Heckler & Koch HK G36

History

The Heckler & Koch HK G36 series assault rifles were designed and developed in response to the demanding requirements of the German Army in the 1990s to replace the upcoming 7.62x51mm HK G3 series battle rifles - the standard service rifles of the German army at the time. The 7.62mm shell has Strong kill capability and inherently good range, but also well suited to standard NATO weapons firing 5.56x45mm shells. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Heckler & Koch abandoned the 4.7x33mm HK G11 "shellless" system (funding and interest dried up accordingly). For a while, it was seen that the G11 could be paired with the 5.56x45mm HK G41 as the newest member of the German Army, with the G11 being used for front-line troops and the G41 being reserved for second-line troops.

The move is quite optimistic and will no doubt prove to be a costly short/long term commitment and logistical nightmare. Now that fate had intervened, the German Army was forced to quickly evaluate an entirely new HK design versus that of the Bull Steyr AUG.

The HK design was selected as the winner and entered the Bundeswehr's inventory in 1996 as "G36".

The G36 is a departure for HK considering that the early design of the G36 focused on using the proven roller lock delayed recoil system. However, the Bundeswehr was looking for a lighter and less expensive solution, so a new automatic system was developed based on the tried and tested pneumatic rotary bolt-action bolts, using plastic wherever possible.

The result is a very modern looking assault rifle that has since proven itself reliable, robust and adaptable. Design work on the G36 project was officially commissioned from 1990 to 1995.

The design of the G36 is clearly a Heckler & Koch design, with an all-black finish, steel and plastic construction, and a board-side - barely feature - receiver. The gas cylinder is traditionally mounted on the barrel assembly and wrapped in an angled perforated heat shield/guard with the barrel sticking out a short distance forward. The barrel is breeched with a slotted flash suppressor that accepts rifle grenades as usual, taking full advantage of the gas-powered firing action. The receiver contains the main internal working parts, while the weapon has a traditional non-finger grooved pistol grip with an attached trigger guard that includes a curved trigger assembly.

The weapon loads from a curved polymer magazine into a chute mounted in front of the trigger, with the trigger/lock just behind the chute. The weapon fires 5.56x45mm cartridges from HK's standard 30-round curved detachable magazine, although the 100-round Beta C-Mag double drum magazine replaces the heavy fire/suppression role (making the MG36 Light "Support Weapon" a heavy barrel and a bipod).

It should be noted that the G36 was not designed to be compatible with NATO's STANAG magazine, as the HK polymer magazine is completely proprietary, which in some cases limits its foreign appeal. The HK-style fire selector switch is mounted on either side of the pistol grip (for ambidextrous) and within the reach of the shooter's thumb for quick response. Fire modes include safe mode, semi-automatic (single-shot) and fully automatic modes to suit the situation. Inventory has been gutted to save weight and cost, and designed as it can be folded on the right side of the receiver without compromising launch functionality - useful for airborne, special forces and vehicle units who prefer a more compact size . The G36 is equipped with a sight assembly that includes a standard triple optical sight for long-range fire, and an integrated collimating reflex sight for quick-reaction fire within 120 yards. A complete carrying handle was developed from this assembly, extending from the top of the receiver to its front end.

The charging handle sits in the opening of the carrying handle and is accessible with either hand - another dexterous quality.

The G36 has since been modernized for the German Army under the codename "G36A2". This form factor introduces a quick detachable collimating sight attached to the Picatinny accessory rail. The handguard is redesigned to be aluminum with four attachment points, while the stock is more compact.

HK introduced "G36E" for export (hence the "E" in the name) after the introduction of the basic attack model G36. However, this name was later replaced by "G36V" (V = "Variant").

The G36E/V markings are basically the same as the G36 military assault rifle used by the Bundeswehr, except for the NATO standard bayonet mount and a more limited 1.5x optical sight, and no collimating reflex sight.

The "MG36" is a light machine gun modification of the base G36 system, fired from a 100-round Beta C-Mag double-drum magazine. For the continuous fire action required for this weapon, a heavy barrel is used to counteract the effects of overheating (deformation or cracking of the barrel assembly).

The MG36 was of course exported as "MG36E", although both were discontinued.

It would make sense to further develop the G36 long gun into a short carbine of the G36K (K = "short"). This compact weapon retains key qualities of its assault rifle counterparts, but with a shorter barrel and front end assembly, reducing overall length. However, the resulting shorter barrel lost the ability to fire rifle grenades, although this was offset by the installation of a 40x46mm HK AG36 bottom grenade launcher. An accessory rail runs along the bottom of the forearm, allowing the attachment of various tactical accessories (foregrip, laser sight, flashlight, etc.). Eventually, two versions of the G36K were produced, differing in that one had no carrying handle above the receiver (instead, a sight with rail attachment was installed).

The carbine variant exists as the export-oriented G36KV (KV = "short variant").

The evolution of the compact G36K gave rise to the G36C (C = "Compact"), which had a shorter barrel and front end design while eliminating the carry handle above the receiver. A Picatinny rail was added for attaching accessories along the top of the receiver (and the sides and bottom of the handguard), and iron sights were used to compensate for the lack of an integrated sight.

Since its introduction, the G36 has proven popular worldwide, with uses beyond military customers including special forces, police and security forces. In addition to Germany, G36 is actively operated by Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Croatia, Czech Republic, Egypt, Finland, Georgia, Greece, Hong Kong, Iceland, Indonesia, Italy, Jordan, South Korea, Kosovo, Latvia and Lebanon, Libya, Lithuania , Malaysia, Mexico, Montenegro, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom and United States.

Many reports claim that the HK G36 is a highly regarded automatic weapon system.

Specification

Roles

Dimensions

Performance

Changes