Army Picks Ammunition Maker for Its New Sniper Rifle

Sig will manufacture the MK 248 MOD 1 and MOD 0 .300 Win Mag ammunition, which will be used in the Army's M2010 Enhanced Sniper Rifle. (Courtesy of Sig Sauer)

Military.com | By Matthew Cox

Published January 14, 2020

The U.S. Army recently selected Sig Sauer, maker of the new Modular Handgun System, to make .300 Win Mag ammunition for the service's bolt-action sniper rifle.

In a $10 million deal, Sig will manufacture the MK 248 MOD 1 and MOD 0 .300 Win Mag ammunition, which will be used in the Army's M2010 Enhanced Sniper Rifle.

"This award by the U.S. Army is validation of our state-of-the-art manufacturing that has resulted in the highest quality, and most precise, ammunition delivering on target accuracy for snipers in the field," Ron Cohen, president and CEO of Sig, said in a news release.

Sig recently made other ammunition news by being selected as one of the final competitors for the Army's Next Generation Squad Weapon (NGSW) effort. The service selected Sig, along with a team from General Dynamics and a team from Textron Systems, to submit specially designed 6.8mm ammunition and the rifle and automatic rifle prototypes for the NGSW effort.

Sig Sauer developed its 6.8mm cartridge using a traditionally shaped case design that features a stainless-steel base joined to the brass case to save weight.

Sig was also selected to build the Army's M17 and more compact M18 9mm MHS pistols in 2017 as a replacement for the M9 pistol made by Beretta.

The .300 Win Mag ammunition will be manufactured Sig's ammunition facility in Jacksonville, Arkansas, according to the release.

The Army transitioned from 7.62mm to the more powerful .300 Win Mag round, fielding the new M2010 ESR to sniper teams in Afghanistan in 2011. The new round allows snipers to engage enemy targets out to 1,200 meters compared to the 800-meter range of the older M24 sniper system.

-- Matthew Cox can be reached at matthew.cox@military.com.

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Matthew Cox

Matthew Cox has been a defense reporter since 1998. During his time with Military.com he covered all the services, with a close eye on Army weapons development and procurement, body armor testing, camouflage, ammunition as well as readiness and training issues. He previously worked for 12 years for Army Times. He traveled to Afghanistan and Iraq numerous times from 2002 to 2008, covering Stryker and light infantry units in combat. He also spent four years in the U.S. Army during the second half of the 1980s, serving as an infantryman in the 82nd Airborne Division. Read Full Bio

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