Home Europe Germany finalizes contract for new assault rifle at last

Germany finalizes contract for new assault rifle at last

HK416
Photo: Heckler and Koch

The German defense ministry has finalized a contract for the purchase of new assault rifles for the German military after lengthy delays caused by legal disputes.

The contract was signed with Heckler and Koch, who will be supplying the HK416 in two variants as a successor for the G36 which has been in service since 1996.

In German military service, the new rifle will be known as the G95A1 rifle in the standard weapon variant and the G95KA1 in the short version for specialized forces.

The first of the new rifles will be delivered from 2026, after Germany made its first choice in September 2020 with the C.G. Haenel-built MK556. However, Heckler and Koch protested the decision claiming patent infringements.

When the defense ministry reversed its decision in the spring of 2021 and awarded the contract to Heckler and Koch, C.G. Haenel protested this decision.

The legal procedure dragged the official decision and the contract on for over a year.

Now that the contract has been signed, the company will deliver 390 verification samples to the Bundeswehr. Of these, 40 assault rifles will be handed over to the military technical department for weapons and ammunition for qualification.

The remaining 350 weapons will be given to the troops for operational testing, which will take place in various climate zones, among other things.

Germany plans to buy close to 120,000 assault rifles for an estimated cost of around 273.3 million euros.