![]() ![]() Beyond the 0311 riflemen, Neller may also consider IARs for combat engineers and light armored reconnaissance battalion scouts, a Marine official said. Just the 0311 infantry Marines in the rifle squad," he said. "If we decide to put IARs throughout the rifle squads, we would not arm the squad leader with it, nor the platoon sergeant and platoon commander. Our Marine infantry squads, based on their mission - locate, close with and destroy the enemy by fire and maneuver or to repel the enemy’s assault by fire and close combat - should be armed and kitted out differently than other Marines," the commandant said. "I believe that our infantry Marines should be the most lethal force we can afford. "You’ve likely heard me say that ‘every Marine is a rifleman.’ But every Marine is not in the infantry," Neller said. ![]() That’s why it’s unlikely that the high-performance rifles would be issued to other infantry Marines, such as mortarmen, machine gunners or Marines who specialize in anti-tank rockets and demolitions. "I am considering it, but we have to balance improved capabilities and increased lethality with cost," Neller said. But at up to $3,000 apiece, it costs a lot more compared to the M4, typically less than $1,000. Most weapons experts agree the M27 is far superior to the M4. Now Neller is looking at the IAR as a high-performance service weapon for all riflemen in the infantry. But ultimately the Corps decided it needed both weapons, and the IARs use among grunts has been limited. The Marine Corps started fielding more than 4,000 M27 IARs back in 2010, initially thinking they would replace the M249 squad automatic weapons. "Everything I have seen suggests that the M27s we have been using for some time have been the most reliable, durable, and accurate weapons in our rifle squads," Neller said in a statement. Neller has not made a decision as to whether he will put any additional IARs in infantry squads. ![]() "Most Marines like it, and so do I," Marine Corps Commandant Gen. The Corps’ IAR - currently the M27 made by Heckler & Koch - could replace the standard-issue M4 carbine for thousands of Marines. The commandant of the Marine Corps wants to vastly expand the fielding of infantry automatic rifles by putting them in the hands of nearly every "0311" rifleman. ![]()
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