Dear CPT Rawles:
I’d like to bring your attention to a paper prepared at Ft. Leavenworth, titled, “Increasing Small Arms Lethality in Afghanistan: Taking Back the Infantry Half-Kilometer.”
Essentially, the old M14 rifle has not yet met its demise, even though Jimmy Carter did order the destruction of 700,000 M14 Rifles.
As you have known for years, the 5.56 NATO cartridge is not the best cartridge for a Main Battle Rifle. You have written extensively regarding this issue in your books.
For some time now, I have witnessed a sizable number of M14 Rifles, in various configurations, from the original wood stocked version, to the new Enhanced Battle Rifle, EBR-14, all “tricked out” with modern optics and night vision equipment capability.
As stocks are low, due to the ill-conceived destruction of so many M14s in the 1970s and the fact that the US sold the tooling and equipment for manufacturing this weapon, years ago to [the civilian company] Springfield Armory, in Geneseo, Illinois is the prime contractor for the EBR-14 platform.
Bottom Line Up Front (BLUF): We may see the Army Leadership finally realize that the old 7.62 NATO cartridge is hard to beat at not only close-in combat, but also at extended ranges as are common in Afghanistan.
There are many of us in the military community who believe that the M14, in whatever configuration is sorely needed by the soldier today and most likely in the future as well.
Best Regards, – M.B. LTC, US Army (Retired)