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Army to buy XM 320 grenade launcher

The Army is wrapping up testing of its new XM 320 grenade launcher, a weapon designed to be safer than the 68,000 M203 grenade launchers it will replace in the next few years.

Manufactured by Heckler & Koch, the XM 320 is expected to enter full production in September, after design and durability tests in March and April at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md., and Fort Bragg, N.C, said Lt. Col. Tim Chima, product manager for individual weapons at Picatinny Arsenal, N.J.

“The mounting bracket needed to be rugged-ized so as to better handle the operational environment,” Chima said.

The XM320 features a side-loading breech, tougher mounting bracket and built-in night-vision sights.

“The 320 provides a day/night sight capability that we did not have before,” Chima said. “You now have a sight with a laser pointer, so at night, if you know the range of your target, you can then orient your weapon on your target. Recently, we strengthened the housing of the day/night sight to protect its internal electronic components.”

The breech allows a wider variety of 40mm ammunition, such as non-lethal and illumination rounds, he said.

Each hand-held XM 320 with laser rangefinder costs about $3,500.

The launcher, which can be attached to an M4 or M16 rifle, provides an indirect fire capability for suppression or area fire out to 300 meters.