SIG SAUER XM5 Rifle and XM250 Automatic Rifle to Replace US Army M4/M4A1 Carbine and M249 SAW by 2023!

By David Crane
david (at) defensereview (dot) com

Photo(s) Credit(s): SIG SAUER

May 9, 2022

The US Army is replacing its AR-15/M16-based M4/M4A1 Carbine with the new SIG SAUER XM5 Rifle after a roughly 65-year run, and its M249 SAW (Squad Automatic Weapon) with the new SIG SAUER XM250 after, well, a shorter run, beginning in late 2023. The new contract also calls for replacing the Army’s 5.56mm NATO (5.56x45mm NATO) ammo with the new SIG 6.8x51mm FURY Hybrid ammo that the Army claims will increase range, accuracy and lethality. This is of course the culmination of the Army’s Next Generation Squad Weapon (NGSW) program, which SIG SAUER has now won over General Dynamics and Textron Systems.

According to the Army, “both weapons provide significant capability improvements in accuracy, range, and overall lethality [presumably due to the 6.8mm round(s) sustaining supersonic flight over a greater distance than the legacy 5.56mm round(s), combined with the new XM157 Fire Control optic]. They are lightweight, fire more lethal ammunition, mitigate recoil, provide improved barrel performance, and include integrated muzzle sound and flash reduction.”

Vortex Optics subsidiary Sheltered Wings will be providing the XM157 Fire Control optic for the weapons, which alone is worth $2.7B (as in BILLION) over 10 years. “The NGSW-FC system is a ruggedized fire control that increases accuracy and lethality for the Close Combat Force. It integrates a number of advanced technologies, including a variable magnification optic, backup etched reticle, laser rangefinder, ballistic calculator, atmospheric sensor suite, compass, Intra-Soldier Wireless, visible and infrared aiming lasers, and a digital display overlay,” wrote the US Army Cross-Functional Team-Soldier Lethality.

The new SIG 6.8×51 FURY Hybrid ammo’s actually the reason the Army will be waiting until late 2023 to field the new weapons system, as the Army has to first build up enough ammo stock. The new 6.8mm utilizes a novel case design consisting of brass and steel that reportedly reduces its overall weight.

It of course remains to be seen how the new weapons will actually perform in combat, but the Army obviously has very high hopes for the new weapons/ammo/optics combo, and they’re certainly going to be sinking a lot of money into it. DefenseReview (DR) likes what we see on paper, and hope everything ends up working as advertised. We also wouldn’t mind running the new weapons at the range sometime in the not-too-distant future, if SIG SAUER can help us make that happen.

Company Contact Info:

SIG SAUER, Inc.
18 Industrial Drive
Exeter, NH 03833
Phone: 603-772-2302
Fax: 603-772-9082
Law Enforcement Email: publicsafetysales@sigsauer.com
Military/Govt. Email: federal-militarysales@sigsauer.com
Website: http://www.sigsauer.com

© Copyright 2022 DefenseReview.com (DR). All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without receiving permission and providing proper credit and appropriate links. If you are reading this article anywhere other than DefenseReview.com, please email us the website address/URL (where the unauthorized DR article reprint is located) at defrev (at) gmail (dot) com. Thank you.

Related Articles:

SIG SAUER SL MAG .338 Norma Magnum (NM) Lightweight Belt-Fed Machine Gun with Recoil Attenuation/Mitigation System and Lase-and-Engage Technology Electro-Optical Combat Optic/Laser Sight! (Video!)

US Army 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) Fields SIG SAUER M17/M18 Modular Handgun System (MHS) Striker-Fired 9mm Combat/Tactical Pistols!

SIG SAUER Custom Works P365XL SPECTRE and SIG P320 XCOMPACT SPECTRE Distressed, Striker-Fired 9mm Combat/Tactical Concealed Carry (CCW) Pistols are Lookin’ Pretty Slick

SIG SAUER P320 XSeries 9mm Pistols for Concealed Carry (CCW), Combat and Competition: Meet the P320 RXP XCompact, RXP XFull-Size, and XCarry TACOPS! (Video!)

SIG SAUER P365 XL ROMEOZERO Striker-Fired 9mm Combat/Tactical Pistol with Red Dot Sight Combat Optic: Ultimate Concealed Carry (CCW) Pistol Package? (Video!)

SIG SAUER P365 Striker-Fired High-Capacity Sub-Compact 9mm Pistol for Concealed Carry (CCW): Ready to do battle with the Glock 43 (G43) AND Glock 19 (G19)?

SIG SAUER SIG P320 Carry (P320C) Nitron Striker-Fired Compact Combat/Tactical Pistol and SIG P320 Full-Size (P320F) Nitron Pistol at the Range!: Shooting Impressions (Video!)

SIG MPX Multi-Caliber Machine Pistol/Submachine Gun (SMG) and Suppressed SIG MPX SMG/PDW (Personal Defense Weapon) Fired on Full-Auto and Semi-Auto at SIG SAUER New Media Writers’ Event (Video!)

SIG MCX LVAW (Low-Visibility Assault Weapon) ‘Black Mamba’ Suppressed 300 Blackout (300BLK) Piston AR Assault SBR/PDW (Short Barreled Rifle/Personal Defense Weapon) Fired on Full-Auto and Semi-Auto with Subsonic and Supersonic Ammo During SIG SAUER New Media Writers’ Event (Video!)

SIG SAUER SIG MCX Piston AR Assault Rifle/Carbine/SBR/PDW and SIG MPX Submachine Gun (SMG)/PDW: Select-Fire, Multi-Caliber Weapons Explained at the SIG SAUER New Media Writers’ Event (Video!)