Is The USMC Looking For Integrally Suppressed Weapons?

By Tom Knighton

I’ve said over and over lately that suppressors are safety devices, that they’re not something that’s particularly ideal for criminals. I stand by that completely. In fact, I suspect that’s exactly why the United States Marine Corps may be looking at integrally suppressed weapons for equipping their Marines in the near future.

The Marines will soon ask industry for proposals for new weapons suppressors.

Marine Col. Mike Manning, commander of Ground Combat Element Systems for Marine Corps Systems Command, said in a panel at the annual Modern Day Marine military expo at Quantico on Tuesday that the Corps will soon be drafting a request for industry proposals.

Manning declined to specify quantity or whether the suppressor would be for the M4 carbine or the newer M27 Infantry Automatic Rifle.

Manning hinted at some of the potential developments during his comments in the panel, noting that existing commercial suppressors were already available and being tested.

But having a built-in suppressor may be better.

“OK, there’s a couple out there right now that integrate with the weapons themselves. That’s really where we want to be at. Integrate the suppressor into the barrel,” Manning said.

Manning didn’t get into specifics, but he did indicate this would likely be across …Read the Rest

Source:: Bearing Arms