The US Navy SEAL’s go through one of the toughest military trainings in the world but at the end of the day, if they can’t shoot their target they aren’t good enough. A soldier’s life depends on not just his/her abilities to survive hostile conditions and territory but also on their weapons. For a Navy SEAL, a weapon is just another extension of their body – it’s about maximum damage with minimum weapons!
The Guns!
Different SEAL teams use different types of weapons in different conditions and to achieve different objectives. Let’s take a look at what weapons the Navy SEALs use!
M16A1
It is a 5.56mm caliber rifle and probably one of the most widely used rifles in the US Military. It is being manufactured by Colt.
The SEAL’s use this rifle in different terrains and some of the variants are fitted with an AN/PVS-2 night vision scope and M203 40 mm grenade launcher. These modifications have also been made on the M16A2 and the M16A3. Navy SEAL’s used the M16A1 in Vietnam.
M16A3
The M16A3 was introduced in 1994 and has been manufactured in small quantities only for use by SEALs. It has a Safe-Semi-Auto (S-1-A) trigger group with gas operated, rotating bolt action. It is a 5.56×45mm NATO caliber automatic rifle with a maximum effective range of 550m. The rifle has a magnesium alloy receiver and can handle high capacity magazine. It can fire at 330 feet per second
XM177E2
This is also known as the CAR-15 Commando Model 609. It is a 5.56mm submachine gun manufactured by Colt and uses 20 round magazines. In 1967, the barrel was extended from 10 inches to 11.5 inches and was also fitted with the XM148 Grenade launcher. The muzzle velocity is 2,611 feet/second.
M79 Grenade Launcher
This is a powerful and effective SEAL weapon. The grenade launcher can be used as a standalone weapon or fitted to a M16. The M79 is known as a single shot break action launcher that can fire 40×46mm grenades. It is manufactured by Springfield Armory and can fire 6 rounds/min. The M79 was used heavily in Vietnam.
Heckler & Koch Gewehr 3
It is known as the HK G3 and is an assault Rifle. Manufactured by Heckler and Koch, this rifle has provisions for flash suppressor, grenade launcher, and even a bayonet. The G3 is capable of firing 20 round box magazines and uses 7.62×51mm NATO cartridge. It’s effective range is 400m and can be fitted with detachable telescopic sight.
M1911A1 Pistol
Used frequently by the Navy SEALs in Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Iraq, this is a handy weapon. The M1911A1 is a .45 caliber automatic pistol that uses a short recoil principle. Designed by John Browning and manufactured by Colt, the muzzle velocity of this pistol is 830 feet/second. The Covert Ops units like SEAL’s use the M1911A1 with a silencer as well. It is used by Navy SEALs as a back-up or secondary weapon.
This Article is written by James Kara Murat
October 28th, 2009 - 12:45 pm
The weapon system you have listed above as an M79, is actually the M203 40mm grenade launcher. The M79 was a stand-alone weapon , not a rifle mounted weapon. And whereas the M79 was used heavily in Vietnam, the M203 was not yet fielded in Vietnam. As for the rate of fire, seeing as they are breech-fed weapons, both the M79 and M203 can fire as fast as the operator can load and shoot, there is no set rate of fire.
February 13th, 2012 - 11:09 am
Hi,
I stylization for Navy Seals years 90 ‘
Do you have pictures showing where the M16A3?
Regards
March 13th, 2012 - 4:26 pm
How could you omit both the Stoner 63 machine gun and the “Hush Puppy” hastily developed by Charlie Lewis at the Naval Ordnance Lab in White Oak, MD? The Hush Puppy was a system that incorporated special ammunition (subsonic) and was a modified Smith & Wesson Model 39 that incorporated a slide lock that immobilized the auto loading feature of the normal Model 39 and was fitted with a Mark 3 suppressor. The gun was called a hush puppy because it was particularly useful for silencing guard dogs and geese.