G36 Assault Rifle
Created for the requirements of the German armed forces, the G36 continues to set the standard in the field of assault rifles. Used as an infantry weapon in a large number of countries, special forces and security forces also rely on its constant reliability. Essential components of the G36 are made of glass fibre reinforced plastic. This gives the user a lightweight weapon with high performance and low maintenance requirements. The G36 is ideally suited for dismounted infantry operations. For optimal handling, weight, and rate of fire in close-quarters battle, and for rapid, accurate and penetrating single fire in long-range combat.
The G36 was designed in the late 1980s by Heckler & Koch Company (HK). It was intended to replace the ageing G3 rifle in service with the Bundeswehr. The G36 was designed when its likeliest use appeared to be in Central Europe, fending off a Soviet invasion. In other words, for a specific scenario under the climatic conditions you have in Europe. Taking the rifle to Afghanistan, as the Bundeswehr did, starting in 2002, creates different operational and climatic conditions.
Besides being the Bundeswehr's standard rifle for two decades, the G36 is in use with various military and police forces of more than 40 other countries. If the rifle suffered from serious technical deficiencies - systematic failure - that would have come out a long time ago.
In April 2012, reports surfaced that G36 rifles used in Afghanistan would overheat during prolonged firefights after several hundred rounds were fired. Overheating affected the accuracy of the G36, making it difficult to hit targets past 100 meters, ineffective past 200 meters, and incapable of effective fire past 300 meters. The G36 has been called unsuitable for long battles.
The rifle's accuracy "sank by a third at distances of over 300 meters," citing internal investigations by the Bundeswehr. While no such experiences had been encountered in battle, ISAF commanders had ordered troops to heed instructions to make sure to allow the gun's barrel to cool "after shooting the ammunition rapidly." A Bundeswehr report to then Defense Minister Thomas de Maiziere, contained the damning sentence, "All G36 rifles tested until now show an alteration in the mean target in a heated shooting condition, so that an enemy at a distance of 200 meters can no longer be safely engaged."
The blame was put either put on the lightweight polymer used to make certain parts of the G36, or a certain brand of ammunition that heated the barrel more than others.
On 31 March 2015 Heckler & Koch stated that all G 36 rifles of the German Armed Forces comply with the so called "Technical Supply Specification" as established by the German Armed Forces, which conclusively standardize and document the technical performance specifications of the G 36 rifle as part of the supply contract. Compliance with the stated requirements of these specifications is independently confirmed by the quality control centre of the German Armed Forces with the acceptance of each of the 178,000 G 36 rifles used by the soldiers of the German Armed Forces. To date, there had been no defects noted and therefore, any discussions regarding warranty for defects are neither factual, nor appropriate.
Heckler & Koch further stated that "Press reports suggest that the German Armed Forces appear to have developed a new test criteria during the past 6 months, without consulting with, or including Heckler & Koch in the discussion of the new testing to be conducted or the results obtained. The German parliament canceled G36 rifle orders in April 2015 for lack of precision in hot climate and when overheated. A study commissioned by the Ministry of Defense revealed serious flaws in the mass-produced G36 assault rifle. Reportedly, the rifle tended to heat up during continuous fire and became unreliable under changing ambient temperatures with the hit probability decreasing after just a few shots. Moreover, a change from dry to moist environment leads to problems.
The German Defense Ministry commissioned three separate reports into the G36, following revelations that the gun lost accuracy when heated up and that the company may have influenced the government to ensure that the rifle would still be used by the army. Tests found that accuracy degradation reached 0.5 meters at a range of 200 meters, and 6 meters at a range of 500 meters.
A study commissioned by the German defense ministry vindicated H&K in October, establishing that, while the scientific conclusions of the tests could not be refuted, there was no evidence that German soldiers had been put in danger because of G36's accuracy issues. The commission released its results on 14 October 2015. Led by Green party politician Winfried Nachtwei, the commission questioned 200 soldiers to find out whether they had ever been put in danger, or indeed directly harmed, by the gun's supposed lack of accuracy. "The mission-experienced soldiers refuted the classification of the G36 as a glitch-rifle."
An internal Defense Ministry report that found "intolerable management behavior" between H&K and the Federal Bureau of Bundeswehr Equipment. That government office had for several years kept a test center at the H&K factory in Oberndorf. The internal ministry commission complained of a "lack of professional distance" between the equipment bureau and H&K.
The revelations came as a serious blow to Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen, a close ally and confidante of Chancellor Angela Merkel. Defense Minister von der Leyen declared in April 2015 that the gun had "no future" in the Bundeswehr, and that she would begin replacing the over 160,000 G36s it currently uses, a process likely to take until 2019. On 08 September 2015 the Ministry confirmed that the G36, the German army's main rifle of the past 20 years, will be phased out and replaced by a "new generation" weapon from 2019. The tenders for a modern replacement for the Bundeswehr's 167,000 G36s would be called Europe-wide.
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