A couple of months ago, the U.S. Army sent the firearms community into a tizzy when it issued a RFI for a Sub Compact Weapon. Speculation was rife as to which company would win the contract.
We no longer have to wonder, as the service has officially called off the search. Read the announcement, which was added to the original notice a week ago, below:
Sub Compact Weapon Cancellation
This Synopsis of Contract Award is amended on 02 July 2018 to notify industry that due to changes in the Government’s requirement, this opportunity is hereby cancelled effective immediately.
The Government is in the process of establishing new requirements for the Sub Compact Weapon Program and will announce the changes on fbo.gov within the next two weeks. Vendors interested in being notified for this new opportunity are encouraged to sign up under the “Interested Vendors List” tab of this announcement.
Original Requirements
As outlined in the RFI, the Sub Compact Weapon would’ve gone to personal security details. Those units currently use both pistols and rifles, but the service said there was an “operational need for additional concealability and lethality” which, if not fulfilled, would “leave PSD military personnel with a capability gap” that would’ve led to more casualties for our guys and “jeopardize the success of the U.S. mission.”
The SCW was to be a highly concealable select-fire 9mm model with a MIL-STD-1913 rail. The Army awarded 13 different companies sole source contracts for commercially available off-the-shelf options, including Colt; Beretta; CMMG; CZ-USA; Lewis Machine & Tool; PTR Industries; Quarter Circle 10; Sig Sauer; Trident Rifles; Zenith Firearms; Heckler & Koch; Angstadt Arms; and Noveske Rifleworks.
It would’ve been interesting to see which company nabbed the award for the Army’s Sub Compact Weapon, but now we’ll never know. As noted in the announcement, the Army is set to reveal new requirements for the Sub Compact Weapon program within the next week.
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