Handgun maker Glock, Inc., is protesting the Army’s decision to purchase modified Sig Sauer P320s as service handguns.
Glock lodged an official complaint with the Government Accountability Office (GAO) protesting the Sig Sauer contract worth a maximum of $580 million, which will delay testing of the new service weapon.
The Army announced Sig Sauer won the XM17 Modular Handgun System contract Jan. 19, after a three-year search for a sidearm to replace the Beretta M9, which has been the service standard for 30 years. (RELATED: Army Picks Sig Sauer To Replace Handgun After 3-Year Search)
Glock’s protest of the contract award doesn’t include details about the nature of the complaint, first reported by Army Times. Sig Sauer beat out other gun makers, thought to include Glock as well as Smith & Wesson and perhaps FN Herstal, to design the modified P320 to Army specifications, and deliver hardware and ammunition. So far, Glock is the only company to file a complaint.
Glock holds several government contracts to supply handguns to the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, as well as the Army Rangers, but the main Army handgun contract is a far bigger deal.
The GAO has until June 5 to decide if Glock’s complaint is valid, and the process will likely slow down testing of the P320, adding further delays to a program exemplifies everything wrong with government contracting to some. (RELATED: Army Spent $350M Trying To Figure Out Which Pistol To Use. Now Congress Wants Mattis To Intervene)
TacticalGear’s side-by-side comparison of the Sig P320 and the Beretta M9 it replaces indicates what the lightweight, longer-barreled Sig offers over the weapon it will likely replace.
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