dieseltaylor Posted July 22, 2009 Share Posted July 22, 2009 This is getting very sci-fi http://www.gizmag.com/xm-25-us-army-smart-weapon/11807/ h The XM25 Individual Air Burst Weapon is looking likely to be the shoulder-fired weapon of choice for the US military to kill or neutralize hidden targets. Due for field test this summer, the lightweight XM-25 "smart weapon" uses High Explosive Air-Burst (HEAB) munitions that can be programmed to detonate at a precise point in the air without the need to impact, spelling trouble for elusive targets, be they behind a wall, inside a building or in a foxhole. Developed jointly by the German arms manufacturer Heckler & Koch and the US company Alliant Techsystems (ATK Corporation), the XM-25 is a semi-automatic, shoulder-fired weapon with a five-round magazine and weighs in at around 14 pounds (6.3kg) – about the same weight as an M-16 with a 203 grenade launcher. The weapon's XM116 integral fire system provides the weapon with its precision and is capable of controlling individually each of the 25mm rounds in real time. Based on a thermal optic, day-sight, laser range finder, compass and infrared light, the system can precisely measure the distance to the target and program each round to explode close to the mark via the wireless connection. Capable of hitting a point target at 500 meters and area targets at 700 meters with a range of munitions including HEAB, anti-personnel, two types of non-lethal munitions – blunt and agent dispersing airburst - plus armor piercing, and door breaching munitions, this is one very nasty piece of ordinance and a must have on any soldiers list. In a nutshell, it operates with the soldier sighting the target and the advanced laser rangefinder transmitting range information to the chambered 25mm round. The soldier then essentially points and fires. After the round leaves the chamber and moves towards its target, the system precisely measures the distance traveled and detonates it at exactly the right moment to deliver maximum effectiveness. ATK says that the XM25 increases the warfighter’s probability of hit-to-kill performance by up to 500 percent over existing weapons and extends the effective range of the soldier’s individual weapon to more than 500 meters. David Greig Via: US Army. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gunnergoz Posted July 22, 2009 Share Posted July 22, 2009 Sci fi maybe but still cursed with uniforms having that stupid camo that really dosn't do what its supposed to in most parts of the world..."universal" patterns are usually a crock but this one sucks more than most. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dieseltaylor Posted July 22, 2009 Author Share Posted July 22, 2009 Camo? I thought he had been paintballing : ) 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Emrys Posted July 22, 2009 Share Posted July 22, 2009 Finding new ways to spend your money... Michael 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ironbar Posted July 22, 2009 Share Posted July 22, 2009 I’ve wondered quite a bit which direction the US Army would go, post OEF/OIF. At some point they will address fighting another force with equal levels of body armor. In most discussions it seems that a penetrating kinetic round has held center stage, but it’s not hard to imagine the XM-25 with a HEAT type round being the primary killer of armor clad infantry. Just as the precision guided bomb reduced the number of bombs expended to eliminate a target, the number of dumb bullets ( really the weight of such) would be reduced by the smart infantry projectile. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 22, 2009 Share Posted July 22, 2009 That is the ugliest weapon I have ever seen, camo aside. The camo just makes it worse. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wilhammer Posted July 22, 2009 Share Posted July 22, 2009 That is the ugliest weapon I have ever seen, camo aside. The camo just makes it worse. Looks like a Super Soaker. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
costard Posted July 22, 2009 Share Posted July 22, 2009 It's going to be a bugger to use. Take a sight, get a range, offset for range (presumably automatic), offset for airburst (mostly vertical, but a horizontal offset would be handy to get someone just around a corner), allow for windage... 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Other Means Posted July 22, 2009 Share Posted July 22, 2009 How do you get a range against someone standing in the open? You're not going to get a laser on them when they're moving. Would 133t Q3 RL skillz come into their own and you'd shoot at their feet? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JonS Posted July 22, 2009 Share Posted July 22, 2009 That is the ugliest weapon I have ever seen, camo aside. The camo just makes it worse. Yep. And it ignores the direction weapons have been moving for the last 30+ years. Compare the M16 to the M4, or the SA80-new (L85A2?) to the original ... trim and chrome is being stripped off weapons in favour of robustness and flexibility. Don't give me a supa-dupa sight inside a shroud, give me a picatinny (or similar) rail and flexibility. Don't give me dopey shrouds and covers that'll trap dust and cr@p and corruption - give me a bare weapon that is easy to clean. Buck rogers wonder junk lives on. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stalins Organ Posted July 22, 2009 Share Posted July 22, 2009 Fortunately it also comes in basic black which accessorises more easily. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Other Means Posted July 22, 2009 Share Posted July 22, 2009 Yep. And it ignores the direction weapons have been moving for the last 30+ years. Compare the M16 to the M4, or the SA80-new (L85A2?) to the original ... trim and chrome is being stripped off weapons in favour of robustness and flexibility. Don't give me a supa-dupa sight inside a shroud, give me a picatinny (or similar) rail and flexibility. Don't give me dopey shrouds and covers that'll trap dust and cr@p and corruption - give me a bare weapon that is easy to clean. Buck rogers wonder junk lives on. The sight here is doing a specific job though. It wouldn't be swapped out for anything else as it needs the laser range finder and ballistic computer integrated. I agree about the housing though. How would you clean the works on that thing? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JonS Posted July 22, 2009 Share Posted July 22, 2009 The sight here is doing a specific job though. It wouldn't be swapped out for anything else as it needs the laser range finder and ballistic computer integrated. Sure. Until you need something else (TI? IRADS?). Then it would get swapped or replaced or complemented or sumfink. On the other hand, this thing seems more like a flash M79 than an assault rifle replacement. 25mm is a bit light for that, I'd have thought, but then precision aiming does allow for more effect from smaller splodies (a'la SDB) 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flamingknives Posted July 22, 2009 Share Posted July 22, 2009 You can get TI and II add-on scopes that work with high-magnification telescopic sights often found on sniper rifles. Presumably you could use a similar concept for the sight on the XM-25, so you wouldn't need to replace the laser-rangefinder/fire control bit to get all-weather/night capabilities. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JonS Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 You can get TI and II add-on scopes that work with high-magnification telescopic sights often found on sniper rifles. Presumably you could use a similar concept for the sight on the XM-25, so you wouldn't need to replace the laser-rangefinder/fire control bit to get all-weather/night capabilities. Sure. But what of the next development in sighting systems? And the one after that? Or the Mk II of the existing system? Or, heck, something as simple as a white-light torch? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boeman Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 Nice toy, but maintenance and reliability will be problematic; especially given cases where sub-standard measures by green troops to keep their current weapons intact are not uncommon. Also, how catastrophic would the consequences be should the XM-25 misfire? What's the potential for collateral damage when used in an urban environment in the current theater of operations where civilians interlock with enemy combatants? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JonS Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 Also, how catastrophic would the consequences be should the XM-25 misfire? What's the potential for collateral damage when used in an urban environment in the current theater of operations where civilians interlock with enemy combatants? Arguably less than with a 40mm UGL, AGL, or that USMC thingy (MGL?). 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kanonier Reichmann Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 I think that's it's official designation Jon. The USMC "Thingy". Regards KR 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stalins Organ Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 the RAW? (otherwise known as the Brunswick Rifleman Asault Weapon) 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JonS Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 No, this is what I meant: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M32_MGL KR: 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stalins Organ Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 Oh - well why didn't you say the Yarpie one?! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JonS Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 Because I didn't think anyone would pointlessly dredge some POS that last saw service on the Ark. But go you. Well done for displaying the same command of minutiae and relevance as Mr Kettler. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MeatEtr Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 So whatever happen to that OICW rifle? I remember playing with it in that Delta Farce game and IIRC it was in one of the expansion packs for the original OFP. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flanker15 Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 The XM25 is what happened to the OICW, it's basically the grenade launcher system without the rifle. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YankeeDog Posted July 23, 2009 Share Posted July 23, 2009 I have my doubts about this weapons system as well, but to play devil's advocate for a moment, I think some people are misunderstanding its intended function: It's not an assault rifle replacement, but rather a complementary weapons system meant to deal with situations where direct small arms fire isn't effective. So the question is whether a platoon is better off swapping some of the carrying capacity it uses to carry rifle grenades/launchers and/or AT4s, to carry one or two of these, plus the specialized ammo. It's not a bad concept, and I can see how it would be very useful in situations like urban counter-insurgency, where avoiding collateral damage and civilian casualties is a major concern -- small blast radius and precise control of detonation point give it definite advantages over the M203 or AT4 here. But I agree this particular design seems a bit too large and complex. I have a hard time seeing this system going into general deployment with line infantry; it seems to me more likely to become a specialized weapon used by Spec Ops and the like for specific missions. In addition to the ability to hit targets around corners, in defilade, etc., it does also have interesting potential as a less-than-lethal system -- precise delivery of tear gas, flash-bangs exploded over the heads of crowds to get them to disperse, dispersal of marking ink to mark rioters for later arrest, etc. But many of these functions can already be performed by the various 40mm grenade launching systems, so the real question is whether this system is sufficiently more effective to merit the additional weight, expense, and complexity. Despite my skepticism about the XM25 specifically, I do think it's probably a better use of taxpayer money right now to research and develop systems like this, instead of buying more F-22s... Cheers, YD 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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