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France picks German-made Heckler&Koch 416 assault rifle to replace FAMAS

The HK416 assault rifle of the German company Heckler & Koch was chosen by the General Directorate of Armaments (DGA) to replace the FAMAS, as part of the call for tenders for the individual weapon of the future (AIF). The five manufacturers who submitted bids (Heckler & Koch, FN Herstal, Beretta, Sig Sauer and HS Produkt) were recently informed of this choice by François Cojan, head of the purchasing department at DGA says indeed the newspaper, which specifies that the decision was taken after a final series of tests conducted this summer. Normally, the market, which is the delivery of 90,000 assault rifles, will be officially notified by the end of this year. The value of the 10-year contract is estimated to be around €300 million.

The choice of the HK416 is not very surprising since this assault rifle is already used by the French military, especially by the Special Forces and Air Force, the latter having already selected in 2009 to replace the FAMAS. However, and while many politicians from right and left, have recently discovered that the arms factory of Saint-Etienne did not exist, we could think that the contract of AIF would benefit a company installed France, which would have been charged to maintain.

However, this was only possible with at least two bidders: Beretta, which has entrusted this task to the company Humbert, located in the Loire, and FN Herstal, who had accepted a partnership in this direction with Nexter Mechanics, whose workshops from Tulle are understaffed activity.

The FAMAS (French: Fusil d'Assaut de la Manufacture d'Armes de Saint-Étienne) designated in the French army as an "assault rifle 5.56mm model F1 MAS" is a French assault rifle 5.56 × 45mm NATO caliber bullpup type originally manufactured the arms factory of Saint Etienne. Ordered and commissioned in the 1970s by the French army, the FAMAS responded to the desire of a powerful tactical weapon, small footprint and that is also easy to use and maintain. Replacing the MAS 1949-1956 FSA rifle caliber 7.5 mm and the submachine gun MAT 49 caliber 9 × 19mm Parabellum, the FAMAS suppressed and the old organization pair.

The HK416 is interesting because this weapon was developed from the standardised M4 at the US Army. The M4 is based on the AR-15 developed by german H&K in 2001. The fact that the american weapon is the base is not a surprise because the AR-15 was prepared to the US Army tender to replace the M16-M4 platform. In December 2009, a modified version of the HK416 was selected for the final testing in the Infantry Automatic Rifle program, designed to partially replace the M249 light machine gun at the squad level for the United States Marine Corps. The Norwegian Army conducted an extensive evaluation before selecting the HK416 as its new primary firearm. The Turkish company Makina ve Kimya Endustrisi Kurumu ("Mechanical and Chemical Industry Corporation") has considered manufacturing a copy of the HK416 as the MKEK Mehmetçik-1 for the Turkish Armed Forces.

From outside the outer apparence of HK416 looks like a M4, but it has a redesigned retractable stock that lets the user rotate the butt plate, and a new pistol grip designed by H&K to more ergonomically fit the hand. More important changes are inside. Germans thrown out the most criticized part of the M4, the direct impingement gas system. This component is replaced by an other reliable system applied by several others weapons produced by H&K : the short-stroke gas piston system derived from the Heckler & Koch G36 assault rifle.

Furthermore, an adjustable gas block with piston allows reliable operation on short-barrelled models, with or without a suppressor attached. Finally, the HK416 includes a folding front sight, and a rear sight similar to the G3. The HK416 system is offered as an upper receiver, separate from the rest of the rifle, as a replacement to the standard issue M4 upper receiver.
The main difference is that by the direct impingement gas system the flowing back gas in the gun operate the filling and emptying processes, the german solution replace it by a short way moving gas piston.


Le fusil d’assaut HK416 de la firme allemande Heckler & Koch aurait été choisi par la Direction générale de l’armement (DGA) pour remplacer le FAMAS, dans le cadre de l’appel d’offres portant sur l’arme individuelle du future (AIF). Les cinq industriels ayant remis des offres (Heckler&Koch, FN Herstal, Beretta, Sig Sauer et HS Produkt) ont été récemment avertis de ce choix par François Cojan, le chef du service des achats à la DGA, affirme en effet le journal, qui précise que la décision a été prise à l’issue d’une ultime campagne d’essais réalisée cet été. Normalement, le marché, qui porte sur la livraison de 90.000 fusils d’assaut, sera officiellement notifié à la fin de cette année.

Le choix du HK416 n’est pas très surprenant dans la mesure où ce fusil d’assaut est déjà utilisé par les militaires français, en particulier ceux des forces spéciales et de l’armée de l’Air, cette dernière l’ayant déjà sélectionné en 2009 pour remplacer le FAMAS. En revanche, et alors que plusieurs responsables politiques, de droite comme de gauche, ont découvert récemment que la Manufacture d’armes de Saint-Étienne n’existait plus, l’on pouvait penser que le contrat des AIF allait profiter à une entreprise installée en France, laquelle aurait été chargée d’en assurer la maintenance.

Or, cela n’était possible qu’avec au moins deux soumissionnaires : Beretta, qui aurait confié ce soin à l’entreprise Humbert, implantée dans la Loire, et FN Herstal, qui avait accepté un partenariat allant dans ce sens avec Nexter Mechanics, dont les ateliers de Tulle sont en sous-activité.

Le FAMAS (Fusil d'Assaut de la Manufacture d'Armes de Saint-Étienne) désigné au sein de l’armée française en tant que « fusil d'assaut de 5,56 mm modèle F1 MAS », est un fusil d'assaut français de calibre 5,56 × 45 mm Otan de type bullpup, initialement fabriqué par la Manufacture d'armes de Saint-Étienne. Commandé et mis en service dans les années 1970 par l'armée française, le FAMAS répondait au désir d'une arme tactique puissante, d'encombrement réduit et qui soit également facile à utiliser et à entretenir. Remplaçant le fusil FSA MAS 1949-56 en calibre 7,5 mm et le pistolet mitrailleur MAT 49 en calibre 9 × 19 mm Parabellum, le FAMAS supprimait ainsi l'ancienne organisation binôme.