FN P90: Versatile Optics by Al Paulson

FN P90: Versatile Optics

by Al Paulson

The optical sight is made from a solid piece of glass so there's no risk of nitrogen leaking and subsequent fogging in the field. It has two complementary reticle patterns for differing lighting conditions. A day reticle, which is projected into the sight from the front, features a circular reticle which provides very rapid target acquisition throughout the effective range of the weapon. The reticle has several markings which complement each other. A very large circular reticle provides fast target acquisition at panic-close range, while a much smaller circle is optimized for target acquisition at 100 meters but works very well at closer ranges. A tiny dot inside the smallest circle can be used for maximum finesse; this dot lies 3.7 inches (94 mm) above the center of the bore. A low-light reticle, which is illuminated by a replaceable tritium cell, is projected into the optical sight from the rear. It is normally invisible in bright daylight conditions unless the sight is shaded by the brim of a large hat. A horizontal reticle runs across the center of the field from one side to the other, and a vertical reticle runs from the bottom of the field to the small circle. These lines form three legs of a traditional crosshair reticle, which can be quite useful inside dark buildings or during low-light operations outside. In those relatively rare lighting conditions where both the day and night reticles are visible, the sight picture is still uncluttered enough to provide rapid target acquisition.

first published in the November 1998 edition of Guns and Weapons for Law Enforcement

On The Edge - With the New FN P90 5.7x28mm by Al Paulson

On The Edge

With the New FN P90 5.7x28mm
by Al Paulson

Military organizations have struggled for generations with two frequently overlapping problems: (1) how to arm troops whose primary mission is something other than the use of small arms; and (2) how to arm troops who need compact firepower for conducting special operations. A remarkable array of pistols, submachind guns and carbines have been fielded over the years in an, attempt to give people such as vehicle drivers, operators of crew-served weapons, support personnel and special operators a weapon with the optimum mix of compact size, hit probability, sustained firepower and terminal ballistics. Recent decades have also seen a similar quest in law enforcement to provide superior sidearms and auxiliary weapons for officers facing a changing tactical environment. The result is that sidearms, submachine guns and carbines developed for the aforementioned special military needs have become widely used tools within law enforcement. One of the most provocative attempts to solve the common requirements of both the military and law enforcement is the select-fire P90 Personal Defense Weapon designed and manufactured by Fabrique National Herstal SA of Belgium. Russian PSM It's interesting that one aspect of the changing tactical environment faced by both the military and law enforcement is that an armed opponent may be wearing body armor. In the late 1970s, the former Soviet Union was the first major power to develop a new class of pistol cartridge, the 5.45x18mm PMT, which was designed to penetrate standard body armor with ease, with the ancillary benefits of improving hit probability and minimizing recoil. Developed by Aleksandr Bochkin in 1979, the bottle-necked cartridge appears to be a scaled-down version of the 5.45x39mm rifle round adopted by the Soviets in 1974 for the AK-74 assault rifle. The Soviets developed a new pistol for the new 5.45x18mm round called the Pistolet Samozaryadniy Malogabaritniy, the "Miniature Semiautomatic Pistol" or PSM for short. Designed by Tikkon Lashnev, Anatoliy Simarin and Lev Kulikov, the PSM superficially resembles a Walther PP pistol and will penetrate up to 55 layers of kevlar at realistic engagement distances. With a steel core projectile weighing 2.4-2.6 grams (37-41 grains, which is less than half the weight of the 9x18mm Makarov round it replaced), a muzzle velocity of 315 mps (1,033 fps) and a powder charge of 0.15 gram (2.3 grains), the 5.45x18mm PMT cartridge also provides a relatively flat trajectory and modest recoil. These qualities improve hit probability when troops of average skill use the PSM as a defensive weapon. NATO Request Some NATO planners subsequently became concerned about the issue of body armor on the battlefield and decided that the 9x19mm cartridge was now obsolete, since it wouldn't penetrate the body armor they imagined would become standard equipment for infantry troops. These NATO planners informally approached the small-arms industry about the possibility of developing a new class of cartridge to replace the 9x19mm NATO round for personal defense. Only two companies were willing to invest the substantial R&D funds on such a speculative venture; Fabrique Nationale of Belgium and Giat of France began the development of new bottle-neck cartridges in the mid-1980s. Gun/Cartridge Details The two companies took somewhat different approaches. Giat concentrated on developing a new cartridge resembling a .30 Luger round necked down to .22 caliber, which they called the 5.7x22mm. Fabrique Nationale not only developed a larger round, the 5.7x28mm, but FN also developed a series of innovative weapons around the new cartridge: a select-fire bullpup weapon with a 50-round horizontal magazine on top of the receiver and an extremely accurate, lightweight (19 ounce), high capacity (20 round) pistol called the Five-Seven. FN publicly announced they were developing a personal defense weapon in 1989 which was scheduled for production 1990. Ironically, however, the P90 was not named for the year of its initial production, but rather for FN's "Project 9.0" which spawned it. When Giat became the parent company of Fabrique Nationale, Giat abandoned the 5.7x22mm project in favor of FN's more advanced project for several reasons. (1) FN's 5.7x28mm cartridge met all of the NATO requirements. And (2) Giat didn't have a weapon designed for its cartridge, but FN had already developed the P90 for its new cartridge. The first public demonstration of the Five-seveN pistol subsequently took place in 1995, and an improved variant went into production in May 1998. The external ballistics provided by FN's 5.7x28mm cartridge are vastly superior to the performance provided by the Russian 5.45x18mm PMT cartridge. As of this writing, the P90 has been adopted by more than a dozen countries in limited numbers. With an overall length of just 19.7 inches (.50.0 cm), the P90 is considerably shorter than the 9x19mm H&K MP5 submachine gun or the 5.56x45mm Colt M4 carbine. The P90 weighs 5.9 pounds (2.5 kg) with an empty magazine and 6.6 pounds (3.0 kg) with a fully loaded 50-round magazine, which is similar to the weight of an MP5 with a 30-round magazine. The P90 is just 8.25 inches (21.0 cm) high with a magazine fitted to the weapon. The P90 features an optical reflex sight (with no magnification), and a three-position rotary selector beneath the trigger with positions marked "S" for Safe, "1" for semiautomatic and "A" for Automatic. When set on A, the selector provides a two-stage trigger similar to the Steyr AUG. Pull the trigger back a little for semiautomatic fire and pull the trigger fully to the rear for full-auto fire. A cyclic rate of 900 rpm enables the operator to obtain two- or three-shot bursts. Shot dispersion remains remarkably tight, thanks in part to the fact that the 5.7x28mm cartridge has about one-third of the recoil impulse produced by the 5.56x45mm round used in the M16 family of weapons. Apparent recoil and shot dispersion are also mitigated by twin operating (recoil) springs and guide rods which, like the trigger, are reminiscent of the Steyr AUG. Sal Fanelli of FN Manufacturing Inc. puts on a particularly impressive demonstration, where he shoots a 50-round burst of tracers into the center of mass in a Milpark target at 50 meters (55 yards). His tightest 50-round burst to date measured 9.5 inches (24 cm). Three rounds are available for the P90 at this time. The standard ball round, called the SS190, features an overall length of 1.6 inches (40.5 mm), a projectile weight of 31.0 grains (2.02 grams) and a muzzle velocity of 2,345 fps (715 mps). The SS190 projectile features steel core in front of an aluminum core toward the base. The bullet penetrates about 10 inches (26 cm) of 10 percent ballistic gelatin, according to testing conducted at the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Academy in September 1997. The SS190 round will also penetrate 48 layers of Kevlar, the typical "Flak jacket" (including CRISAT protection, which is a combination of titanium and Kevlar) worn by infantry to protect them from shrapnel produced by exploding devices, or a standard PASGT (U.S. Kevlar) helmet at 150 meters (164 yards), which is the effective range of the P90 Personal Defense Weapon. The weapon will still defeat Level 3 body armor at 200 meters (219 yards). The "maximum effective range" using the NATO definition (the maximum range where a weapon's projectile will still deliver 85 joules on target) is 400 meters (437 yards). Thus, according to NATO standards, the P90 is theoretically able to deliver a lethal wound on a protected target at 200m and an unprotected target at 400m if the round hits a vital area. Personally, I would not be enthusiastic about engaging targets beyond 150m with the standard SS190 round. The subsonic SB193 round used for this testing features a lead core boattail bullet with a projectile weight of 55.0 grains (3.58 grams) and a muzzle velocity of 998 fps (304 mps) as measured by a P.A.C.T MKIV timer/chronograph with MKV skyscreens set 24.0 inches apart and the start screen 8.0 feet from the muzzle (P.A.C.T, Dept. GW/LE, P.O. Box 531525, Grand Prairie, TX 75053; 214-641-0049). A new subsonic round featuring a 77-grain (5.0 gram) projectile moving at the same velocity as the older subsonic round is about to go into production, but no further details were available at press time. A tracer round designated the L191 is also available. The SS190 round weighs about half as much as a 9x19mm or 5.56x45mm round, so carrying a given amount of extra ammunition would be less burdensome for personnel already concerned with impedimenta. Conversely, special operators could carry twice as much ammunition for the same weight. P90 Operation Despite the fact that the P90 Personal Defense Weapon fires a bottle-necked cartridge, which looks something like a downsized .22 Hornet, the weapon fires using an unusual method of operation that might be described as a cross between the short recoil and simple Bergmann-Bayard straight blowback principles. Upon firing, the 10.35-inch (26.3 cm) barrel and bolt recoil rearward for about 0.030 of an inch (0.76 mm), enabling the pressure in the barrel to drop to a safe level. When the barrel (which features a 1 in 9 inch rate of twist) stops its rearward travel, the bolt continues rearward in straight blowback fashion. FN Herstal SA seems to have developed a unique flavor of delayed blowback operation. Unlike the typical submachine gun, however, the P90 fires from the closed bolt to maximize semiautomatic accuracy. Recoil is brisk but very smooth, and cycling is reliable thanks in part to an anti-bounce weight in the bolt, which is operated by one of the main operating (recoil) springs. Polymers are extensively used throughout the P90 to reduce both the weight and the cost of the weapon. The human engineering of the weapon is outstanding and ambidextrous. A variety of features enhance the ambidextrous qualities of the P90. Both sides of the weapon feature a charging handle, auxiliary fixed sights and a magazine release. The manual selector below the trigger can be operated from either side of the trigger. The stock and grips are symmetrical. And the weapon ejects downward, so lefties don't need to worry about hot brass in the face. One of the most interesting features of the P90, which helps make the weapon so compact, is the polycarbonate 50-round magazine that locks in place between the charging handles and the optical sight. The magazine features a follower with rollers and a constant-force spring that make loading a 50-round magazine easy instead of the usual thumb-busting exercise in frustration. But the most noteworthy aspect of the magazine design is that loading one cartridge forces the rounds under it to eventually rotate 90 degrees to the right so they can slide into a double stack of cartridges in the magazine body. This rotation occurs in stepwise fashion. The first round in the magazine sits in the magazine's feed lips at the 0 degree position (where it will be aligned with the chamber when the magazine is fitted to the weapon). Inserting a second cartridge forces the cartridge under it to rotate to 82 or 83 degrees from the bore angle. Adding another cartridge to the magazine pushes the original round to the 87 degree position. Adding a fourth cartridge forces the original Cartridge to the 90 degree position in the main body of the magazine. Thus, the cartridges go through a four-step process to become fully aligned in a double stack within the magazine. Versatile Optics The optical sight is made from a solid piece of glass so there's no risk of nitrogen leaking and subsequent fogging in the field. It has two complementary reticle patterns for differing lighting conditions. A day reticle, which is projected into the sight from the front, features a circular reticle which I particularly like since it provides very rapid target acquisition throughout the effective range of the weapon. The reticle has several markings which complement each other. A very large circular reticle provides fast target acquisition at panic-close range, while a much smaller circle is optimized for target acquisition at 100 meters but works very well at closer ranges. A tiny dot inside the smallest circle can be used for maximum finesse; this dot lies 3.7 inches (94 mm) above the center of the bore. A low-light reticle, which is illuminated by a replaceable tritium cell, is projected into the optical sight from the rear. It is normally invisible in bright daylight conditions unless the sight is shaded by the brim of a large hat. A horizontal reticle runs across the center of the field from one side to the other, and a vertical reticle runs from the bottom of the field to the small circle. These lines form three legs of a traditional crosshair reticle, which can be quite useful inside dark buildings or during low-light operations outside. In those relatively rare lighting conditions where both the day and night reticles are visible, the sight picture is still uncluttered enough to provide rapid target acquisition. This is a very well-engineered optical sight. I wish it were available for the 5.56x45mm M4A1 carbine as well. Controls/Safeties The manual selector is positive and quiet, but not as instinctive or fast as the selector on an MP5 submachine gun or M16-type weapon. Other safety features include a safety sear that holds the hammer until the bolt (which FN calls the breech block assembly) has fully closed behind the chamber, and an inertial safety that locks the sear if the weapon is dropped (solving a problem that caused substantial casualties during World War II). Unlike most submachine guns, the P90 is a very safe weapon to handle in the rough and tumble real world. The P90 also has a very high resistance to cook-offs following prolonged full-auto fire. Most end-users fielding this weapon carry a maximum ammunition load of 400 rounds, and the P90 demonstrated no cook-off problems when 400 rounds were dumped as rapidly as possible downrange. A final curiosity is that the design and materials of the P90 also make the weapon very easy to clean, a process that only takes about four minutes. This appeals to military SpecOps personnel, who tend to have a special affection for weapons that require a minimum of maintenance and, therefore, don't cut into their "Miller Time." In the next issue we'll conduct a detailed test and evaluation of the P90's performance. We'll also discuss the dramatic operational (i.e., combat) debut of the P90 and implications of that experience for the law-enforcement community. FN will be marketing the P90 and silencer to both military and law enforcement through their subsidiary FN Manufacturing, Inc. located in Columbia, SC. Products are expected to be available in quantity in late 1998 or early 1999...

first published in the November 1998 edition of Guns and Weapons for Law Enforcement

Trends in Small Arms and Light Weapons Development: Non-Proliferation and Arms Control Dimensions

Adobe Acrobat document


Trends in Small Arms and
Light Weapons Development:
Non-Proliferation and Arms
Control Dimensions
Major (Ret’d) David DeClerq
International Security Research and Outreach Program
Non-Proliferation, Arms Control and Disarmament Division
October 1999
...

FN P90 Sound Pressure Level Comparisons

SP90 Sound Suppressor From Gemtech

by Al Paulson

oringally published in the August 1998 edition of Small Arms Review

The P90 Personal Defense Weapon was originally designed by Fabrique National Herstal SA of Belgium as a personal defense weapon for troops whose primary mission is something other than the use of small arms. Thus, the P90 is intended for people such as vehicle drivers, operators of crew-served weapons, support personnel and other troops who are often issued sidearms or submachine guns. The goal was a select-fire weapon of ultra-compact design that would provide superior hit probability to the aforementioned weapons out to greater distances thanks to the new compact 5.7x28mm round. These characteristics, combined with the availability of SB193 subsonic, L191 tracer and SS190 supersonic ammunition for the P90, provide a very interesting package for Special Operations as well as for law-enforcement, counter-terrorist, security and executive-protection applications. Many of these additional missions would depend upon - or be enhanced by - the availability of a compact sound suppressor. That suppressor would have to be capable of sustaining substantial full-auto fire with standard duty ammunition (an impossible dream until very recently), while providing enough suppression with subsonic rounds to hide the fact that a shot has been fired when the tactical situation demanded stealth. FN Herstal SA asked Gemtech to develop a military quality suppressor for the P90 that would be compact, tolerate full-auto fire, and incorporate a snap-on quick mount which would retain the FN muzzle brake or at least incorporate that design into a replacement fixture. Gemtech's design team of Dr. Phil Dater, Greg Latka, and Jim Ryan devoted a great deal of time and energy into the project over the course of a year. Their impressive M4-96D suppressor for the M4A1 carbine - which Gemtech initially developed for the Naval Surface Warfare Center - was already in production, and this became the inspiration for the new SP90 suppressor. The process of adapting the M4-96D technology was more complex than one might guess. Some qualities of the new system made the design process easier, while others would provide challenges. A plus for the designers was that the Five-seveN (5.7x28mm) cartridge produces a substantially smaller volume of combustion gases than the 5.56x45mm round. Less gas means that the suppressor has less work to do, so the Gemtech team was able to make the SP90 shorter, smaller in diameter and substantially lighter than previous designs. Most of Gemtech's design effort focused on engineering a revolutionary baffle stack that would not increase the P90's cyclic rate beyond acceptable limits. This challenge, which one would expect from any compact blowback weapon, appears because a suppressor increases back pressure, which increases the cyclic rate of the weapon. At least theoretically, a suppressor could increase the back pressure of any compact blowback weapon to the point that the magazine spring does not have enough time to present the next round for the bolt as it cycles forward. Thus a design goal for any compact weapon is to tune the design of a suppressor so that bolt speed (i.e., cyclic rate) of the suppressed weapon falls within the optimum range for both the weapon itself and its magazine. Thus the contradictory challenges are to minimize back pressure for optimum reliability while creating maxirnum turbulence inside the suppressor to optimize the amount of sound reduction. In order to meet these challenges, Gemtech developed a baffle stack in which no two baffles are the same design. Another design challenge was to develop a robust and foolproof quick mount for the SP90 suppressor. Since it proved impractical to design a suppressor mount that would directly latch onto the outstanding FN muzzle brake, the Gemtech team decided to marry their Bi-Lock snap-on quick mount with the FN muzzle brake. SP90 Design Gemtech's remarkable spring-loaded Bi-Lock mounting system provides excellent alignment with the P90 barrel and a robust means of attaching the SP90 suppressor that never loosens during firing (unlike screw-on suppressors using a single-point mounting system, which tend to loosen when subjected to semiautomatic or full-auto firing, unless permanently attached with ROCKSETT sealant or silver solder). The name of this patented Bi-Lock mounting system comes from the two alignment lugs on the muzzle brake, which engage a spring-loaded collet in the back of the suppressor. The moving parts are sealed to minimize fouling from carbon and powder residue. To install the Gemtech SP90 suppressor on a barrel fitted with a Bi-Lock muzzle brake, simply align the suppressor with the brake, push down and rotate the can 90 degrees clockwise (as seen from the front) until the device can no longer be rotated, and allow the spring pressure to lock the suppressor firmly against the Bi-Lock's twin lugs. Each lug has a different size, so there is only one way to install thesuppressor. This feature minimizes the shift in the point of impact whenever the suppressor is mounted and keeps the shift repeatable (i.e., predictable). Since stops in the mount prevent rotating the suppressor past the locking recesses in the interface piston that mate with the compensator lugs, the mounting procedure is both positive and very fast. Furthermore, the amount of pressure generated by the intemal spring during mounting is considerably less than some quick mounts I've used on other weapons, making the installation process easier and faster, without sacrificing security. When removing the suppressor soon after firing, be aware that the silencer could be dangerously hot. Use a heavy glove, hat or other protection to avoid burns. To dismount the Gemtech SP90, push it backward about 0.1 inch (3 mm) until the suppressor can be rotated counterclockwise (as seen from the front). Rotate the can 90 degrees and pull the suppressor clear of the flash hider. The Bi-Lock mount permits installing or removing a sound suppressor in just 1.5-3 seconds. It is safe to say that the Bi-Lock mount is an impressive engineering achievement. The Gemtech SP90 suppressor is constructed from 304 stainless steel tubing, 303 stainless steel barstock, hardened 440C stainless steel for the interface piston, and Inconel for the blast baffle at the rear of the baffle stack. Inconel is particularly resistant to the heat and erosive effects of hot combustion gases, especially when the suppressor is subjected to fullauto fire. The Bi-Lock compensator is machined from 4140 steel which is then hardened. The SP90 is 7.25 inches (18.4 cm) long and 1.37 inches (3.5 cm) in diameter, and the suppressor weighs 19.4 ounces (550 grams). All suppressor components are coated in a matte black oxide, and the interface piston receives an additional coating of Sandstrom Products 9A Dry Film Lubricant to enhance corrosion resistance, From a subjective point of view, the relatively modest length and weight of the SP90 gives the suppressor excellent handling characteristics when mounted on the FN P90. Whether engaging targets at arm's length or at 100 yards (91 meters), target acquisition was very rapid and hit probability was outstanding. The sound signatures produced by the suppressed P90 were quite impressive. When using the supersonic SS190 ammunition, the surprisingly mild cough of the suppressor was followed by bullet flight noise, which was a muted and rather eerie ripping sound that ended with the distinctive thud of bullet impact. When using subsonic SB193 subsonic ammunition, the muzzle signature seemed dramatically quieter than an H&K MP5 SD, bullet flight noise was a barely perceptible hiss, and the noise of bullet impact was easily the dominant sound. While this is a very interesting design that produces a satisfying sound signature when fired with either supersonic or subsonic fodder, there is no substitute for rigorously evaluating the performance of a suppressor with repeatable and standardized scientific methodology. To this end, I tested the performance of the Gemtech SP90 suppressor using the following procedures. Performance Suppressor performance was determined by measuring sound signatures using the equipment and procedures specified at the end of Chapter 5 in the book Silencer History and Performance ($55 postpaid, Wideworld, Dept. SAR, P.O. Box 1827, Conway, AR 72033). The microphone was placed 1.00 meter to the left of the suppressor or muzzle according to U.S. Army testing procedures specified in MIL-STD-1474C. The ambient temperature during the testing was 73°F (23°C), and the speed of sound was 1,132 fps (345 mps). Velocities were measured in feet per second using a P.A.C.T. MKIV timer/chronograph with MKV skyscreens set 24.0 inches apart and the start screen 8.0 feet from the muzzle (P.A.C.T., Dept. SAR, P.O. Box 531525, Grand Prairie, TX 75053, 214-641-0049). Atleast 10 rounds were fired to obtain an average sound signature or muzzle velocity. Two kinds of 5.7x28mm ammunition were used for the study. The supersonic SS190 round has steel core in front of an aluminum core toward the base, a projectile weight of 31.0 grains (2.02 grams), and a nominal published velocity of 2,345 fps (715 mps). The subsonic SB193 round is a lead core boat tail with a length of 0.753 inches (19.1 mm) and a projectile weight of 55.0 grains (3.58 grams) in front of 2.0 grains (0. 13 gram) of ball powder. The SB193 round is still under development at the time of this writing, and an improved variant of the subsonic round is scheduled for field trials in the spring of 1998. Therefore, any data reported here on the subsonic round must be regarded as provisional. The sound signatures, which are more properly called sound pressure levels (SPLs), appear in Table I along with some comparative data for reference. Since the FN P90 might compete against both 5.56x45mm and 9x19mm weapons for law-enforcement applications, data on both categories of weapons are included. Unsuppressed and suppressed versions of the M4A1 were tested at 50°F (10°C). The MP5 and MP5 SD were tested at 71°F (22°C). Unsuppressed and integrally suppressed .22 rimfire rifles were tested at 83°F (28°C) to provide a baseline for sound signatures significantly less than normally encountered in the tactical environment. The net sound reductions appear in Table II. Figures 1-3 compare aspects of the extemal ballistics (velocity, trajectory and bullet drop) produced by the SS190 FMJ round fired from a P90, a Winchester USA 9x 19mm FMJ round with a 115 grain (7.48 gram) FMJ projectile fired from an H&K MP5 submachine gun, and an M855 5.56x45mm round with 62 grain (4.03 gram) projectile fired from an M4A1 carbine. The P90 produces a projectile velocity that falls in between the M4A1 and MP5 and provides performance reminiscent of (but a bit less than) the venerable old .22 Hornet, which was used in several survival weapons once issued to the U.S. Air Force. Thanks to the fairly brisk muzzle velocity and the P90's high sights, Figure 2 shows that the P90's trajectory is remarkably similar to the M4A1 out to the P90's effective range of 150 meters (137 yards). Clearly, an operator of average skill will obtain much better hit probability or shot placement with the P90 than with the MP5 simply because of the flatter trajectory provided by the SS190 round. Mounting a suppressor on the P90 does have an effect on projectile velocity. The SS190 round produced a muzzle velocity of 2,339 fps (713 mps) when fired without the suppressor mounted on the P90 and 2,262 fps (689 mps) when suppressed. The SB193 subsonic round produced a muzzle velocity of 998 fps (304 mps) without a suppressor and 951 fps (290 fps) when the suppressor is mounted. Velocities decrease slightly when the suppressor is fitted to the weapon since the increased back pressure causes the blowback bolt to begin extraction sooner after ignition than the unsuppressed weapon. As Figure 4 shows when comparing bullet trajectories of suppressed versus unsuppressed P90s, this slightly reduced velocity when the suppressor is mounted has almost no effect on practical external ballistics when using the standard SS190 supersonic round, and should have even less effect with the subsonic round since there is sig-nificantly less velocity change in suppressed versus unsuppressed mode. A discussion of terminal ballistics is beyond the scope of this study. From an operator's point of view, however, there are a number of conclusions to be drawn about the P90 Personal Defense Weapon and the Gemtech P90 suppressor designed for the weapon. Conclusions The P90 is compact, handy in close quarters, and yet provides rapid target acquisition and outstanding hit probability out to 150 meters. When fitted with the Gemtech P90 suppressor and using supersonic ammunition, the weapon is significantly quieter than a suppressed M4A1 carbine. This has direct implications regarding command and control in confined spaces, as well as both short-term and long-term hearing loss experienced by personnel operating in limited spaces. When using subsonic ammunition, the suppressed P90 is dramatically quieter than an H&K MP5SD and is even quieter than some integrally suppressed .22 rimfire rifles, making a very stealthy weapon. The Gemtech suppressor will tolerate an unprecedented amount of full-auto fire for an intermediate cartridge, mounts or dismounts in the time required for a magazine change, and will not loosen during prolonged firing. Assuming the terminal ballistics are suitable, the FN P90 with Gemtech suppressor seems even better suited for law-enforcement applications than for its originally intended role as a military personal defense weapon. Whether used as an entry weapon or a replacement for shotguns, submachine guns and carbines of pistol caliber in the squad car - the P90 seems to hold a great deal of potential for law-enforcement applications, especially when equipped with the outstanding Gemtech P90 suppressor. Fabrique National Herstal SA of Belgium is now entering the law-enforcement market. The Gemtech SP90 suppressor removes more of the high-frequency noise than the typical suppressor designed for intermediate rifle cartridges, so the lower pitch sound signature of the Gemtech suppressor actually seems quieter to people with a normal range of hearing than the numbers in Table I would otherwise suggest. The Gemtech SP90 suppressor provides excellent sound reduction, no adverse effects on reliability or accuracy, a relatively light and compact package, and superior durability when subjected to full-auto fire compared to previous generations of suppressors. The Gemtech SP90 represents an impressive, state of the art suppressor, and I can recommend it enthusiastically. [It is available exclusively from FN Manufacturing, Inc.]

New firearms for law enforcement

New firearms for law enforcement: "New firearms for law enforcement

- February 1999

The Belgian arms manufacturer FN has launched a pistol and carbine for the police, using their new 5.7x28mm round. Following a number of notorious cases where the police have found themselves outgunned and unable to stop armed offenders wearing bullet roof vests, the task was to find a round which has high penetrative power but which also loses its momentum quickly upon impact, thus preventing injury to others. The FN innovation also extends to the use to which pistols are put, from a pure back-up function for personal protection, to a capability to engage an armed criminal in body armour. "