British Armed Forces Get First New Pistol Since World War II
12th January 2013
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The British regular forces are to receive their first new pistol since World War II, as the long-serving Browning 9mm sidearm is replaced by a new weapon from the well-known Austrian firm Glock.
At that, they’re still ahead of the American armed forces, which has used the 9mm Biretta M9 since 1980. There are plans afoot to pick a newer standard pistol — in fiscal year 2013-14 … if there are funds available to pay for the study.
The Glock has triple safety mechanisms which mean that its firing pin will not move forward unless the trigger is back, the trigger cannot be moved back unless a finger is pressing on its front and the weapon will not fire if dropped. The weapon’s hammer is internal, and as such cannot snag on clothing or be bumped inadvertently into a different position.
Glocks have been available commercially since 1982.
One of the most amusing aspects of all of these ‘CIA plot to do something nefarious’ movies (yeah, Jason Bourne, I’m lookin’ at YOU) that Hollywood keeps cranking out is the firm belief on the part of moviemakers that government agencies not only have the latest and greatest toys to play with, but even better toys than civilians are allowed to have. Any government employee (and military service members are government employees) know that this is ludicrous nonsense — rare is the government organization that gets equipment that is only ten years behind what is available to civilians, much less better than.