Mk 47 Grenade Machine Gun
Advanced Lightweight Grenade Launcher (ALGL) System
Striker 40
Program History
Though the Mk 47 Mod 0 had originally been designed specifically for the special operations community, the US Marine Corps also had a requirement for a 40mm grenade launcher that combined the firepower and lethality inherent to a heavy machine gun while preserving, as much as possible, the mobility and maneuverability of foot-mobile, infantry forces. These would be to replace Mk 19 Mod 3 40mm grenade launchers the Marine Corps had in its inventory.
While doctrinally employable in offensive and defensive operations, the weight of the Mk 19 Mod 3 at 140 pounds, not including its ammunition, restricted its use in the offense to when it could be mounted on a vehicle. The Marine Corps Warfighting Laboratory (MCWL) conducted an examination of state of the art heavy machine gun technology. As a part of this overall effort, the MCWL experimented to determine if the Mk 47's total system weight of 85 pounds combined with increased accuracy and lethality (with a potential for a commensurate reduction in ammunition load) made the technology appropriate for consideration.
In July 2004, the Marine Corps Systems Command on behalf of the Marine Corps Warfighting Laboratory negotiated with General Dynamics Armament and Technical Products, Inc. of Burlington, Vermont on a sole source basis for 2 each reconditioned Mk 47 40mm ALGL weapon systems with LVS and system storage cases, one each reconditioned Mk 47 40mm ALGL weapon system without LVS and system storage case, one each ALGL weapon systems spare parts package, and one lot Mk 47 40mm ALGL weapon system new equipment training.
The Mk 47 Mod 0 was replacing the Mk 19 Mod 3 in US Special Operations Command inventory by late 2004. As guns came off the production line, they were going straight to the Area of Responsibility of the 3rd Special Forces Group.
The Department of Defense announced on 7 June 2006, that General Dynamics Armament and Technical Products of Burlington, Vermont was being awarded a $23,558,000 5-year Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity contract for the purchase of the Mk 47 ALGL in support of the Special Operations Command. The work would be performed in Saco, Maine, and was expected to be completed by 2011. The contract would be awarded through the authority of FAR 6.302-1 and 10 U.S.C. 2304 (c)(1). General Dynamics announced that the award had a total potential value of $82 million.
General Dynamics Armament and Technical Products announced on 30 January 2007 that it had been awarded an $8.6 million option from the US Government for production of the Mk 47 Mod 0 weapon system, a lightweight 40mm grenade launcher. The award was part of a 5-year Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity contract awarded in June 2006 and brought the total contract value to $32.5 million.
General Dynamics Armament and Technical Products announced on 23 July 2007 that it had been awarded a $13.2 million option from the US Government for production of the Mk 47 Mod 0 weapon system. The award was part of a 5-year Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity contract awarded in June 2006 and brought the total contract value at that point to $46.3 million.
General Dynamics Armament and Technical Products announced on 26 January 2009 that it had been awarded a $12 million contract from the US government for production of the Mk 47 Mod 0 weapon system. Production work would be performed at General Dynamics in Saco, Maine, with program management being shared with the company's Burlington, Vermont facility.
General Dynamics Armaments and Technical Products of Burlington, Vermont was awarded on 30 July 2010, a $24,851,751 firm-fixed-price, undefinitized contract action contract. This contract was for 130 each of Mk 47 Mod 0 40mm ALGL system with LVS, air burst barrels, and ancillary equipment with spare and repair parts. Work was to be performed in Saco, Maine, with an estimated completion date of 31 August 2012. One bid was solicited with one bid received. US Army TACOM Contacting Center, CCTA-AR-VB in Rock Island, Illinois was the contracting activity.
General Dynamics Armament and Technical Products announced on 1 October 2010 that it had been awarded a $24.9 million contract by the US Army to produce Mk 47 ALGL systems. The contract supported a foreign military sale and was a firm fixed price award for 130 Mk 47 systems that each included the LVS systems, spare parts and technical support. Deliveries were scheduled to begin in January 2012 and be completed by August 2012.
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