U.S. Army weapons officials have expanded the list of submachine gun-style weapons the service plans to test to find a low-profile weapon for security personnel.
Project Manager Soldier Weapons announced recently that it planned to spend $428,480 to award sole-source contracts to 10 gun makers for "highly-concealable" subcompact weapons for an upcoming evaluation, according to a June 6 award announcement.
The Army will now add three more companies to the list, bringing the total up to $472,480, according to a June 15 announcement.
Here's a breakdown of the additional awards:
-- Heckler and Koch Defense Inc., for its UMP9 subcompact weapon. Amount: $10,850.
-- Angstadt Arms Corporation for its UDP-9 subcompact weapon. Amount: $15,950.
-- Noveske Corporation for its Noveske subcompact weapon. Amount: $17,200.
Currently personal security detail personnel use M4 carbines and pistols, but Army officials now say these units need an more concealable, but still lethal alternative, according to the original award announcement.
Without such a weapon, PSD military personnel will be left "with a capability gap which can result in increased warfighter casualties and jeopardize the success of the U.S. mission," the announcement adds.
The initial 10 awards will go to Beretta USA, Colt Manufacturing Company, CMMG Inc., CZ-USA, Sig Sauer and five other small arms makers for pistol-caliber weapons "capable of engaging threat personnel with a high volume of lethal and accurate fires at close range with minimal collateral damage," according the original announcement.
Matthew Cox can be reached at matthew.cox@military.com.
