Owing to experience from the 1991 Gulf War, the Army gave Colt its first production contracts for M4 carbines in May and July 1993, and M4A1 carbines for United States Special Operations Command (SOCOM) operators in February 1994. The XM4 was finished in 1987, and the Marines adopted 892 for that fiscal year, with the designation "carbine, 5.56mm, M4". Initially a joint program between the Army and Marines, in 1986 the Army withdrew their funding. In June 1985, the Picatinny Arsenal was given a contract to produce 40 prototypes of the XM4. Army revised the QRP, and a month later, it formally approved development of the new carbine. The ARDC recommended additional commonality with the M16A2 rifle, as well as lengthening the barrel to 14.5 inches (370 mm). Later, the gun was updated with improved furniture, and a barrel with rifling of 1 turn in 7 inches (180 mm). The XM4 was tested by the Army's Armament Research and Development Center (ARDC) in June 1983. In 1983, the 9th Infantry Division requested a Quick Reaction Program (QRP) for a 5.56mm carbine to replace the M1 carbine and M3 submachine gun in service. The carbine used the same upper and lower receiver as the M16A1, and fires the M855 cartridge along with the older M193 cartridges. Army redesignated the XM177E2 to the XM4 Carbine, giving the name as the successor to the M3 carbine. Army Armament Munitions Chemical Command helped Colt develop a new variant of the XM177E2, and the U.S. At the time, the Colt M16A2 was the Colt 645, also known as the M16A1E1. Government requested Colt to make a carbine version of the M16A2. However, these rifles had design issues, as the barrel length was halved to 10 inches (25 cm), which upset the ballistics, reducing its range and accuracy and leading to considerable muzzle flash and blast, meaning that a large flash suppressor had to be fitted. History Development of the M4 įollowing the military adoption of the Armalite AR-15 as the M16 rifle, carbine variants were also adopted for close quarters operations, the first of which was the CAR-15 family of weapons, which was used in the Vietnam War. Army selected the XM7 rifle, a variant of SIG MCX Spear, as the winner of the Next Generation Squad Weapon Program to replace the M16/M4.
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Since its adoption in 1994, the M4 has undergone over 90 modifications to improve the weapon's ergonomics and modularity, including: the M4A1, which strengthened the barrel and replaced the burst-fire option with fully automatic option the SOPMOD, an accessory kit containing optical attachments and the underbarrel weapons such as M203 and M320 grenade launchers to the Masterkey and M26-MASS shotguns. The M4 has been adopted by over 60 countries worldwide, and has been described as "one of the defining firearms of the 21st century". The M4 is extensively used by the United States Armed Forces, with decisions to largely replace the M16 rifle in United States Army (starting 2010) and United States Marine Corps (USMC) (starting 2016) combat units as the primary infantry weapon and service rifle. It is a shortened version of the M16A2 assault rifle. The M4 carbine (officially Carbine, Caliber 5.56 mm, M4) is a 5.56×45mm NATO, gas-operated, magazine-fed carbine developed in the United States during the 1980s. Gas-operated, closed rotating bolt, Stoner expanding gasĥ00 m (550 yd) (individual/point targets) 7.75 lb (3.52 kg) with 30 rounds loaded magazine and sling