Pentagon docs reveal Army MHS plagued with problems

By Jacki Billings

Troops of the 101st Airborne Division were the first in the Army to be issued the new handgun, based on the Sig P320. (Photo: DoD)
The Army’s Modular Handgun System hasn’t all been smooth sailing, according to recently released Pentagon documents indicating persistent problems with the Sig Sauer platform.
An annual fiscal report released by the Pentagon’s Office of the Director of Operational Test and Evaluation detailed potential issues with the Sig Sauer XM17 and XM18 platforms. Among those listed were drop safety concerns, double ejections and stoppage issues with the use of certain ammunition.
Possibly the most glaring problem for the pistol platform was a drop safety deficiency discovered by Army researchers during evaluations. The report states that during drop testing of the Sig Sauer pistols, an empty primed cartridge would discharge if the striker was struck. Sig Sauer implemented an “Engineering Change Proposal” immediately after it was alerted to the drop safety issue, according to the report, eventually correcting the deficiency by tweaking the trigger group mechanism.
In a strikingly similar case, Sig Sauer underwent public scrutiny in August 2017 regarding drop safety concerns in its P320 variant — the platform the MHS is based on — after it was demonstrated that the

Source: Guns.com