On December 14, 2022, the Budget and Defense Committees of the German Bundestag approved the allocation of initial appropriations to the German Ministry of Defense for the start of serial purchases from Heckler & Koch HK416A8 automatic rifles chambered in 5.56 x 45 mm NATO, which received a military index in the performance of the G95A1 rifle and G95KA1 carbine. Thus, it seems that the epic of replacing the Heckler automatic rifle, which has been in service with the German Bundeswehr since 1996, is nearing its finale. & Koch G36.
Image of the 5.56mm Heckler automatic rifle selected by the German Army & Koch HK416A8 (G95A1) in standard configuration (with) Heckler & KochEarlier, the German government approved the purchase from Heckler &
Koch under the System Sturmgewehr Bundeswehr 118718 HK416A8 automatic rifles in versions G95A1 (with a barrel length of 16.5 inches - 419 mm) and G95KA1 (with a barrel length of 14 inches - 356 mm) in the amount of 209 million euros. Heckler General Framework Contract & Koch, taking into account options, may amount to 273.3 million euros. The first batch will be 13929 G95A1 rifles and 3104 G91KA1 carbines, its deliveries are scheduled for 2023 (the first 390 samples for military tests) and 2024. The remaining amount should be delivered to the Bundeswehr in 2025-2032. It is also planned to purchase more than 4,700 grenade launchers for use with these rifles.
Heckler Rifle & Koch HK416 is made on the AR platform, but using the patented Heckler & Koch short-stroke gas piston system from an earlier family of Heckler rifles & Koch G36 (HK50). The HK416A8 modification, in comparison with other variants of the NK416, is equipped with a quick-release shortened forearm, an adjustable cheek rest on the butt and a handle with a tilt like the G36 rifle. The forearm and the barrel must be interchangeable to switch between both versions of the barrel. There is an eye for a bayonet on the barrel. Thanks to the use of Picatinny bars, various types of equipment can be mounted, the standard sight for the Bundeswehr rifle is Leonardo ELCAN Spectre DR 1-4x.
Recall that the selection program for the German army of a new 5.56 mm automatic rifle to replace the G36 was launched in 2017. At the final stage of the tender, the competitors were CG Haenel GmbH with the MK 556 rifle (also on the AR-15 platform) and Heckler & Koch, representing the HK416 and HK433 rifles. Previously, the RS556 rifle presented by Rheinmetall and Steyr Mannlicher was also a candidate. In September 2020, the German Ministry of Defense very unexpectedly announced the Haenel MK 556 rifle as the winner . However, Heckler & Koch filed a complaint with the Federal Antimonopoly Office of Germany protesting the competitive decision in favor of CG Haenel, accusing the latter of violating its patent rights. According to the results of the review of this complaint, the German Federal Defense Procurement Agency (BAAINBw) concluded that "it is impossible to exclude a corresponding violation of patent rights on the part of the bidder CG Haenel GmbH to the detriment of another bidder Heckler & Koch".
As a result, in October 2020, the choice in favor of the Haenel MK 556 was canceled and the German Ministry of Defense formally resumed the tender, which ended in 2021 with the logical victory of Heckler. & Koch NK416A8 as the only contender.
In early December 2022, the Supreme Land Court of Dusseldorf rejected a counterclaim filed by CG Haenel, confirming that the final decision of the Bundeswehr on the choice in favor of Heckler & Koch HK416A8 was legal.
Currently, the rifle of the previous modification HK416A7 (under the G95 and G95K carbine indexes) is already used in small numbers by the units of the Bundeswehr special operations forces Kommando Spezialkräfte (KSK) and Kommando Spezialkräfte Marine (KSM).
Images of the 5.56mm Heckler automatic rifle selected by the German Army & Koch HK416A8 in both versions along the length of the barrel (c) soldat-und-technik.deImages of the 5.56mm Heckler automatic rifle selected by the German Army &
Koch HK416A8 in both versions along the length of the barrel (c) Heckler & Koch