German soldiers to stop using ‘faulty’ rifle
Print Edition
German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen said yesterday that an assault rifle, which tests suggest does not shoot straight in warm temperatures, will not be used in the future, after weeks of controversy about the weapon.
The G36 assault rifle has been the focus of a parliamentary inquiry — and jokes by TV talk show hosts — amid reports that it is inaccurate when temperatures rise above 30 degrees Celsius or when it heats up through constant firing.
Von der Leyen commissioned a Bundeswehr report that concluded: “A targeted, precise engagement of the opponent is not reliably possible in demanding battle situations.”
Heckler & Koch, the firm that makes the rifle, has rejected accusations of poor accuracy and said it is fully operational.
Der Spiegel news magazine said the rifle’s accuracy can deviate, under higher temperatures, by up to six meters at targets 500m away. The German military has spent 180 million euros (US$193 million) on 178,000 rifles over the past two decades.
“This weapon, the way it is now constructed, has no future in the German armed forces,” von der Leyen said after a meeting with a parliament defense committee meeting looking into the rifle’s accuracy.
She left unanswered whether a modified version of the rifle could be acceptable.
German soldiers on deployment and elite special commandos will get replacement rifles as quickly as possible, she said.
Forces in Afghanistan as well as on other missions, such as the Horn of Africa, have used the rifle.
Germany’s first female defense minister, von der Leyen is a leader in Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrats and tipped as her possible successor. Her predecessor Thomas de Maiziere, who is now interior minister and another possible heir to Merkel, has also come under scrutiny over the G36.
Members of the opposition Left and Greens want to question de Maiziere and his predecessor Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg about the assault rifle and how long officials had known that it was inaccurate.
The Left’s defense expert Jan van Aken said there were signs the government had been aware of the problem since 2010.
Anton Hofreiter of the Greens said the defense ministry had been attempting to cover it up for years.
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