The Bundeswehr receives the new “assault rifle system” for the troops. At the invitation of the Vice President of the Federal Office of Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support (BAAINBw), representatives of the management of the manufacturer Heckler and Koch as well as the project managers of the BAAINBw met today to finalize the last contractual details. The foundation stone for the project was laid with the approval of the concluded contract by the Budget and Defense Committee of the German Bundestag in December 2022 for the procurement of the future standard armament of the soldiers.
From 2026, the Bundeswehr will receive the rifle with the designation G95A1 as a new standard weapon and the G95KA1 in a short version for specialized forces. As part of this project, new assault rifles can now be procured for the entire Bundeswehr in the coming years. The new rifle is based on the HK416 A8 manufactured by Heckler and Koch. The selection decision for this weapon was already made in spring 2021, but a lengthy review process led to delays. In accordance with the case law of the Federal Supreme Court for such cases, the contractual adjustments required due to the length of the proceedings were made with today’s signing of the contract. In a first step, 390 verification samples will be delivered to the Bundeswehr. Of these, 40 assault rifles will be handed over to the Wehrtechnische Dienststelle für Waffen und Munition for qualification. The remaining 350 weapons will be sent to the troops for operational testing, which will take place in various climatic zones, among other places. The extensive testing serves the purpose of comparison with the weapons submitted by the manufacturer in the award procedure.
