Barrett M107A1 .50 BMG

By Eric R. Poole

The M107A1 is Barrett’s extreme-range service rifle developed specifically to address the special needs of troops engaged in asymmetric warfare. Currently, three generations of Barrett .50-caliber rifles are serving U.S. armed forces in many roles against enemy targets that fall outside a rifleman’s limitations. Targets that cannot be neutralized due to range, size, location, mobility and visibility have been met with adequate force delivered by the M107, the M82A3 and still, in fewer cases, the Model 82A1.

“The Barrett .50-caliber sniper rifle may have been the most useful piece of equipment for the urban fight—especially for our light fighters,” said LTC Jim Smith in a PEO Soldier report on lessons learned from Operation Iraq Freedom. He added, “The XM107 was used to engage both vehicular and personnel targets out to 1,400 meters. Soldiers not only appreciated the range and accuracy, but also the target effect. Leaders and scouts viewed the effect of the .50-cal. round as a combat multiplier due to the psychological impact on other combatants who viewed the destruction of the target.”

Funded as a Soldier Enhancement Program, the M107 underwent standard-type classification in August 2003 and Barrett received a production contract, awarded the following month. Based on reports of …Read the Rest

Source:: Guns and Ammo