The U.S. Army has announced plans to procure more than 160,000 carbines, according to a notice posted by the Army Contracting Command.

A notice posted by the Army Contracting Command-Redstone on 22 March says that the service is to award arms maker company to procure approximately 167,195 M4 and M4A1 carbines.

The M4/M4A1 carbines provide the U.S. Department of Defense with compact, lightweight weapons that fire NATO 5.56mm ammunition from a 30-round magazine, mount the latest generation of fire control accessories and enablers, and provide increased protection and firepower in close quarters.

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The period of performance of the contract(s) will be for five (5) one-year ordering periods to cover FY20-FY24 Army and Department of Defense (DoD) M4/M4A1 Carbine requirements, said in a statement.

For reference, the M4 carbine is a shorter and lighter variant of the M16A2 assault rifle. The M4 is a 5.56×45mm NATO, air-cooled, direct impingement gas-operated, magazine-fed carbine.

The M4 carbine is extensively used by the United States Armed Forces and is largely replacing the M16 rifle in U.S. Army and the U.S. Marine Corps combat units as the primary infantry weapon and service rifle.

The weapon delivers superior performance and accuracy for the joint coalition forces conducting the most challenging combat missions. The performance of M4 has been proven across the world in military operations, including combat actions in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The US Army has acquired a total of 500,000 M4 carbines since the M4 series was introduced in 1993. The M4 was also exported to the US allied forces and Nato nations as part of foreign military sales (FMS) packages.