FN Herstal - the Belgian arms manufacturer has received a contract from the US Army for an unspecified number of M249 Squad Automatic Weapon (SAW) LMGs, a variant of the FN Minimi. Shipments of weapons are expected to end in 2025. The weapon will be manufactured at the American FN factory in Columbia, South Carolina.
The M249 SAW is a belt-fed 5.56 NATO light machine gun. The weapon has undergone many modifications, from the length of the barrel, changes in the stock, to the change of materials from which the main components are made.
It is worth noting that the FN company is one of the most serious players on the firearms market, and its portfolio includes designs such as the M240, the MK 46 and the MK 48, which are variants of the M249, the MK 17 and the MK 20 SSR - i.e. SCAR rifles chambered for the 7.62 NATO round.
In addition, FN had also supplied M4 and M16 rifles to the US armed forces.
Sources: soldiersystems.net, taskandpurpose.com,fnamerica.com
