Lightweight Small Arms Technologies

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The Lightweight Small Arms Technologies (LSAT) program is funded by the U.S.

US military
's latest project to replace existing US small arms. Tactical concepts and the research from the previous small arms programs indicates that lightening small arms is the first significant step towards increasing soldiers' lethality and survivability.

Initiated in 2004 (then called the Lightweight Machine Gun and Ammunition program), development is now led by Textron. Development began with two types of weight reducing ammunition, and a light machine gun to serve as a testbed and technology demonstrator.[2] Minimization of program risk is shown by the development of the lower performing but less risky polymer-cased ammunition alongside caseless ammunition (which falls higher in both criteria), by the use of extensive computer simulations before prototyping, and by the use of existing and proven technologies, such as the High Ignition Temperature Propellant (HITP) developed for the Heckler & Koch G11.

In 2008, the program had achieved working prototypes for the polymer-cased ammunition and the

lasers for sighting, target acquisition, and steering.[4]

After further research and development into both ammunition types and the weapons that fire them, one of the two shall be chosen for production.[1] In August 2013, AAI Corporation (now Textron) was awarded a contract to continue development of both cased telescoped and caseless ammunition.[5]

Background

The Lightweight Small Arms Technologies program is the culmination of much research and information obtained by the US Army. It succeeds several other programs to develop new

XM8
provided no long-term solution to the weight problem, and the program was suspended indefinitely. Developments in lighter weapons (such as LSAT) could see a return to the concept, although the military has not recently expressed a desire for a return. The indefinite suspension of the program sounded the death of short-term advances in infantry weapon lethality, and indicated the shift to other projects.

After the failure to significantly improve firearms of the near future, the

U.S. military is using the development of other infantry equipment to improve the effectiveness of the soldier. Most notable is the development of electronics and information technology to advance soldiers' awareness and communications (as with the Land Warrior program). However, this new equipment increases the weight burden on the soldier, who then has to strike a compromise between the extra equipment and mobility. Reducing the weight of infantry equipment allows for more mobile, better equipped troops. Since a soldier's weapon and ammunition are a large portion of his total burden (and available technologies exist to sharply lighten them), reducing the weight of the two is crucial to increasing the amount of advanced technology a soldier can carry.[6] Computer technologies integrated into the weapon and its sights make a light weapon crucial, otherwise the soldier will have difficulty carrying the weapon and its heavy sights. Other indirect improvements in soldier effectiveness include new strategies and the development of air transport. This is aimed towards creating fast, well-equipped soldiers able to be quickly deployed to counter threats.[7]
The logistics and mobility problems of heavy equipment hinder this possibility.

The LSAT program allows a vast reduction in soldiers' carrying loads, thereby allowing new and more equipment, reducing logistical strain, and increasing mobility. The combined benefits to soldier effectiveness are big enough to warrant the investment in the new lightweight technologies.

Technologies

The existence of weight-reducing technologies made the LSAT program feasible, and many of these technologies can be seen in the program's products. The lightest existing ammunition to fire standard bullets comprised

octogen[6] as the explosive component. The Advanced Combat Rifle experimental program gave the US Army access to the ammunition and entrenched the ammunition as a viable option. With the high efficiency and lethality of the ammunition, the vast expenditure such a concept had needed for development, and the reduced risk of using an already proven ammunition design, the LSAT program chose a licensed version of Dynamit Nobel's caseless ammunition as a route towards its goal of weight reduction. The LSAT program also uses the same concept of a rotating chamber as the G11 (albeit, the LSAT LMG chamber swings around a longitudinal pivot.[8][9]
whereas the G11 chamber rotated around a horizontal axis at its very centre).

Polymer casing for ammunition had already been developed and produced,[10] and it provided the second route for achieving weight reduction. While a polymer case could never be quite as light as no case, the risks involved in the use of polymer ammunition were less, due to its similarity to present ammunition and the reduced heat load on both the weapon and the ammunition's propellant.[dubious – discuss]

Further budding technologies, such as alternative barrel materials (such as ceramics), and the increased efficiency and size reduction of telescoped ammunition (used by the G11 and other developmental weapons), also formed the basis for the LSAT program.

Program

In 2004, the Joint Service Small Arms Program created the Lightweight Machine Gun and Ammunition program to compare conceptual, lightweight machine guns and ammunition designs by two teams of companies. The team of eight, led by AAI Corporation had their design chosen over the design of the General Dynamics-led team. In 2005, the project was replaced with the Lightweight Small Arms Technologies program to place the emphasis on developing technologies for a wide range of small arms. The earlier Lightweight Family of Weapons and Ammunition concept is visible in the new program. The cohesive team of companies is combined with government support to ensure success.[2]

In accordance with the program's name, the focus is on creating lightweight technologies for all small arms, and the

spiral development' approach,[2]
whereby the weapon and ammunition is rolled out in stages or 'spirals', each stage producing a new version that is an improvement on those from previous spirals.

The LSAT program uses a 'clean slate' design and had no requirements imposed on abiding by contemporary ammunition and weapon standards. Despite this, the program is using the

6.5 mm Grendel or 6.8mm Remington SPC).[8]

The program has set itself weight reduction goals over the existing

its ammunition of 35% for the weapon and 40% for the ammunition. Further goals to improve battlefield effectiveness have also been set: improved lethality; improved controllability (through recoil reduction, etc.); improved ergonomics; improved reliability and maintainability; integration of electronics; and equivalent cost and producibility to the existing weapon and ammunition.[2]

Achievements

By 2008, the program had made tremendous progress, with all of its goals either fully achieved or with strong potential for achievement.

Light machine gun

Main article: LSAT light machine gun

The

M249
.

The LMG design is a traditionally (non-

light machine guns, such as a quick-change barrel, a vented fore-grip, belt-fed ammunition, an ammunition pouch, and a roughly 600 rpm rate of fire. New features include the unique weight of 9.2 pounds for CT and 9.9 pounds for CL,[12] a rounds counter, and a highly stiff and heat resistant barrel achieved with fluting and special materials.[1][13] Possibly the most radical part is its firing action: the weapon uses a swinging chamber. The chamber swings around a longitudinal pivot; it swings from horizontally parallel with the pivot (the firing position), to vertically parallel (the feed position), and back again.[9]
A long-stroke gas-piston is used to operate this action. A round is fed into the chamber at the feed position using a rammer, and the new round also serves to push a spent or dud round out of the far end of the chamber. Such rounds are pushed forward, parallel to the barrel, and they slide into a separate mechanism that ejects them out of one side of the gun. The advantages of this whole action include its simplicity, its isolation of the chamber from barrel heat, and its positive control of round movement from extraction to ejection. In the caseless firing version of the weapon, another mechanism is introduced to seal the chamber during firing (which is why the caseless weapon is heavier).

Assault rifle

Main article: LSAT rifle

Design of an LSAT battle rifle began in 2008.

Textron Systems was awarded a two-year $5.7 million contract for work that included development of a carbine firing cased-telescoped ammunition.[15]

Ammunition

The cylindrical shape of the ammunition is crucial to the weapon's straight-through feed-and-ejection system, and it is the similar shape of the cased-telescoped ammunition to the caseless-telescoped ammunition that allows the parallel development of the two weapon systems. Telescoped ammunition's most notable benefits include the greater propulsive effectiveness of a telescoped round over standard ammunition, and the shorter feed and action times allowed by the shorter length of a telescoped round (both the cased and caseless designs are roughly 30% shorter). If the weapon and ammunition prove superior to existing weapons, a new caliber may be chosen. An intermediate round with characteristics similar to the

GPMG and marksman weapons.[12] While M855 and M855A1 projectiles are being used for comparison and demonstration purposes, consideration is being given to using the creation of lightweight ammo cases as a chance to develop an intermediate caliber cartridge which might replace both the 5.56×45mm and the 7.62×51mm. Suggested characteristics of the cartridge are a 6.5 mm bullet weighing 120 gr that can match the effectiveness of the 7.62×51mm at 1,000 m.[16]

Cased

The cased ammunition is more advanced in development, partially due to the fewer technical difficulties and the fewer differences with standard ammunition. It has already reached the required

Cased telescoped ammunition for the LSAT light machine gun reached technology readiness level 7 after 25,000 rounds were fired in trials in 2011.[17]

Caseless

Main article: LSAT caseless ammunition

Having replicated

5.56 mm round. Tests proved the ammunition's usability, and development of the weapon was advanced using knowledge gained from the cased ammunition version. The Alliant Techsystems ammunition production team has reduced the production time and costs by reducing from fourteen to two the number of steps used to complete processing.[11] The second spiral of caseless ammunition was rolled out in 2008, with the necessary facilities to produce the ammunition in bulk completed.[2] It has vastly reduced the weight and volume of standard ammunition (by 51% and 40%, respectively), and it has reached the verge of achieving Technology Readiness Level 5. The development of the third spiral was also initiated, with the goal of replacing the propellant binder with a binder more environmentally and cost friendly.[2] It also aims to reduce the heat ablation on the inside of the weapon by modifying the burn rate of the propellant, and by giving the round an exterior coating to absorb or prevent transferred heat.[2] Benefits the system has gained from using the caseless ammunition go beyond the unparalleled weight and volume reduction to, for example, the lack of ejected shells (which both improves the weapon's protection from dirt and removes any need to 'police' cases after firing). The ammo was still in development as of 2012.[18]

See also

References

  1. ^
    National Rifle Association of America. Archived from the original
    on January 24, 2009.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Spiegel, Kori; Paul Shipley (May 21, 2008). "Lightweight Small Arms Technologies" (PDF). International Infantry & Joint Services Small Arms Systems Symposium. National Defense Industrial Association. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 1, 2017.
  3. ^ Kowal, E. (May 24, 2012). "Soldiers prefer lighter machine gun during assessment". United States Army. Retrieved April 19, 2013.
  4. ^ "Descriptive Summaries of the Research, Development, Test and Evaluation Army Appropriation, Budget Activities 1, 2 and 3". Office of the Secretary of the Army. February 2007. Archived from the original on April 21, 2009. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  5. ^ "Unmanned Systems | Textron Systems". Aaicorp.com. Archived from the original on October 17, 2013. Retrieved November 30, 2015.
  6. ^ a b Spiegel, Kori; Paul Shipley. "Lightweight Small Arms Technologies" (PDF). Army Science Conference. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 24, 2009. Retrieved November 8, 2008.
  7. ^ "Future Need for VTOL/STOL Aircraft" (PDF). Defense Science Board. July 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 9, 2009.
  8. ^ a b Spiegel, Kori; Paul Shipley (May 18, 2005). "Lightweight Small Arms Technologies" (PDF). International Infantry & Joint Services Small Arms Systems Symposium. National Defense Industrial Association. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 16, 2006.
  9. ^ a b "Unmanned Systems | Textron Systems". Aaicorp.com. Archived from the original on May 20, 2008. Retrieved November 30, 2015.
  10. ^ Gagné, Robert (May 17, 2005). "Lightweight Ammunition: A Material Science Challenge" (PDF). International Infantry & Joint Services Small Arms Systems Symposium. National Defense Industrial Association. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 14, 2006.
  11. ^ a b c Spiegel, Kori; Paul Shipley (May 16, 2006). "Lightweight Small Arms Technologies" (PDF). International Infantry & Joint Services Small Arms Systems Symposium. National Defense Industrial Association. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 22, 2011.
  12. ^ a b [1] Archived November 6, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  13. ^ Christou, Kris (May 17, 2005). "Lightweight High Performance Gun Barrels" (PDF). International Infantry & Joint Services Small Arms Systems Symposium. National Defense Industrial Association. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 27, 2010.
  14. ^ "Unmanned Systems | Textron Systems" (PDF). Aaicorp.com. Retrieved November 30, 2015.[permanent dead link]
  15. ^ "Textron Systems' Light Armaments Team to Develop Lightweight, Cased-Telescoped Small Arms for U.S. Army". MarketWatch. May 14, 2014. Archived from the original on October 28, 2017. Retrieved November 30, 2015.
  16. ^ [2] Archived June 2, 2014, at the Wayback Machine
  17. ^ [3] Archived November 14, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
  18. ^ Dunnigan, J. "Ultra-Light Machine-gun Passes Tests". Strategypage.com. Retrieved April 19, 2013.

External links

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