvegot your Mk 11 and M14. We add anew capability with the CQC 13-inchbarrel. Youve got three different bar-rel lengths in each weapon.

You change that out at the opera-tor level, if so desired, in just underfive minutes. If you do it in the fash-ion in which we put in our manual,

we guarantee accuracy within a min-ute of angle. And for an assault rifle,on a previously zeroed barrel, if youchange it out and you get a minute [ofangle] accuracy, thats exceptional.

It is indeed exceptional, especiallyif this can be accomplished under the

weapons rather grueling operationaland endurance testing regimes. Theendurance testing has been nothingif not harsh. Miller estimates that theMK 16, MK 17 and Mk 13 test weap-ons have a combined round countof 1.75 to 2 million rounds throughthem so far between technical andoperational testing.

The weapons have been tested in

hot and cold environments, blownup, fired while being water-satu-rated, fired with bullets in the bore(called a bullet-obstruction-in-boretest), you name it. The testers havedone everything they can to verifythe weapons for total operationalreliability, durability and longev-ity. Just to give one example, that ofthe extreme temperature test, they

went to minus 50 degrees and plus160 degrees Fahrenheit in a temper-ature chamber.

And all the developers areinvolved with the testing. NSWCCrane, FN Manufacturing, and FN

Herstal all conduct the same testingin the same manner and commu-nicate the results with each other.

According to Troy Smith, NSWC-Crane, SCAR Program Manager, thissystem has worked out exception-ally well for them.

The SCAR SSR

Theres one final SCAR r ifle worthmentioning, which I first found out

about through an industry contactof mine and later confirmed withthe folks at SOF Weapons (NSWCCrane). Its called the MK 17 SniperSupport Rifle (SSR).

The SSR is basically a longer-ver-sion 7.62mm sniper rifle thats sig-nificantly longer than even the MK17 long-barreled weapon and evenmore accurate. This is significantbecause, according to my sources,

the MK 17 long-barreled weapois already impressively accuratand even more accurate than cetain semi-auto sniper rifles that aralready in the supply chain.

According to Miller, the goal fothe SSR is that it shoot to the samcriteria that youd expect out of thold M24 system. Tucker Campioadded, See? This is the excitementhat has created a kind of a dual pat

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forward on SSR development. Weve gone to a modularsystem. In order to stay with the modular system, oursnipers came and shot the [MK 17] long-barreled weap-on. They were so excited about shooting a long-barreledMK 17, that were making the most of that. Were doing adevelopmental effort this year with the intent on makinga magazine-fed, fully-auto-capable weapon as accurateas a light sniper rifle like the M24 or M40.

The SSR, if it goes into production, is essentially thefinal arrow in the SCAR quiver, the SCAR taken to its ulti-mate long-range accuracy conclusion, if you will. But

why do snipers need the SSR if the MK 17 Long-Barrel

Weapon is as accurate as the developers claim?You get snipers excited, they want be terminallyexcited, said Campion. We show them that we cangive them a minute gun [1 MOA] that has 4,000 roundsbetween stoppages and can fire accurately on full-auto,they go, Make me more!

So, were taking advantage of that. We know that thereare some things we can do to that weapon system to makeit even more accurate. Were trying to get bolt-action per-formance out of a fully-auto-capable weapon.

In other words, SOF Weapons wants to see just howfar they can push the performance envelope. We wantthe guy to be out there with a fully functional sniper riflethat, if hes required to, he can fight with it as a standard

assault gun, said Miller. These guys were hitting a9-inch Pepper popper at 600 yards on full-auto with tworounds, Campion added.

But what about full production? An article in the July2005 issue ofNational Defense Magazine reported thatthe original SCAR solicitation specified productionquantities of 84,000 SCAR-L standard, 28,000 SCAR-Lfor close-quarters combat, 12,000 SCAR-L sniper, 15,000SCAR-H standard, 7,000 SCAR-H close-quarter combatand, 12,000 SCAR-H sniper variants.

However, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reportedon June 22, 2008, that SOCOM plans to order only up to

40,000 guns total at a cost of approximately $100 million,or $2,500 per gun. But even thats only if the programgoes the distance, which is still a question mark. Ulti-mately, The success or failure of this weapon is in thehands of, and the responsibility of, the SOF communityand its operators who developed the requirement, unan-imously chose the vendor and defined everyaspect of the present design, said Campion.

David Crane is a tactical firearms industry and militarydefense industry analyst and consultant and the owner/editor-in-chief of DefenseReview.com. He can be contact-ed by phone at (305) 202-2598 or via email at usdefcon@

gmail.com.

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