Staff Sgt. Misty Dedonder, a truck driver in the 443rd Transportation Company, and Army Reserve unit headquartered in Nebraska, fires an MK19 automatic machine gun at dead tanks at a range in Camp Atterbury in preparation for a deployment to Iraq. (Army Photo)
First introduced in 1966, the 40mm, belt-fed automatic grenade launcher is arguably one of the coolest – and baddest – weapons in the organic infantry. The Rapid Fielding Initiative now looks to improve the MK19 with an advanced sighting/targeting system. In a “sources sought” notice released this morning, the service described “an immediate need for an advanced sighting/targeting system for the MK-19 Grenade Launcher. The system will operate during day, night and all weather conditions.” The notice set forth the following requirements:
- The sighting system will allow the weapon to be aimed and fired in the same time frame as using the iron sights;
- The sight will work in the temperature ranges from 110to 0 F and be waterproof;
- The sight will provide unlimited eye relief;
- The sight will provide multiple adjustments between 200m to 1,000m;
- The sight will be compatible with AA batteries, or Type 123 batteries;
- The sight will be compatible with all generations of Night Vision Devices;
- The sight may provide precision adjustment for wind and elevation;
- The sight will provide multiple settings for use in daylight or low-light conditions;
- The sight will provide a first round accuracy greater than the supplied iron sights, therefore eliminating the need to walk rounds to the target;
- The sight will allow the placement of first rounds within five meters over the entire range of the MK-19.
Outside the Wire will keep you posted on the outcome …
