German: Bundeswehr erhält weitere 400 Maschinengewehre English: The Bundeswehr receives another 400 machine guns

The universally applicable machine gun MG5 is intended to replace the MG3 as the medium machine gun in the troops. The Federal Office for Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support of the Bundeswehr (BAAINBw) recently ordered another 400 machine guns of the MG5A2 type from the manufacturer Heckler & Koch GmbH as part of a framework contract. The weapons are expected to be available to the army from August 2022, with a focus on equipping the forces of the rapid NATO Response Force (VJTF) 2023.

Since 2013, a framework contract for the procurement of MG5 has existed between the BAAINBw and the weapon manufacturer. This contract is now in its 5th amendment, which was approved by the Budget Committee in March 2021 as part of a €25 million proposal. The contract allows for the flexible annual ordering of machine guns based on the identified needs of the troops. Since 2015, the BAAINBw has ordered over 10,000 MG5s from the manufacturer, with the delivery of the 10,000th unit imminent.

The fully-automatic MG5, chambered in 7.62 x 51 mm, can effectively engage targets up to a distance of 1,000 m. The optimal combat range on a bipod is 600 m. In the troops, the MG5 is used either with a bipod or mounted as a support weapon.

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