Objective Individual Combat Weapon: Difference between revisions

The winners of the first competition for the project during the 1990s were ATK and firearms manufacturer [[Heckler & Koch]] with the [[XM29 OICW]]. They went on to build numerous prototypes of the rifle for the [[United States]] military in the late 1990s. These projects centered on using a programmable 20 mm airburst munition-firing rifle by itself or with other projectile-based weapons attached. The 20 mm launcher was analyzed in various configurations, including a launcher by itself, with a 5.56 mm weapon (based on the [[Heckler & Koch G36|HK G36]]), or with a [[Heckler & Koch MP7|MP7]] [[Personal defense weapon|PDW]].

By the early 2000s, the weapon had settled on a design and was classified as the XM29. The XM29 was based on the [[Heckler & Koch HK CAWCAWS|HK CAWS (Close Assault Weapon System)]] (Cal. 18.5×76mm or 12 Gauge non-conventional). However, the weapon had serious problems: it did not meet weight or cost targets, and the 20 mm High Explosive Air Bursting (HEAB) did not seem to be lethal enough in testing. To compound matters, the kinetic-energy component had to be light and short in length. As a result, the [[5.56×45mm NATO]] barrel had a length of only 250 mm (9.8 inches), which is too short to generate enough muzzle velocity to be effective as a standard infantry rifle. It was also too heavy and too large to be operated effectively by a soldier.

This resulted in the army starting development on new weapons, and finally shelving the XM29 in 2004. The kinetic energy component split off into the [[XM8 rifle]] program and the airburst component developed into the [[XM25 CDTE|XM25]] airburst weapon. According to a presentation by [[Major (rank)|Major]] [[Kevin Finch]], Chief of the Small Arms Division of the [[Directorate of Combat Developments]] at the U.S. Army Infantry Center, there were three main parts to the OICW program:

* Increment 1 (OICW 1) was a competition for a whole weapon system family similar to the [[XM8 rifle|XM8]]. The weapon system was to potentially replace the [[M4 carbine]], [[M16 rifle]], [[M249 Squad Automatic Weapon|M249]] [[light machine gun]] and some [[M9 pistol]]s. Other [[arms industry|arms companies]] had contended that the OICW project goals had changed enough to warrant another competition. Potential challengers could include a weapons system based on an updated M16, the [[Steyr AUG]], the aforementioned [[FN SCAR]], and potentially any other manufacturer that fulfilled the Army requirements for participating. It also listed the shotgun being replaced by a modular shotgun system ([[XM26 Lightweight Shotgun System|XM26 LSS]]) mounted on the OICW 1 winner. The Increment 1 portion was put on an eight-week hold in July 2005, primarily to take into account input and needs of other services. On October 31, 2005, the OICW I program was cancelled. The reason given for the cancellation was stated as: "This action has been taken in order for the Army to reevaluate its priorities for small caliber weapons, and to incorporate emerging requirements identified during [[Operation Enduring Freedom]] and [[Operation Iraqi Freedom]]. The Government will also incorporate studies looking into current capability gaps during said reevaluation."

* [[{{lwc|80.002]]}}

* [[{{lwc|Advanced Individual Combat Weapon]]}}

* [[{{lwc|FN F2000]]}}

* [[{{lwc|PAPOP]]}}

* [[{{lwc|Daewoo K11]]}}

* [[{{lwc|Neopup PAW-20]]}}

* [[{{lwc|QBZ-03#ZH-05|ZHQTS-05]]11}}

* [[{{lwc|Special Purpose Individual Weapon]]}}

* [[{{lwc|NIVA XM1970]]}}

* [[{{lwc|Advanced Combat Rifle]]}}

* [[{{lwc|HK CAWS]]}}

* [http://procnet.pica.army.mil/FBO/RFP/W15QKN-05-R-0449/W15QKN-05-R-0449.htm Pre-solicitation notice for OICW increment 1]{{Dead link|date=April 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

[[Category:Trial and research firearms of the United States]]