

To use the 7.62x51mm NATO cartridge, the Army first modified the M-1 chamber and barrel to fire the 7.62x51mm NATO cartridge and then designed the M-14 rifle in 1957 around that new standard cartridge. 30-06 of WWII, this new NATO cartridge allowed interoperability with allied forces. 30-06, was adopted as standard by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). The bullet, with ballistic characteristics similar to the. In 1954 the Army adopted the smaller and lighter 7.62x51mm NATO cartridge. 30-06 cartridge put too much strain on a redesigned rifle mechanism. Standard Service RiflesĪs America moved deeper into the Cold War, it needed to adopt a new standardized cartridge. Because of advances in firearms technology following the Korean War, the Army wanted a lighter standard service rifle with selective-fire. 2 It gave an American infantry squad greater firepower than the Germans, Italians, or Japanese, who, through 1944, were primarily armed with bolt action rifles. Considered one of the best rifles of WWII, it was unusual because it was semi-automatic with an internal eight- cartridge magazine. 30-06, it shared the same ammunition as the BAR. To increase firepower in the infantry squad, in 1936 the Army adopted the M-1 Garand rifle. 30-06 ammunition for the BAR gunner, which reduced the individual rifleman’s basic load. An exceptionally rugged and dependable weapon, the major shortcoming of the BAR was its weight (nearly 20lbs) and heavy twenty-cartridge magazine. It was employed by the Army during World War II, the Korean War, and was used by indigenous forces in Vietnam. 30-06, the BAR proved devastating in the trench fighting of World War I. However, as World War II loomed on the horizon, a bolt-action rifle with an internal five-bullet magazine was not sufficient to support infantry squad maneuver tactics based on the support capabilities of the M1918 Browning Automatic Weapon (BAR), the standard infantry squad automatic weapon.ĭeveloped in 1917 and chambered in. The Springfield proved to be a reliable, accurate, and hard-hitting weapon in First World War trench warfare.

30-06 was adopted, ammunition weight was not a major factor because long range accuracy and lethality were the most important factors. 30-06 Springfield cartridge reflected advances in ballistics and aerodynamics made by European militaries. The Army adopted its first modern infantry rifle in 1903, the M1903 Springfield, chambered in.
