The Australian government last week announced a sweeping new series of small arms to equip the Australian Defense Force, with SIG Sauer winning big.
As part of the Australian military's $500 million LAND 159 Lethality System Project, the new outlay includes contracts to supply new sniper rifles, pistols, shotguns, personal defense weapons, and fighting knives to the ADF.
"This is a bold step into modern weaponry to quickly improve Australia’s defense preparedness," said Australian Army Major General Andrew Bottrell, head of Land Systems.
Replacing the island continent's long-serving Browning Hi-Power Mk3s-- one of the last Commonwealth countries still using the venerable old 13-shot single-action classic-- will be the SIG Sauer P320 XCarry Pro. It is not the first military contract the XCarry has pulled down, in 2018 Denmark chose the pistol to replace the Swiss-made SIG P210 handguns used in that Scandinavian country for more than 70 years.
Chosen for the ADF's new Defense Weapon System, a close combat PDW-style platform, is the SIG Sauer MCX SBR in .300 AAC Blackout.
In addition to the big SIG win on the rifle and PDW front, with companion accessories, the Australians have elected to add two more systems to their arsenal in smaller numbers and for more select purposes-- the Benelli M3A1 12 gauge shotgun, the Barrett M107A1 .50 caliber BMG anti-material rifle, and the Accuracy International AX-SR precision rifle.
In stabby things news, the Australians have also gone full "now that's a knife" and adopted a double-edged fighting knife made by ZU Bladeworx, a domestically based edged weapon maker.
The Australian and American military have close ties, being allies through World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan. For the past decade, the country has been hosting a rotational force of U.S. Marines in Darwin in Australia's Northern Territory, a mission grown especially important with the increased tension in the region due to an expanding China. It also gives Marines a chance to spend lots of quality time at the country's Jungle Warfare Training Center in Tully, Australia, where just about everything can ruin your day in a serious way.