For several months we have been reporting on the ongoing procedure for a new weapon for the British Rangers formation and it is no surprise that Sig Sauer has joined the ranks of companies competing in this tender. Let us remind you that the British are looking for successors to the somewhat old 5.56 SA80/L85 rifle. So far, companies that have submitted their products include Heckler und Koch with its HK416 (A new market for the HK?) and the most interesting Glock design (GLOCK rifle - is it happening?).

The other bidders are Daniel Defense with the DDM4 rifle, KAC with the KS-1 (SR16) and probably Haenel with the MK556, a model that recently lost in the Bundeswehr successor competition.

The gun forwarded by Sig is the MCX SPEAR LT model, the latest version of the model that has been in development for several years, in this case chambered in the 5.56 NATO cartridge.

Apart from the HK design, the MCX is the only model of the carbine with a short stroke piston system. Other designs are weapons based on the DI system - direct discharge of gases onto the bolt carrier. It this meets, in a way, that the British require the new carbine to be based on the AR15 platform, although in the case of SIG it is not entirely true. What's more, the MCX SPEAR LT is the only design with a side folding stock, which is an undoubted advantage, especially when transporting weapons. It is worth mentioning that the older version of the SIG MCX (Virtus) is currently used by the British police and probably SAS troops.
In accordance with the requirements of the British Ministry of National Defense, the design was presented with an optical sight in the form of the Tango6T 1-6 scope and the ROMEO2 reflex sight. The carbine comes with the SLXC model silencer, also manufactured by Sig Sauer.

The entire portfolio submitted by competitors looks impressive, but commentators mention that we still have to wait for the offer of one important player, LMT, which currently supplies AR rifles to SAS units. Let us remind you that not so long ago LMT won a contract for the supply of small arms to the Armed Forces of Estonia.

Photos: soldiersystems.net, Amaël Kotlarski (Jane's)