Heckler Koch
Trends in small arms and light weapons(salw)
Introduction
1. Small arms and light weapons (SALW) as a non-proliferation and arms control issue and a domestic security and safety issue have been the topic of much discussion over the past several years. It has been addressed in numerous fora ranging across a wide spectrum of agendas and concerns. The challenge of controlling “the excessive and destabilizing accumulation and transfer” of SALW is being examined by governments and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) both domestically and within international organizations such as the United Nations (UN), the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the Organization of American States (OAS) and the European Union (EU). It is of particular concern for international NGOs who deal with the outcome of SALW misuse either directly or indirectly within a humanitarian perspective, mostly but not exclusively in less developed states. It is an issue that may take years to successfully redress. As well, the consideration of firearms as a criminal and public health (primarily suicide and accident) concern is an issue that many governments are grappling with, particularly in developed countries. This matter has frequently pitted domestic gun control lobbies, and sports shooting and self defence lobbies against each other as they represent their respective interests and constituents.
2. Initially, the two spheres of arms control and criminal justice (which included public health) followed separate paths in their efforts to address the issues of firearms and SALW. However, over time, particularly within the NGO context, the two groupings have merged to form a coalition dealing with SALW and firearms writ large. This merging is an attempt to emulate, in part, the success of the anti-personnel land mines campaign, which successfully used NGOs from diverse roles and agendas as advocacy groups to publicize the problem and pressure governments to take action.
3. There is apparent momentum (both prescriptive and declaratory) within the international context towards addressing the myriad concerns pertaining to SALW and firearms. However, there are also numerous political and practical obstacles which must first be satisfactorily addressed before substantive progress can be made. Whether an incremental and selective approach to addressing the issues at hand would be more successful than a broad all-encompassing approach is subject to debate. Over time, one need not exclude the other. The benefit of addressing a distinctive SALW issue is that sometimes specific incremental solutions can be more easily adopted than broad based ones. As well, there are SALW concerns that have not been sufficiently analyzed to determine their scope, the reality of their impact, and the practicality of proposed solutions to mitigate that impact. Unproven solutions or non-solutions exist on all sides of the debate. There has been insufficient impartial operational or applied research to determine the utility and practicality of these many ideas in their implementation and effect. This paper will address the specific area of developing trends in SALW to determine their possible impact and to suggest practical methods of ameliorating potential issues of concern, albeit primarily within an arms control context. Trends in SALW military developments (including ammunition) will be examined to ascertain whether they should be of concern due to uncontrolled and unnecessary diffusion and/or the impact of increased effectiveness in creating casualties and potential inhumane effects. Accordingly, observations and, where appropriate, recommendations applicable to both state and non-state actors in all types of conflict will be made regarding whether new procedures should be considered to control their distribution or limit their effect. The possible impact of new developments in “non-lethal” weapons (to be primarily used in low intensity military operations and law enforcement operations) and the more esoteric but nonetheless very real concern of potential developments in the area of directed energy weapons (DEWs) (such as “light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation”, or lasers) in an anti-personnel role will also be examined. This paper is not intended to be a detailed technical analysis of these new systems, but rather a general overview designed to provide policy makers with basic technical information on new developments and assist them in formulating strategies in this area. The principal focus of the analysis will be on weapons and ancillary equipment that could enhance or replace the common current military and security force inventories of personal weapons such as the American (US) AR-15/M16, the Russian and former Soviet (FSU) Kalashnikov AK-47/AK-74, the Belgian Fabrique National (FN) Fusil Automatique Légere (FAL) and the German Heckler & Koch (H&K) G (Gewehr) -3 and all their variants.
Ammunition
4. The firearm is the launcher for the object that creates casualties – be it a projectile or a bullet. This perfunctory overview will merely highlight a few issues and observations. Developments in ammunition and the weapons that fire them are generally synergistic, with improvements in one enabling improvements in the other. As already stated, the development of “smokeless powder” along with the self-contained cartridge (incorporating the casing, propellant, primer and bullet) occured circa the late 19th century and represented the last revolutionary change in ammunition development. Subsequent improvements have been incremental and progressive, focusing on improved ballistics, lighter ammunition, and enhanced role characteristics. This statement is not meant to suggest that evolutionary developments have been insignificant by comparison. Over time a number of incremental improvements have offered considerable enhancements in ammunition effectiveness. In some instances an improvement in one area necessarily has necessarily led to degradation in another (for example, lighter ammunition and smaller calibers generally mean less effective ranges and potentially less energy transferred to the target). Personal military small arms have tended towards smaller-sized calibers. A number of factors have mitigated for this trend. Analyses of combat situations during and after WW II suggest that few soldiers effectively engaged the enemy with small arms at ranges exceeding 300 metres. As well, the advent of medium and heavy machine guns and light and medium mortars, together with their subsequent increase in availability and performance has made these the more effective weapons for engaging the enemy at longer ranges. Fighting in built-up areas (FIBUA) favoured short range sub-machine guns (SMGs), something which has increased the types of weapons carried. Considering the constant effort to lower the combat loads of soldiers (or at least increase the amount of ammunition they can carry) and the introduction of women into combat roles (a smaller round means less recoil, making weapons easier to handle for both men and women), it became clear that a reduction in caliber size was both logical and necessary. The switch to automatic personal small arms also abetted the development of smaller/lighter cartridges, as the use of such weapons tended foster a concomitant increase in ammunition expenditures.
5. Casualty creation is a function of the mass, shape, composition and speed of the bullet, the location of the impact, the track of the bullet in the body, and the yaw characteristics of the round in flight and in the body; together, these variables influence the amount of energy transferred to the target on impact. By and large, high velocity heavy bullets that expand or tumble when they hit a target produce more significant wounds. In this regard, bullet design is an important variable in assessing the wounding potential of ammunition. As a result of The Hague Declaration of 29 July 1899, which outlawed (in international conflict) the use of bullets which expand or flatten easily in the human body, military bullets have full metal jackets around the lead/metal core. Modern military rifles fire projectiles at a high velocity (around 3000 fps); bullets that have a full metal jacket are more accurate as soft point lead bullets may fracture either in the barrel or in flight due to heat generation and composition breakdown, thus upsetting their ballistic balance. Furthermore, a bullet lacking a full metal jacket may possess insufficient penetration capability, particularly at longer ranges or when engaging targets behind cover. The advent of military body armour makes the use of soft nosed bullets even more problematic, something which is in turn leading ammunition R&D to design new rounds capable of countering body armour.
6. Developments in explosive ammunition intended to create shrapnel (such as fragmentation hand grenades and mortar bombs) have tended to focus on better fragmentation and dispersion patterns, as well as enhanced delivery systems designed to reflect the demands being made of small arms – that is, an ability to reach farther faster, and to be lighter, more accurate and more effective. One way of enhancing the likelihood of casualties is to ensure detonation where and when desired. In this regard, designs for contact fuses, delayed fuses, proximity fuses, and timed fuses have all improved over the years. New advances in digital and micro-chip technology will possibly further enhance the effects of explosive ammunition. Anti-armour or material ammunition designs have also witnessed improvements in the areas of propellant, warhead explosives and penetration capabilities. With regard to improved penetration, both chemical energy (shaped charges) or kinetic energy (for example, depleted uranium) systems are used.
7. While not a primary focus for this study, it is worthwhile noting that anti-armour weapons (such as rocket propelled grenades or RPGs) have been in existence since WW II and have gone through several generations of subsequent improvement. Although only in operational existence since the mid 1960s, similar generational improvements for short range shoulder fired anti-aircraft missiles have also taken place. Both weapons types have been a source of concern within the SALW arms control fora. As new types replace older models, the older ones become surplus and may be sold or given away, sometimes in an uncontrolled manner. Such transactions are of concern where these weapons end up in the hands of unrestrained and irresponsible non-state and/or state actors.
About the Author
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