Equipment of the United States Army

The Equipment of the United States Army can be subdivided into: ammunition, weapons, vehicles and clothing.

Ammunition

9x19mm NATO:

• M9 pistol
• M11
• Heckler & Koch MP5 - used in night operations, close quarters battle, hostage rescue, and escort

.45 ACP:

• M1911 pistol – In limited service

5.56x45mm NATO:

• M249 Light Machine Gun
• M16 rifle
• M4 carbine
• M231 FPW

7.62x51mm NATO:

• M14 Rifle
• M240 Medium Machine Gun
• M110 Sniper Rifle
• M24 Sniper Weapon System

.300 Winchester Magnum

• XM2010 Enhanced Sniper Rifle

.50-cal BMG:

• M2 Heavy Machine Gun
• Barrett M82

12 gauge:

• Mossberg 500
• Benelli M4 Super 90

25x137mm NATO:

• M242 Chain Gun

30x113mm NATO:

• M230 Chain Gun

Hand grenades:

• M67 fragmentation grenade
• M18 smoke grenade
• M84 stun grenade

Grenade launchers

• Mk 19 grenade launcher

Weapons

An M249 machine gun

An M16 rifle

An M4 carbine

The Weapons of the United States Army can be sorted into three categories: Personal weapons carried and used by one soldier, Support weapons used by teams of soldiers in support roles, and Vehicle-Mounted weapons mounted on Army vehicles. Some support weapons can be mounted on vehicles in addition to their primary ground roles. The army is seeking replacement of the M4 carbine and M16 rifle with the Individual Carbine competition to select a new army service rifle.

Personal Weapons:

• Pistols:
  • The M9 pistol, a semi-automatic handgun with a 15-round detachable magazine
• Rifles/Carbines
  • The M16A4, an assault rifle using STANAG magazines from 20 to 100 round capacities and firing at a maximum rate of 825 rounds per minute. All are to be replaced by M4A1s.
  • The M4/M4A1, a carbine in the same family as the M16 and using identical magazines and with an identical rate of fire. All M4s are to be upgraded to M4A1s.
  • The FN SCAR, an assault rifle being issued to elite units like the 75th Ranger Regiment that is scheduled to replace the M4 and M16 in special operations.
  • The M231 FPW, a modified M16 for use in the firing ports of the M2 Bradley. It uses STANAG magazines and can fire at a rates over 1,000 rounds per minute.
• Designated Marksman Rifles
  • The Mk 14 EBR, a battle rifle used as Designated marksman rifle.
  • The Squad Designated Marksman Rifle (SDM-R), used as Designated marksman rifle.
• Light Machine Guns
  • The M249 Squad Automatic Weapon, a belt-fed light machine gun which can also be used with STANAG magazines, though with a significant rate of malfunction. Rate of fire ranges from 500 to 1,000 rounds per minute.
• Sniper Rifles
  • The M24 Sniper Weapon System, a bolt-action sniper rifle
  • The XM2010 Enhanced Sniper Rifle, .300 Winchester Magnum successor to M24.
  • The M110 Semi-automatic sniper system, a semi-automatic sniper rifle.
  • The M82/M107, a .50BMG Anti-materiel rifle.
• Bayonets
  • The M9 bayonet, which can be attached to the M16 assault rifle or M4 carbine and also be used as a knife. Bayonet tactics have been phased out.
• Portable Grenade Launchers
  • The M203 grenade launcher, a 40mm grenade launcher that can be attached under the barrel of a variety of rifles, including the M16 and M4. It cannot be used as a stand-alone weapon. Being replaced by M320.
  • The M320 grenade launcher, a 40mm underbarrel grenade launcher replacing the M203. Can be a stand-alone weapon.

Support Weapons:

• Machine guns:
  • The M60 machine gun, a belt-fed general purpose machine gun.
  • The M240B/L Medium Machine Gun, a belt-fed machine gun that fires 7.62x51mm ammunition. It has three rate-of-fire settings: 750, 850, and 950 rounds per minute.
  • The M2HB/M2A1 Heavy Machine Gun, a belt-fed machine gun that fires .50-caliber BMG ammunition. Its rate of fire maximizes at 575 rounds per minute, though aircraft-mounted versions can achieve over 1,200 rounds per minute.
  • The MK 19 grenade machine gun, a belt-fed grenade-launching machine gun that fires 40mm grenades. Its cyclic rate of fire averages 400 rounds per minute, though its effective rate of fire is between 40 and 60 rounds per minute.
• Rockets:
  • AT4 light anti-tank weapon.
  • M141 Bunker Defeat Munition bunker busting weapon
• Missiles:
  • FGM-148 Javelin 3rd generation fire & forget top-attack anti-tank missile.
  • BGM-71 TOW 2nd generation wire guided anti-tank missile.
  • FIM-92 Stinger anti-aircraft missile.
• Mortars:
  • The M224 mortar fires 60mm shells up to 3,780 yards (3,460 meters). It is typically distributed at the company level.
  • The M252 mortar fires 81mm shells up to 6,490 yards (5,935 meters). It is typically distributed at the battalion level.
  • The M120 mortar fires 120mm shells up to 7,920 yards (7,240 meters). It is primarily used by mechanized battalions, though it can be used to support light infantry operations.

Vehicle-Mounted Weapons:

• The M240, MK 19, and M2 machine guns can be mounted on vehicles, though not as a primary armament.
• The M134 Minigun, fires 7.62mm ammunition at 3,000 to 4,000 rpm.
• The M3P Machine Gun, an M2 variant with a higher rate of fire mounted on the Avenger Humvee and OH-58D Kiowa helicopter.
• The GAU-19, a rotary gun that fires .50 caliber ammunition. Mounted on Humvees and helicopters.
• The M230 Autocannon fires 30x113mm ammunition at a rate of 625 rounds per minute. It is mounted on the AH-64 Apache and UH-60 Black Hawk Direct Action Penetrator helicopters.
• The M242 Autocannon fires 25x137mm ammunition at a rate of 200 rounds per minute. It is one of the primary armaments of the Bradley Fighting Vehicle, and is one of a variety of anti-air and anti-surface naval armaments.

Vehicles

Land vehicles

Name	Type	Quantity	Notes	Picture
Land vehicles
Humvee	Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle	160,000
M939 Truck	Truck	32,000	To be replaced FMTV
FMTV	Truck	44,000	Planned 76,000
HEMTT	Truck	27,400
HETS	Truck	2,400
M9	Combat engineering	447
M113	Armored personnel carrier	13,943	6,700 active duty
M1 Abrams	Main battle tank	8,325	1,547 M1A2, 4,393 M1A1, 2,385 M1
M2 Bradley	Infantry fighting vehicle	6,452
M3 Bradley	Reconnaissance vehicle	1,200
M88 Hercules	Armored recovery vehicle	2,400	676 Active Duty
M109	Self-propelled howitzer	1,934
M119	Howitzer	500
M198	Howitzer	653
M777	Howitzer	638
HIMARS	Multiple rocket launcher	340
M270	Multiple rocket launcher	990
Stryker	Armored personnel carrier	4,187
Centurion	Anti-Projectile Vehicle	Unknown
Avenger	Self-propelled anti-aircraft weapon	1,000
Patriot	Surface-to-air missile	1,106

Aircraft

UH-60 Black Hawk Helicopter

AH-64 Apache Helicopter

OH-58 Kiowa Helicopter

CH-47 Chinook Helicopter

The U.S. Army operates some fixed-wing aircraft and many helicopters.

Aircraft	Origin	Type	Versions	Quantity	Notes
Fixed-wing Aircraft
C-12 Huron	USA	Cargo/Transport Aircraft	C-12C C-12D C-12F	17 14 17
C-23 Sherpa	USA	Cargo/Transport Aircraft	C-23	56	To be replaced by 147 Alenia C-27J
C-26 Metroliner	USA	Cargo/Transport Aircraft	C-26B	11
RC-12 Huron	USA	Reconnaissance Aircraft	RC-12D RC-12H RC-12K	12 6 18
Cessna UC-35	USA	Utility Aircraft	UC-35A UC-35B	20 7
de Havilland Canada Dash 7	Canada	airborne reconnaissance aircraft	O-5A EO-5B RC-7B	1 2 5
Alenia C-27J Spartan	Italy	transport		75 (2 delivered 2009)
Helicopters
AH-6 Little Bird	USA	Attack Helicopter	AH-6A	20
AH-64 Apache	USA	Attack Helicopter	AH-64A AH-64D	116 665
CH-47 Chinook	USA	Cargo Helicopter	CH-47D CH-47F	217 218	191 new CH-47F to be delivered, plus 24 options
EH-60 Black Hawk	USA	Electronic-Warfare Helicopter	EH-60A	64
MH-47 Chinook	USA	Multi-Mission Helicopter	MH-47D MH-47E MH-47G	11 23 27
MH-60 Black Hawk	USA	Multi-Mission Helicopter	MH-60K MH-60L	23 35
OH-58 Kiowa	USA	Observation Helicopter	OH-58A OH-58C OH-58D	196 254 368	A and C under replacement by UH-72
TH-67 Creek	USA	Training Helicopter	TH-67	172
UH-1 Iroquois	USA	Utility Helicopter	UH-1H	547	Being replaced by UH-72
UH-60 Black Hawk	USA	Utility Helicopter	UH-60A UH-60L UH-60M	751 967 165
UH-72 Lakota	USA	Utility Helicopter	UH-72A	250	345 planned
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)
AeroVironment Switchblade	USA	Attack UAV
RQ-11 Raven	USA	Hand-launched UAV	RQ-11B
RQ-20 Puma	USA	Hand-launched UAV	RQ-20A
RQ-7 Shadow	USA	Reconnaissance UAV	RQ-7B
RQ-5 Hunter	Israel	Short Range UAV	MQ-5B
MQ-1C Warrior	USA	Extended-Range Multi-Purpose (ERMP) UAV	MQ-1C	132

Vessels

The Army still operates vessels of many types.

Name	Type	Versions	Quantity	Picture
Watercraft
Spearhead high speed logistics ship	Theater Support Vessel		1
General Frank S. Besson, Jr. class Logistics Support Vessel	Logistics Support Vessel	2	8
Stalwart class ocean surveillance ship	Ocean Surveillance Ship		1
Runnymede class large landing craft	Landing Craft Utility		35
MGen. Nathanael Greene class large coastal tugs	Large Tug		6

Attire

Main article: Uniforms of the United States Army

Current attire
Name	Pattern name(s)	Pattern	Image	Notes
Army Combat Uniform (ACU)	Universal Camouflage Pattern or MultiCam			The ACU uses a new military camouflage pattern called the Universal Camouflage Pattern (UCP), which blends green, tan, and gray to work effectively in desert, woodland, and urban environments. The color scheme of the Army Combat Uniform is composed of a slate gray, desert sand and foliage green pixel pattern, which becomes darker or lighter depending on exposure to sunlight. Soldiers operating in Afghanistan are issued an ACU with the more appropriate "MultiCam" pattern.
Army Aircrew Combat Uniform (A2CU)	Universal Camouflage Pattern			A2CU replaces the Improved Aviation Battle Dress Uniform
	Physical Fitness Uniform

The standard garrison service uniform is known as "Army Greens" or "Class-As".The "Army Blue" uniform, is currently the Army's formal dress uniform, but in 2009, it will replace the Army Green and the Army White uniforms (a uniform similar to the Army Green uniform, but worn in tropical postings) and will become the new Army Service Uniform, which will function as both a garrison uniform (when worn with a white shirt and necktie) and a dress uniform (when worn with a white shirt and either a necktie for parades or a bow tie for "after six" or "black tie" events). The Patrol Cap is worn with the ACU for garrison duty; and the beret with the Army Service Uniform for non-ceremonial functions. The Army Blue Service Cap, is allowed for wear by any soldier ranked CPL or above at the discretion of the commander.

Body armor in all units is the Improved Outer Tactical Vest, which is now being supplemented with the lightweight Modular Body Armor Vest and Soldier Plate Carrier System. Head protection is provided by the Advanced Combat Helmet and the Modular Integrated Communications Helmet.

See also

• United States Air Force
• Equipment of the United States Armed Forces
• Equipment of the United States Navy
• Equipment of the United States Air Force
• Equipment of the United States Coast Guard