German auditors criticize new army assault rifle tests

The development of a new assault rifle for Germany's Bundeswehr armed forces has reportedly come under fire from state auditors over lax testing and possible accuracy issues, reported dpa.

Inconsistencies included the decision of the military's main procurement office in Koblenz to use civilian grade instead of combat ammunition in firing tests, according to Der Spiegel magazine, which cited a report by the auditors.

This "no longer ensured that the precision requirements of the troops were met" and had "simplified the weapons manufacturer's verification obligations to the detriment of the Bundeswehr," the report said. The German newspaper Bild also reported on the issue.

According to Der Spiegel, the manufacturer and supplier of the weapon, Heckler & Koch, also wanted to insert more pauses between individual bursts of fire and not carry out the firing tests under extreme cold and hot temperatures.

The army's previous assault rifle, the G36 developed by the same company, in 2012 also raised concerns over accuracy due to the thermal expansion of the barrel.

According to official investigations, problems arose after firing sequences that were too long or under the influence of heat.

However, the auditing court ruled that the weapon worked for its intended purpose and that the Bundeswehr got what it had ordered.

While the G36 is still valued by soldiers in Germany and other countries, former defence minister Ursula von der Leyen had decided to phase out the rifle in 2015.

The German army currently uses variants of another assault rifle built by Heckler & Koch, the HK416A8 introduced in 2019.

Like the earlier model and the one in development, it fires NATO standard 5.56x45mm calibre ammunition.