M4 carbine

The M4 carbine is a lightweight, gas operated, air cooled, magazine fed, selective rate, shoulder fired weapon with a collapsible stock. Equipped with a shorter barrel, collapsible stock, and subsequently accessory rails, it provides soldiers operating in close quarters with improved handling and the capability to rapidly and accurately engage targets at extended range, day or night. A shortened variant of the M16A2 rifle, the M4 provides the individual soldier operating in close quarters the capability to engage targets at extended range with accurate, lethal fire. The M4 Carbine achieves over 80 percent commonality with the M16A2 Rifle and was initially to replace all M3A1 .45 caliber submachine guns and selected M9 pistols and M16 series rifle in service. In 2005, it became the standard issue infantry weapon in the US Army.

A shortened variant of the M16A2 rifle, the M4 has a 14.5 in (368 mm) barrel, allowing the individual soldier to better operate in close quarters. The M4 has selective fire options including semi-automatic and three-round burst (like the M16A2), while the M4A1 has the capability to fire fully automatic instead of three-round burst. The carbine is also capable of mounting an M203 grenade launcher, the M203A1 with a 9-inch barrel as opposed to the standard 12-inch barrel of the M203 used on the M16 series.

The Colt company developed various carbine versions of the basic AR-15 / M16 rifle since 1970s. These carbines were intended for all markets - military, law enforcement, civilian. US Military (and some other armies, most notably - Israeli Self-Defense Forces) had adopted the Colt CAR-15 Commando and XM-177 carbines during the 1970s and 1980s. But early in 1990s the old idea of replacing the pistols in the hands of the troops with some more effective, shoulder fired weapon, rise again in the heads of the US Military. In fact, this idea can be dated back to the US M1 Carbine of 1941, but good ideas never die. So, in the 1994, US Army adopted the Colt Model 720 selective-fire carbine (basically, a shortened M16A2 rifle), as the US M4 Carbine. This weapon was intended to replace in service some M9 pistols, as well as some aged M3A1 submachine guns and some M16A2 rifles. New weapon was much more handy and comfortable to carry, than the long M16A2 rifle, so the US Special Operations Command (SOCOM) put its eye on the M4 as a possible universal weapon for all Special Operations community. For this purpose M4 was latter modified with the M16A3-style flat-top receiver with integral Picatinny-type accessory rail instead of the M16A2/M4-type integral carrying handle.

Spesifications:
Caliber: 5.56mm NATO
Action: Gas operated, rotating bolt
Overall length: 838 mm (stock extended); 757 mm (stock fully collapsed)
Barrel length: 370 mm
Weight: 2.52 kg without magazine; 3.0 kg with magazine loaded with 30 rounds
Rate of fire: 700 - 950 rounds per minute
Maximum effective range: 360 m