cessfully defeat NATO standard 9mm handguns. This,
FN felt, essentially negated their combat effectiveness.
The situation was not improving, as body armor was
both becoming more common and rapidly improving in
performance. In 1990, NATO not only recognized this
problem, but (in Doc D296) officially began looking into
the need for a modern personal-defense weapon (PDW)
system. This new system was intended to replace current
9mm firearms in NATO service. It should be understood
from the outset that this new PDW was intended to be
just that, merely a close-range defensive weapon. The
difficult question became what to replace the 9mm with.
This cartridge was a world standard, well bloodied during two World Wars. To replace the 9mm, the NATO officials first needed to objectively decide what performance
was going to
be required
from its successor. This
work
was
performed by
NATO starting in 1992
and
was
completed
in 1996. The
performance
and technical
characteristics required
from a new
system had
been
defined. In addition, a target was developed and then standardized to evaluate
the performance of PDW systems put forward for consideration. This new target was designated the CRISAT
target and consisted of a 1.6mm titanium plate with 20
Kevlar folds. As would be expected, this target was capable of defeating a standard 9mm NATO round. It should
be noted here that the Russians developed and fielded
helmets and vests utilizing titanium plates, so the implications are obvious. The mission of a new PDW was to
be able to successfully penetrate this target. In addition,
it was decided that a light, short-range (50m) PDW and
a medium-range (150m) close-defense weapon weighing less than 6.6 pounds were needed. To meet this requirement, FN Herstal created an entirely new cartridge
family as well as two new systems. As the requirement
called for the ability to pierce body armor, FN developed
a small-caliber round generating a relatively high muzzle
velocity. This is designated the 5.7x28mm by FN and
is commercially available in non-armor piercing forms.
This smallbore cartridge was then chambered in a new
innovative compact submachine gun designated the FN
P90 as well as a large handgun called the Five-seveN.
GUNS & AMMO
Civilians can purchase the Five-seveN pistol as well as
the semiautomatic version of the FN P90 known as the
“FN PS90.” For decades, the standard law enforcement
precision rifle has been some form of bolt action, usually
a Remington 700, but some departments fielded quantities of Winchester Model 70s, Savages and various other examples. Semiauto designs, such as the M1A and
AR-10, have always been rare exceptions, the common
thinking being that a bolt-action design was required
simply for its accuracy. However, combat experience in
Iraq and Afghanistan has led to renewed interest in the
potential of semiautomatic sniper systems. One company that has recognized this interest is FN. The FNAR,
a new self-loading sniper rifle based on the Browning
BAR, was developed expressly for the LE market circa
2008. A step away
from the mainstream
in concept, if not design, the FNAR is yet
another demonstration of FN’s forward
thinking.
One of the company’s
most exciting new
products is the SOF
Combat Assault Rifle
(FN SCAR), manufactured in Belgium and
imported for the U.S.
Special Operations
Command (SOCOM).
Available in two calibers,
5.56x45mm
NATO (SCAR-L) and
7.62x51mm
NATO
(SCAR-H)