What Guns Do The US Military Soldiers Use?

We know that an internet search likely brought you to this blog post so we’re going to take a moment to clarify something. When it comes to the U.S. military, the word “gun” is considered a large weapon on a ship that hurls artillery onto targets miles away. Guns can also be the weapons that are on aircraft like the nose gun on an A-10 aircraft. A gun is not something an individual carries, at least not in the military. Well, that statement isn't entirely accurate, as you will find out if you read on.

In the military, a personal weapon is referred to as a firearm, sidearm, weapon, or a rifle. So, while we know that not everyone understands that, we wanted to let you know that this article will be about the more popular weapons carried by the majority of military personnel.

This list will not include every single weapon in the American arsenal, but it will mostly focus on the weapons carried by a majority of personnel. So, if you’re asking what guns does the military use, your answers are below in no particular order. 

Sig Sauer M17 & M18
What guns does the military use? If we’re talking about handguns, well, the answer is a Sig. These handguns can chamber 9mm, .357 SIG, and .40 Smith and Wesson ammunition. They are military versions of the Sig Sauer P320 and they are the standard service pistol of the U.S. military. This weapon replaced the Beretta M9 which had been the standard service pistol since 1985.

Mossberg 590A1
This shotgun uses 12-gauge ammunition and this weapon is a variation of Mossberg’s 500 series civilian shotguns. This is the standard issue pump shotgun for a majority of the U.S. military. The rifle is designed for close quarters combat and it can also carry breaching rounds as well as non-lethal crowd control if loaded with rubber slugs or beanbags. What guns does the military use for things like riot control? The likely answer is the Mossberg.

MK13
This rifle is built for snipers and uses a .300 Winchester magazine ammunition. It is a bolt action sniper rifle with a maximum effective range of 1,300 meters and is issued to Marine snipers with a suppressor to reduce muzzle flash and the acoustic signature when shot. Variations of the MK13 are also used by the Navy SEALs. What guns does the military use for snipers? The MK13 is the answer.

M4/M4A1 Carbine
This is likely the most well-known weapon in the U.S. military. This assault rifle uses 5.56 x 45mm ammunition and is fully automatic. The rifle is the standard issue firearm for many in the U.S. military. Versions of the M4 were carried by the majority of U.S. Army and Marine troops in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Essentially, the weapon is a shorter and lighter variant of the M-16, and the M4A1 is equipped with a rail system for attachments, a collapsible stock, and backup iron sights. The weapon can be modified to include a grenade launcher and a shotgun attachment. The rifle can fire with a maximum effective range of more than 650 yards and it can fire up to 950 rounds per minute.

What guns does the military use in the global war on terrorism? The M4 is the tool of the trade.

M249 SAW (Squad Automatic Weapon)
This light machine gun, also known as the “Saw,” uses 5.56 x 45mm ammunition and weighs about 18 pounds. Depending on the gunner, it has a maximum range of 3,600 meters. The weapon was first developed in the 1970s and it was first used in combat in the 1991 Gulf War and again in Iraq in the 2000s.

Special operations forces use modified versions of the SAW (the Mk 46 and Mk 48) that have a longer effective range and higher rate of fire. What guns does the military use in a squad? The SAW.

M240
This medium machine gun uses 7.62mm x 51mm ammunition and it is a general-purpose machine gun adopted by the Army in 1977. It is widely used throughout the U.S. military, including by the weapons platoon of every rifle company of the Marine Corps.

The M240 is usually mounted on a tripod on vehicles, helicopters, and boats. It has a reputation for being reliable even though it is not a state-of-the-art weapon. It has a maximum range of 3,725 meters and a fire rate of 650 rounds per minute.

M2
This heavy machine gun is a favorite of military personnel who use her. It uses .50 BMG ammunition and the weapon is used in all branches of the U.S. military. It is the primary heavy machine gun for NATO countries and it has been used in the U.S. military for decades. 

It was developed during World War I, and it was widely used during World War II and in America’s subsequent wars since. The weapon is effective against infantry and lightly armored vehicles, helicopters, and boats. Often mounted to a vehicle or helicopter, the M2 can also be used with a tripod.

What guns does the military use on aircraft, vehicles and boats? The Ma Deuce (M2).

M16A4
The M16 was one of the most disliked weapons to be used by the U.S. military.  The assault rifle uses 5.56 x 45mm ammunition and it is the updated version of the M16 that was widely used by U.S. troops in the Vietnam War and during the Cold War.

The M16 was the standard service rifle of the Marine Corps until it was replaced by the M4 in 2015. There reasons to replace the M16 were many, but those reasons include the fact that the M16’s barrel is long and made it heavier and difficult to use in confined urban operations. The M4 carbine addressed those issues since it is lighter and shorter.

In addition, the M16 was known to jam, rusted easily and it could be difficult to clean and maintain. Nonetheless, the M16A4 remains in limited use by some support and non-infantry U.S. military units. A grenade launcher can also be attached to the rifle for added capability.

Conclusion
As you read you might have noticed that we tried to answer the question, what guns does the military use? However, it is likely we could have confused you even more because several of the weapons on our list are actually called “guns” as in, machine guns.

The truth is, weapons like the M2 and M240 are guns because they can be mounted onto vehicles and such, but given their popularity and service in the U.S. military we would be remiss by not including those weapons in our roundup blog post of what guns does the military use?