Brits buy Glock 17s

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MOD Adopts Glock; Takes Stand on Side Arms


By Matthew Cox Thursday, February 7th, 2013 2:52 pm


The United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defense recently adopted the Glock 17 to replace its World War II-era service pistol.

The move is significant and shows the importance the MOD places on individual soldier weapons compared to the leadership in the U.S. Military.

This is not to say that American military personnel don’t have high-quality infantry small arms; they do. But despite several past efforts, the U.S. Army – the Pentagon’s executive agent for small arms – has been unable, and in some cases unwilling, to replace the M4 carbine and the M9 pistol with more-modern, better-performing weapons.

Now to be fair, the Pentagon did replace its WWI/WWII-era 1911 .45 automatic pistol with the Beretta M9 9mm pistol in the mid 1980s. But after nearly three decades, the M9 has developed a mediocre reputation at best among Army and Marine combat troops.

Army requirements officials at Fort Benning, Ga., have made it very clear in the past that pistol engagements are rare and that armies don’t win wars with side arms.

The MOD has a different view. “Pistols are vital in close-combat and are a key part of a soldier’s armory,” Warrant Officer Class 1 Mark Anderson in the Royal Marines said recently in an MOD release.

The MOD tapped Glock to produce 25,000 of its Glock 17 Gen4 9mm pistols to replace the venerable Browning L9A1, also known as the Browning Hi-Power. The L9A1 has been in service since World War II and is still considered to be a highly-reliable and accurate 9mm pistol.

Glock handguns, which are extremely popular with American law enforcement officials and elite U.S. Army special operators, are often referred to as the AK47 of pistols for their outstanding reliability.

The Glock 17 features a 17-round magazine compared to the Browning’s 13-round mag. It also has a polymer frame making it slightly lighter than the Browning. Glocks have an excellent trigger, a feature that makes it easier for a shooter to maintain very tight shot groups.

“We are determined to provide our troops with the best possible personal kit available, and these new Glock 17s will give them greater firepower and accuracy on operations,” said Philip Dunne of the MOD Equipment, Support and Technology.
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http://www.dodbuzz.com/2013/02/07/mod-adopts-glock-takes-stand-on-side-arms/
 
"Glocks have an excellent trigger,..." Really? I have a Glock 17 and I would describe the trigger pull as adequate. What the MOD really want to say is that per unit the Glock 17 is less expensive than any other pistol.
Having said that, if the Glock 17 is good enough for Steve Zissou (Bill Murray) it is good enough for me.
 
What impresses me is that they didn't mess around with made-in-country trade-offs, mandatiory UK industry participation or all the rest of the heiffer-dust that goes with any Canadian govt purchase. They just went and decided on an adequate weapon and pulled out their wallet.
 
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What the initial report probably said was that the glock has a consistent trigger, meaning not a DA/SA like many competitors. Some media relations person rewrote that as excellent. I like my Glock triggers, but reliability is Glock's true strong suit.
 
Always thought that the Brits never knew a good gun from their left elbows ....

The SAS has always done well by the Browning HP. They could have had hi-cap, DA, DAO options with the HP. Had to be based on price. Pity .....
 
Sharps '63 said:
Always thought that the Brits never knew a good gun from their left elbows ....

The SAS has always done well by the Browning HP. They could have had hi-cap, DA, DAO options with the HP. Had to be based on price. Pity .....
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Price is always a factor, however in this case I would argue that they got the most reliable service pistol in existence for the cheapest price. Given that most British wars are in the desert environment, and sand there is a major obstacle to reliable weapon function, I think they made an excellent choice and got a great price for it.
 
Sharps '63 said:
Always thought that the Brits never knew a good gun from their left elbows ....

The SAS has always done well by the Browning HP. They could have had hi-cap, DA, DAO options with the HP. Had to be based on price. Pity .....
Click to expand...

The SAS doesn't use standard issue kit unless they want to. They gave up the HiPower for a Sig a few years ago. Assume they have already tried various Glocks, and if they decided one suited them better than their Sig, they would be (perhaps are, for all I know) using it already.
 
Sharps '63 said:
Always thought that the Brits never knew a good gun from their left elbows ....

The SAS has always done well by the Browning HP. They could have had hi-cap, DA, DAO options with the HP. Had to be based on price. Pity .....
Click to expand...

Like a lot of special people, they've switched to Sigs a long time ago.
 
There's talk of Canada following suit. If I were choosing my own sidearm, I'd probably choose a Glock. As for an issued sidearm, I think it would be a nice gesture to consider S&W. After all, if Obama gets his way, 90% of their products could become illegal for the general public. I think it's fairly obvious, someone in the NY State admin. was influenced by a S&W competitor. The 7 round limit would all but destroy S&W sales in NY. If they impose barrel length restrictions, S&W is doomed.
 
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