by David Crane david@defensereview.com Some folks at Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division (NAWCWD), a.k.a. NAVAIR Weapons Division (China Lake, CA), are currently developing a "man-packable, shoulder-launched guided missile" system for U.S. infantry warfighters called SPIKE. The developmental system is essentially a low-cost, compact, and lightweight man-portable shoulder-fired fire-and-forget missile system that incorporates three separate guidance modes–inertial, laser, and imaging …

by David Crane david (at) defensereview (dot) com May 19, 2006 In our article Defrev Quick Hits 4 from SHOT Show 2006: More Tactical Goodies, we included information about the SOPMOD AK, a modernized AKM/Kalashnikov rifle/carbine with 4-sided/quad-rail Mil-Std-1913 rail system/forend rail tube.  This weapons package will soon be offered by Blackheart International, L.L.C. (BHI), which looked like a pretty slick …

by David Crane david at defensereview.com – Vltor Weapon Systems is now manufacturing Russian-type 7.62mmx54R (7.62x54mm) PKM General Purpose Machine Guns (GPMG) for U.S. military forces. It’s our understanding that the Vltor PKMs will be used for familiarization training, and possibly OPFOR (just seems logical). DefRev got to view and handle one of these guns at the Vltor booth, and …

by David Crane defrev@gmail.com The hypertext link supplied for downloading and viewing the Ultimax 100 LMG/SAW video clip is located towards the bottom of this article, so you will need to scroll down to find it. However, we recommend that you read the following article first, so you can better appreciate what you’re watching (when you watch the video). March …

by David Crane defrev@gmail.com In the movie Predator (1987), an alien hunter visits earth to bag armed human warriors (military Special Operations personnel) as trophies, and engages in this recreational endeavor very methodically and efficiently. By the time the movie ends, the alien predator has killed off two complete (elite) and highly-experienced U.S. Special Operations teams, save for one survivor …

by Bob Taubert One of the driving ideas behind the adaptation of the "Black Rifle" and its varmint caliber ammunition was to lighten the load of the ground pounding Infanteer. That was achieved through remarkable engineering, but it didn’t take long for the soldier to reverse the situation. The new light weight rounds enabled the trooper to up his basic …

The following is a press release from Metal Storm Limited on the developmental Metal Storm Advanced Individual Combat Weapon (AICW) prototype (Photo shown below.). BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA – 31 August 2005 Metal Storm Limited (ASX trading code: MST and NASDAQ Small Cap ticker symbol MTSX) today announced the successful test firing of the Advanced Individual Combat Weapon (AICW) Capability Technology Demonstrator …

by David Crane david@defensereview.com August 18, 2005 The September 2005 issue of S.W.A.T. Magazine features an article by Patrick A. Rogers on a pretty slick AR-15/M16 carbine/subcarbine barrel/flash suppressor combo from Noveske Rifleworks LLC (owned and operated by John Noveske), out of Pass, OR. The article is titled "John Noveske CQB Barrels and The Krink", and is worth reading. Three …

by David Crane david@defensereview.com All digital photos of the HK416 Enhanced Carbine at International SOF Week/APBI below were taken by, and are the exclusive property of, DefenseReview.com. Click on photos below to view them full-size. July 15, 2005 It looks like the FN SCAR-Light (FN SCAR-L) carbine/subcarbine (select-fire, 5.56x45mm) might have some competition in SOF (Special Operations Forces) circles–and, more …

by David Crane david@defensereview.com Back in March, DefenseReview published a short article and press release on U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) contracts that were awarded to Symbionics Inc. and Icuiti Corporation to develop Modular Wearable Computers (MOWC) for the future Marine Corps warfighter, which could be integrated with the Marine Corps’ unmanned vehicle programs. The article was titled Next-Gen Modular Wearable …