recce_o
20 January 2000, 10:30
From "The Times":
Army's unreliable Kosovo rifle to be
modified, says Hoon
BY MICHAEL EVANS, DEFENCE EDITOR
THE SA80 rifle, the standard weapon for the Armed Forces, is to be modified to meet persistent complaints about its unreliability. The decision to make crucial improvements was announced yesterday by Jeffrey Hoon, the Defence Secretary, during questioning by the Commons Defence Select Committee.
Concern about the machinegun version of the SA80 was highlighted in leaked post-Kosovo reports, written by two senior commanders involved in the peacekeeping mission in the Yugoslav province.
The reports by Brigadier Adrian Freer, commander of 5 Airborne Brigade, and Lieutenant-Colonel Paul Gibson, commander of 1st Battalion Parachute Regiment, highlighted the problems with the SA80, as well as the Clansman radio and other standard equipment. Mr Hoon made it clear in his evidence to the committee that the SA80 would have to be modified. He said the SA80 was "exceptionally accurate" but there had been "reliability problems in certain circumstances" which had been left unresolved "for far too long".
The SA80 first came into service in the 1980s, replacing the Self-Loading Rifle, which was the standard weapon used by soldiers in the Falklands conflict in 1982. The first problem that arose with the SA80 was its size. The shortened butt made it imperative to change the traditional drill parade procedures. More recently guardsmen on
duty outside Buckingham Palace and elsewhere, were given permission to cup the rifle butt with both hands while standing at ease because of the strain of holding it with one hand.
After the committee meeting, Ministry of Defence sources said that Mr Hoon had asked for advice on the SA80 by the end of this month.
Army's unreliable Kosovo rifle to be
modified, says Hoon
BY MICHAEL EVANS, DEFENCE EDITOR
THE SA80 rifle, the standard weapon for the Armed Forces, is to be modified to meet persistent complaints about its unreliability. The decision to make crucial improvements was announced yesterday by Jeffrey Hoon, the Defence Secretary, during questioning by the Commons Defence Select Committee.
Concern about the machinegun version of the SA80 was highlighted in leaked post-Kosovo reports, written by two senior commanders involved in the peacekeeping mission in the Yugoslav province.
The reports by Brigadier Adrian Freer, commander of 5 Airborne Brigade, and Lieutenant-Colonel Paul Gibson, commander of 1st Battalion Parachute Regiment, highlighted the problems with the SA80, as well as the Clansman radio and other standard equipment. Mr Hoon made it clear in his evidence to the committee that the SA80 would have to be modified. He said the SA80 was "exceptionally accurate" but there had been "reliability problems in certain circumstances" which had been left unresolved "for far too long".
The SA80 first came into service in the 1980s, replacing the Self-Loading Rifle, which was the standard weapon used by soldiers in the Falklands conflict in 1982. The first problem that arose with the SA80 was its size. The shortened butt made it imperative to change the traditional drill parade procedures. More recently guardsmen on
duty outside Buckingham Palace and elsewhere, were given permission to cup the rifle butt with both hands while standing at ease because of the strain of holding it with one hand.
After the committee meeting, Ministry of Defence sources said that Mr Hoon had asked for advice on the SA80 by the end of this month.