M107 Sniper Rifle
A heavy SASR (Special Application Scoped Rifle), it is used by many units and armies around the world, including the American Special Forces. It is also called the "Light Fifty" for its .50 caliber BMG (12.7 mm) chambering.
The weapon is found in two variants — the original M82A1 (and A3) and the bullpup M82A2. The M82A2 is no longer manufactured, though XM500 can be seen as its successor, in that it also employs a bullpup configuration.
Overview
The M107 semi-automatic long range sniper rifle.
The Barrett Firearms Company was founded by Ronnie Barrett for the single purpose of building semi-automatic rifles chambered for the powerful 12.7x99mm NATO (.50 BMG) ammunition, originally developed for and used in M2 Browning machine guns.
Barrett continued to develop his rifle through the 1980s, and developed the improved M82A1 rifle by 1986.
The first conventional military success was the sale of about 100 M82A1 rifles to the Swedish Army in 1989. Major success followed in 1990, when the US Military purchased significant numbers of the M82A1 during operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm in Kuwait and Iraq.
About 125 rifles were initially bought by the US Marine Corps, and orders from US Army and Air Force soon followed. The M82A1 is known by the US Military as the SASR — "Special Applications Scoped Rifle", and it was and still is used as an anti-matériel weapon and EOD (explosive ordnance disposal) tool.
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A U.S. Effective interdiction requires that personnel on Coast Guard cutters be able to deliver accurate fire to stop high-speed drug runners.
If it becomes necessary to immobilize a vehicle, a .50 BMG round in the engine block will shut it down quickly. If it is necessary to breach barriers, a .50 BMG round will penetrate most commercial brick walls and concrete blocks.
According to the documentary The Brooklyn Connection, M82s smuggled into Kosovo by sympathizers in the United States have quickly become popular long range sniper rifles in the Kosovo Liberation Army.
In Northern Ireland during the 1990s, the South Armagh Brigade of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) maintained an extremely effective and intensive sniping campaign against the British Army and the Royal Ulster Constabulary police. The Barrett rifle was used, and in 1997 it was used to kill the last British soldier to die during The Troubles, Stephen Restorick.
Later, a top IRA sniper, Michael Caraher, was arrested and his Barrett rifle was captured by British forces. Caraher caused the death of 7 British soldiers and 2 police officers.
As a side note, the Barrett M82A1 rifle was used in 2002 as a platform for the experimental OSW (Objective Sniper Weapon) prototype.
This weapon was fitted with a shorter barrel of 25 mm caliber, and fired high explosive shells developed for the 25 x 59 mm OCSW automatic grenade launcher. This weapon, also known as the Barrett 'Payload Rifle', has now been designated the XM109.
M82 to M107
The M107.
The XM107 was originally intended to be a bolt-action sniper rifle, and it was selected by the U.S.
The M107 uses a Leupold 4.5x14 Mark-IV scope
The Barrett M107 is a .50 caliber, shoulder fired, semi-automatic sniper rifle. Additionally the weapon's weight and large muzzle brake also assist in recoil reduction.
Barrett has recently been tasked with developing a lightweight version of the M107 under the "Anti-Materiel Sniper Rifle Congressional Program," and has already come up with a scheme to build important component parts such as the receiver frame and muzzle brake out of lighter weight materials.
The Barrett M107, like previous members of the M82 line, are also referred to as the Barrett "Light Fifty". According to the manufacturer the M107CQ is suitable for use in helicopters, force protection watercraft, tactical scout land vehicles and as an urban soldier's combat multiplier for close quarter battles.
Technical description
Demonstration of a Barrett rifle during a training course at Hurlburt Field, Florida.
A United States Marine Sniper with an M82A3 .50-caliber rifle.
The M82 is a short recoil semi-automatic firearm.
When the gun is fired, the barrel initially recoils for a short distance (about an inch/25 mm) being securely locked by the rotating bolt. The gun is fed from a large detachable box magazine holding up to 10 rounds, although a rare 12 round magazine was developed for use in the first Gulf War.
The receiver is made from two parts (upper and lower), stamped from sheet steel and connected by cross-pins.
The buttpad is fitted with a soft recoil pad to further decrease the felt recoil. M82A1 and M82A3 rifles could be mounted on the M3 or M122 infantry tripods (originally intended for machine guns) or on vehicles using the special Barrett soft-mount.
The M82A1 can be fitted with a carry sling but according to those who carried it in the field, the M82 is much too uncomfortable to be carried on a sling due to its excessive length and heavy weight. Navy SEALs, RoboCop, Miami Vice, Smokin' Aces, Shooter, Rambo), often depicted with exaggerated capabilities.
Misconceptions include being able to shoot down airliners; while the M82 was designed to disable parked aircraft, it is extremely unlikely that even the most highly trained marksman would be able to bring down a flying airplane firing the entire 10-round magazine, let alone one shot. After the advent of the autocannon and its highly successful use in World War II, the .50 BMG was phased out of first line air-to-air use.
In spite of clear disadvantages, it persisted in US use through the 1950s, most notably as the primary armament of the F-86 Sabre.
Controversy
The Barrett M82A1 being fired.
Non-Armor-Penetrating .50 BMG Ball in steel plate, 120 yards.
Like most full powered rifle rounds, especially those firing full metal jacketed bullets, the M82 easily penetrates Type IV body armor and most common building materials. The rifle is used first and foremost as an EOD/anti-materiel rifle, being too large and unwieldy to use effectively in a live firefight.
Some of these weapons have been intercepted and confiscated in interdicting transborder smugglers, but only a handful have actually been involved in shootings since 1992.
Official designations
U.S.