Americanization of the Iraqi Army

At Habbaniya, in the Anbar province I embedded with the Marines who run the Iraqi Army firing range. 

It was a long day of firing the AK-47, a rattling weapon that is inaccurate and clunky.  Like any Marine, I was very happy when a fellow devil dog handed me the well-known M-16 that we all know and love.

Now, the Iraqis are going to have the same weapon.  I spoke to MANY people, both on and off the record, about the adoption of the M-16 as the weapon of choice for the Iraqi Army.  The knee jerk reaction of the average soldier was "bad idea".  The reaction of those behind the scenes was a lot more complex and reasonable. 

The front sight post of the AK-47, one of the most widely-used weapons ever created.

Comments

[Steve]

Great site you have Matt!

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