Daewoo Precision Industries K2
assault rifle is the standard
service rifle
A service rifle (or standard-issue rifle) is a rifle a military issues to regular infantry. In modern militaries, this is typically a versatile and rugged battle rifle, assault rifle, or carbine suitable for use in nearly all environments. Most ...
of the
South Korean military
The Republic of Korea Armed Forces (), also known as the ROK Armed Forces, are the armed forces of South Korea. The ROK Armed Forces is one of the largest and most powerful standing armed forces in the world with a reported personnel strength o ...
. It was developed by the South Korean
Agency for Defense Development
The Agency for Defense Development (ADD) is the South Korean national agency for research and development in defense technology, funded by the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA). It was established in August 1970 under the banner ...
and manufactured by
S&T Motiv
SNT Motiv Co., Ltd (formerly S&T Motiv and previously Daewoo Precision Industries/S&T Daewoo) is a South Korean firearms and auto parts manufacturer founded in 1981. Its firearms equip most frontline units of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces.
...
(formerly Daewoo Precision Industries) and
Dasan Machineries
Jeong Yak-yong (August 5, 1762 – April 7, 1836) or Chong Yagyong, often simply known as ‘Dasan’ (茶山, one of his ‘ho’ / pen-names meaning ‘the mountain of tea’), was a Korean agronomist, philosopher, and poet. He was one of the ...
(since 2016). Shoulder-fired and
gas-operated
Gas-operation is a system of operation used to provide energy to operate locked breech, autoloading firearms. In gas-operation, a portion of high-pressure gas from the cartridge being fired is used to power a mechanism to dispose of the spent ...
, the K2 is capable of firing both
5.56×45mm NATO
The 5.56×45mm NATO (official NATO nomenclature 5.56 NATO, but often pronounced "five-five-six") is a rimless bottlenecked intermediate cartridge family developed in the late 1970s in Belgium by FN Herstal. It consists of the SS109, L110, and ...
and
.223 Remington
The .223 Remington (designated as the 223 Remington by the SAAMI and 223 Rem by the CIP) is a rimless, bottlenecked rifle cartridge. It was developed in 1957 by Remington Arms and Fairchild Industries for the U.S. Continental Army Command ...
ammunition; however, using .223 Remington is only recommended for practicing for short distance.
The K2 supplanted the
M16A1
The M16 rifle (officially designated Rifle, Caliber 5.56 mm, M16) is a family of military rifles adapted from the ArmaLite AR-15 rifle for the United States military. The original M16 rifle was a 5.56×45mm automatic rifle with a 20-roun ...
assault rifle as the primary infantry weapon for the South Korean military since its adoption in 1985.
Development
![Rifle Daewoo K2 right](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f2/Rifle_Daewoo_K2_right.jpg)
In the 1960s, the South Korean armed forces relied completely upon military support from the United States to supply its small arms, consisting mostly of
M1 Garand
The M1 Garand or M1 rifleOfficially designated as U.S. rifle, caliber .30, M1, later simply called Rifle, Caliber .30, M1, also called US Rifle, Cal. .30, M1 is a semi-automatic rifle that was the service rifle of the U.S Army during World War ...
s and
M1/M2 carbines. Attempts at the time to develop an indigenous rifle were hampered by the country's economic, technological, and industrial shortcomings, and initial attempts never went into production. During
South Korean involvement in the Vietnam War,
South Korean army
The Republic of Korea Army (ROKA; ko, 대한민국 육군; Hanja: 大韓民國 陸軍; RR: ''Daehanminguk Yuk-gun''), also known as the ROK Army or South Korean Army, is the army of South Korea, responsible for ground-based warfare. It is the l ...
soldiers and
marines
Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refle ...
received the more modern M16A1 assault rifle from U.S. military aid, though not enough to arm all active military personnel. With a modern rifle design and rapid economic growth in the 1970s, South Korea began to build the M16A1 under license in 1974.
[The Evolution of K1/K2 Families in the ROK Military](_blank)
- SAdefensejournal.com, 1 December 2017
Despite being able to produce their own service rifle, it was not an ideal arrangement; the original license agreement did not cover enough weapons to equip their forces including millions of reserves, and having to pay license fees to manufacture the design was too expensive at a time when the country was short on foreign currency. Geopolitical considerations played a factor, as the
Nixon Doctrine
The Nixon Doctrine (also known as the Guam Doctrine) was put forth during a press conference in Guam on July 25, 1969 by President of the United States Richard Nixon and later formalized in his speech on Vietnamization of the Vietnam War on Novembe ...
and
Carter administration
Jimmy Carter's tenure as the 39th president of the United States began with his inauguration on January 20, 1977, and ended on January 20, 1981. A Democrat from Georgia, Carter took office after defeating incumbent Republican President ...
's use of the U.S. military presence on the
Korean peninsula
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
as leverage to force change against South Korea's human rights practices. Under such influences, South Korea felt it necessary to be able to control their own basic weapon needs.
Facing the eventual expiration of the Republic of Korea's license to produce the M16A1 (Colt Model 603K), president
Park Chung-hee
Park Chung-hee (, ; 14 November 1917 – 26 October 1979) was a South Korean politician and army general who served as the dictator of South Korea from 1961 until his assassination in 1979; ruling as an unelected military strongman from 1961 ...
, who strongly believed in self-reliance in national defense, ordered the development of an indigenous standard military firearm.
An indigenous rifle program started in 1972. Initial requirements were for prototypes to be chambered in
7.62×51mm NATO
The 7.62×51mm NATO (official NATO nomenclature 7.62 NATO) is a rimless, bottlenecked rifle cartridge. It is a standard for small arms among NATO countries.
First developed in the 1950s, the cartridge had first been introduced in U.S. service fo ...
as it was the only standardized ammunition for the
Western Bloc
The Western Bloc, also known as the Free Bloc, the Capitalist Bloc, the American Bloc, and the NATO Bloc, was a coalition of countries that were officially allied with the United States during the Cold War of 1947–1991. It was spearheaded by ...
. Prototypes XB-1 through XB-5 were akin to
AR-15
An AR-15-style rifle is any lightweight semi-automatic rifle based on the Colt AR-15 design. The original ArmaLite AR-15 is a scaled-down derivative of Eugene Stoner's ArmaLite AR-10 design. The then Fairchild Engine and Airplane Corporation d ...
-series rifles with some exterior changes; designers attempted to use as many M16 components as possible to save time and money, such as the
direct gas impingement operation, sights, and handguards. In 1975, the XB-6 prototype with
long-stroke gas piston was created, and converted into
5.56×45mm NATO
The 5.56×45mm NATO (official NATO nomenclature 5.56 NATO, but often pronounced "five-five-six") is a rimless bottlenecked intermediate cartridge family developed in the late 1970s in Belgium by FN Herstal. It consists of the SS109, L110, and ...
chambered XB-7 in 1977.
By 1982, the final prototype model XB-7C (XK2) was completed, and small amount was handed for field tests. It went into full-scale production and was officially fielded to the
Republic of Korea Armed Forces
The Republic of Korea Armed Forces (), also known as the ROK Armed Forces, are the armed forces of South Korea. The ROK Armed Forces is one of the largest and most powerful standing armed forces in the world with a reported personnel strength of ...
in 1985.
K2C
After the K2 was adopted, hardly any changes were made to the gun for nearly 30 years. There were several reasons for this: the ROK Army maintained a
Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
-style mentality that favored tanks and artillery against an outdated North Korean threat, leaving less money and urgency to modernize infantry weapons and tactics; the manufacturer had been producing tens of thousands of rifles each year since the 1970s without competition for domestic customers that didn't request upgrades, leaving no motivation to make changes; and various management and ownership changes created internal chaos making it difficult to conduct
research and development
Research and development (R&D or R+D), known in Europe as research and technological development (RTD), is the set of innovative activities undertaken by corporations or governments in developing new services or products, and improving existi ...
. Special forces units had more of a need to upgrade K-series weapons with new optics and accessories, so they turned to private companies to develop add-on rail systems. Because they were being supplied many non-standard rails from various companies, the regular ROK Army standardized the
MIL-STD-1913 rail in 2013 for the PVS-11K
red dot sight
A red dot sight is a common classification for a type of non- magnifying reflector (or reflex) sight for firearms, and other devices that require aiming, that gives the user a point of aim in the form of an illuminated red dot. A standard desig ...
, which on the K2 is only a short rail on the upper receiver, since it is made with an optics mount on the receiver to attach it and regular troops have less of a need for additional rails.
[K2C: South Korea's Latest Carbine](_blank)
- SAdefensejournal.com, 29 September 2017
![Daewoo K2C](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/Daewoo_K2C.jpg)
The K2 and
K1A had become outdated for international markets after 2000; in addition to lack of ability to add accessories, the K1A had become too large, underpowered, and un-ergonomic as a
personal defense weapon
Personal defense weapons (PDWs) are a class of firearms intended for self-defense and security rather than warfare and infantry. Most PDWs fire a small-caliber (less than ), centerfire bottleneck cartridge resembling a scaled-down intermediate ...
or special operation carbine, and the K2 was too long. In 2012, S&T Motiv introduced the K2C, or K2 Carbine. It has a shortened barrel with adjusted gas piston, upper receiver/handguard
Picatinny rail
The Picatinny rail ( or ), or Pic rail for short, also known as a MIL-STD-1913 rail, 1913 rail or STANAG 2324 rail (cancelled), is a military standard rail interface system that provides a mounting platform for firearm accessories. It was o ...
, and right side-folding
M4-style retractable stock; it weighs , is long with stock extended and with stock folded. In 2013, a new tan-painted K2C with Magpul CTR stock and detachable rear sight was unveiled, but not actually produced. In 2017, The New K2C-1/2 variants with a foldable front sight and ambidextrous selector switches were unveiled. In 2018, The New K2C-1 variant was renamed K2C CQB.
K2C1
![K-2C1 소총](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c8/K-2C1_%EC%86%8C%EC%B4%9D.jpg)
To enhance the domestic appeal, S&T Motiv developed the K2A, which retains the full-length K2's features (including
bayonet lug
A bayonet lug is a standard feature on most military muskets, rifles, and shotguns, and on some civilian longarms. It is intended for attaching a bayonet, which is typically a long spike or thrusting knife. The bayonet lug is the metal mount ...
) while utilizing the upgrades of K2C including the upper receiver/handguard Picatinny rail, M4-style adjustable stock. Later, it was renamed K2C1 (C="Exterior design changed without performance improvements", by the South Korean Defense Specification
) and adopted by ROK forces. K2C1 had several changes compared to K2A, including a new extended handguard rail with optional lower/side pictinny rail sections, flattop upper receiver with a detachable rear backup sight, and a new Magpul CTR-like adjustable stock. As of 2016, 200,000 K2C1s are in service with frontline troops. Partially due to the rail's screw attachment method, the K2C1 is slightly heavier than the original model. ( vs. )
Design
![Armed ROK officers](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2e/Armed_ROK_officers.jpg)
Six different prototypes were made during the XB development. Of the 6 designs, the XB6 was selected. Some parts of the XB6 resembled
FN FNC
The FNC (french: Fabrique Nationale Carabine) is a 5.56×45mm NATO assault rifle developed by the Belgian arms manufacturer FN Herstal and introduced in the late 1970s.
Development
The FNC was developed between 1975–1977 for NATO standardiza ...
such as the suppressor and sights. Further development of the XB6 evolved into the XB7 and finally the XB7C, also known as the XK2. Externally similar in appearance to the
AR18
The ArmaLite AR-18 is a gas-operated assault rifle chambered for 5.56×45mm NATO ammunition. The AR-18 was designed at ArmaLite in California by Arthur Miller, Eugene Stoner, George Sullivan, and Charles Dorchester in 1963 as an alternative ...
, the K2 uses polymer for the forearm, pistol-grip and side-foldable buttstock. The fire control system and bolt carrier group are derived from the American
M16
The M16 rifle (officially designated Rifle, Caliber 5.56 mm, M16) is a family of military rifles adapted from the ArmaLite AR-15 rifle for the United States military. The original M16 rifle was a 5.56×45mm automatic rifle with a 20-roun ...
rifle, but few of the parts, including the bolt and carrier, are interchangeable with the M16. The gas operating system is derived from the
AKM
The AKM () is an assault rifle designed by Soviet small arms designer Mikhail Kalashnikov in 1959. It is the most ubiquitous rifle of the Kalashnikov rifles. It was developed as a replacement to the AK-47 introduced a decade prior.
Introduced ...
. The K2 uses the same magazine as the M16. The barrel rifling has 6 grooves, 185 mm (1-in-7.3) right hand twist. The K2 has 3 selective firing modes: semi-auto, 3-round burst, and full automatic.
The K2 can be equipped with the DPI K201, an undercarried 40×46mm single shot
grenade launcher
A grenade launcher is a weapon that fires a specially-designed large-caliber projectile, often with an explosive, smoke or gas warhead. Today, the term generally refers to a class of dedicated firearms firing unitary grenade cartridges. The mos ...
patterned after the
American M203.
The Republic of Korea Armed Forces originally planned to replace the entire K2 with new
S&T Daewoo K11
The S&T Daewoo K11 DAW (Dual-barrel Air-burst Weapon) is a multi-weapon resembling the earlier US Objective Individual Combat Weapon in concept, design and operation. It consists of two separate weapons combined into a single unit: a lower assaul ...
dual-barrel air-burst weapon. However, high cost and skepticism over the effective firepower of the 20mm grenade led to the decision to provide 2 K11s to each squad, keeping 2 grenadiers as well. Consequently, the standard 9-person infantry squad of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces is currently equipped with 2 K2 rifles, 2 K2 rifles with K201 grenade launcher, 2 K11 DAWs, 1
K3 light machine gun, and the rest with either K1 or K2.
The K2 is also sometimes used with bipods and 4× magnification scopes, in a role similar to the
Designated Marksman Rifle
A designated marksman rifle (DMR) is a modern telescopic sight, scoped high-Accuracy and precision, precision rifle used by infantrymen in the designated marksman (DM) role. It generally fills the engagement effective range, range gap between ...
.
A more modern way to accessorize the K2 and K1 is to mount a now (limited) standard issue PVS-4K
Rail Integration System. It consists of an aluminum body with a long, uninterrupted rail for optical/red-dot and night-vision sights and three other rails located on the bottom and both sides. The rails are of the Picatinny-type.
Despite the shortest handguard ever seen on any assault rifles, the K2C variants have had issues with overheating, and thus most of the K2's around the world are the original K2, with the barrel mostly exposed, unlike the K2C.
The K2 is also able to accept a
brass catcher
A brass catcher (also brass trap) is a device designed to capture Cartridge (firearms), cartridge casings, often made of brass, as they are Extractor (firearms), ejected from a firearm. Various designs exist, utilizing a bag, pouch, net or box to ...
basket, as the South Korean army requires its soldiers to pick up and return empty
cartridge cases after training sessions, both for financial reasons (the brass cases are recyclable) and for security reasons, as the soldier must prove he or she has actually expended the issued ammunition. This minimizes the risk of a soldier keeping unauthorized live ammunition which could be used in criminal activities.
K1 and K2 weapons systems
When personnel from the
South Korean army special command were invited to see the XB-series prototypes, they requested the development of a new submachine gun to quickly replace a series of different weapons in their use. With no time to develop a new weapon, ADD made one based on the XB rifle prototypes called XB-S (short). It used a direct impingement gas tube rather than a piston to achieve the required short length, which was faster to make since they had short-barrel
CAR-15
The Colt Automatic Rifle-15 or CAR-15 is a family of M16 rifle–based firearms marketed by Colt in the 1960s and early 1970s. However, the term "CAR-15" is most commonly associated with the Colt Commando (AKA: XM177); these select-fire carbine ...
designs to work off of and no time to redesign a new short gas piston. The barrel used 1:12 inch rifling to fire M193 rounds, as during its development there were no plans to adopt SS109 ammunition in the South Korean army. The shortened design was adopted as the
K1A SMG in 1981 and issued to special forces, commanders, radio operators, and others who needed a short SMG-like weapon.
While the K1A SMG is commonly regarded as an SMG version of the K2, the K1 is a separate weapon altogether.
[Rifles n Guns' Daewoo K1 Page.](_blank)
Retrieved on October 27, 2008. The primary differences between the two weapons include: development time and intent (the K1 took less time to develop and entered service sooner than the K2, and was developed originally as a
submachine gun
A submachine gun (SMG) is a magazine-fed, automatic carbine designed to fire handgun cartridges. The term "submachine gun" was coined by John T. Thompson, the inventor of the Thompson submachine gun, to describe its design concept as an autom ...
because it was intended to replace the
M3 Grease Gun
The M3 is an American .45-caliber submachine gun adopted by the U.S. Army on 12 December 1942, as the United States Submachine Gun, Cal. .45, M3.Iannamico, Frank, ''The U.S. M3-3A1 Submachine Gun'', Moose Lake Publishing, , (1999), pp. 14, 22 ...
; the K2 was developed from the start as a service rifle); rifling (K1: 1-in-12 twist; K2: 1-in-7.3 twist); and gas system (the K1 uses a
direct impingement
Direct impingement is a type of gas operation for a firearm that directs gas from a fired cartridge indirectly (through the barrel, through a gas block, and then through a gas tube) into the bolt carrier or slide assembly to cycle the action. Fir ...
gas system, while the K2 uses a long stroke
gas piston system). In addition, some parts are not interchangeable between the two weapons even though they can use the same cartridge (KM193 (.223 Remington) 5.56 caliber; the K2 can also utilize the K100 (SS109) 5.56 caliber round).
Variants
XB
At least 6 versions (XB1 to XB6) of prototype were made.
* XB6: Selected design among the prototype.
* XB7: Further development of the XB6.
** XB7C: Final experimental prototype. Also known as XK2.
K2
Mass-produced variant.
* DR-100: Semi-automatic
5.56×45mm NATO
The 5.56×45mm NATO (official NATO nomenclature 5.56 NATO, but often pronounced "five-five-six") is a rimless bottlenecked intermediate cartridge family developed in the late 1970s in Belgium by FN Herstal. It consists of the SS109, L110, and ...
version for civilian market.
* DR-200: Semi-automatic
.223 Remington
The .223 Remington (designated as the 223 Remington by the SAAMI and 223 Rem by the CIP) is a rimless, bottlenecked rifle cartridge. It was developed in 1957 by Remington Arms and Fairchild Industries for the U.S. Continental Army Command ...
version for civilian market.
* DR-300: Semi-automatic
7.62×39mm
The 7.62×39mm (aka 7.62 Soviet, formerly .30 Russian Short) round is a rimless bottlenecked intermediate cartridge of Soviet origin. The cartridge is widely used due to the worldwide proliferation of Russian SKS and AK-47 pattern rifles, as ...
version for civilian market.
K2C (C="
Carbine
A carbine ( or ) is a long gun that has a barrel shortened from its original length. Most modern carbines are rifles that are compact versions of a longer rifle or are rifles chambered for less powerful cartridges.
The smaller size and lighter ...
"): Carbine version of K2 rifle with Picatinny rail, M4-type buttstock, barrel reduced to .
[Weapons of the Republic of Korea Marine Corps](_blank)
- SAdefensejournal.com, 4 September 2015 Exports started in 2012.
* K2C CQB: A manufacturer-proposed variant of K2C for
close quarters combat
Close-quarters combat (CQC) or close-quarters battle (CQB) is a tactical situation that involves a physical fight with firearms involved between multiple combatants at short range. It can occur between military units, police/corrections officers ...
operations, which was first unveiled by the name "The New K2C-1" in the ADEX 2017, and later renamed as "K2C CQB" in the DX KOREA 2018. It has a barrel and has a firing range up to 500 meters with a Colt SCW-type buttstock, flip up sights, a horizontally modified magazine well angle, integrated picatinny rails and ambidextrous selector switches.
K2C1
(C="Exterior design changed without performance improvements", by the South Korean Defense Specification
) : New variant featuring a quad accessory rail, full-length 1913 Picatinny optics rail, an AR-15-style six position collapsing and a Magpul-based foldable stock. Comes in two barrel lengths, 305 mm (12 in) and 465 mm (18.3 in). It was officially sent into production in March 2016 with first deliveries in June 2016.
Users
* : K2C used by
Special Forces Command (Cambodia)
The Special Forces Command ( km, បញ្ជាការដ្ឋានទ័ពពិសេស), previously known as the 911th Special Forces Regiment until July 2020, is the special forces unit of the Royal Cambodian Army. Most of its commandos ...
128 K2s transferred according to a 2019 SIPRI small arms report.
* : Purchased in 2011.
* : Purchased in the late 1980s.
* : 210 K2 rifles purchased in 2008 and 2011.
806 K2s transferred according to a 2019 SIPRI small arms report.
* : K2C used by
Iraqi special operations forces Golden Division (formerly Golden Brigade).
* : A standard-issue rifle of the ROK Armed Forces since 1985. Used extensively by the South Korean contingent in
Operation Enduring Freedom
Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) was the official name used synonymously by the U.S. government for both the War in Afghanistan (2001–2014) and the larger-scale Global War on Terrorism. On 7 October 2001, in response to the September 11 at ...
and the
Iraq War
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق (Kurdish languages, Kurdish)
, partof = the Iraq conflict (2003–present), I ...
.
A small number of K2Cs were tested by the
Republic of Korea Army Special Warfare Command
The Republic of Korea Army Special Warfare Command (ROK-SWC; ko, 대한민국 육군 특수전사령부 or 특전사; Hanja: 大韓民國陸軍 特殊戰司令部), also known as the Republic of Korea Army Special Forces "Black Berets" (R.O.K. ...
in 2014, but it has not been adopted by ROK forces. Later, tens of thousands of K2C1s were mass-produced in 2015 as part of the rifle modernization plan and were introduced around front-line units from 2016.
* : Used by the Lebanese Army.
* : Received 1,100 K2 and 1,000 K2C in 2012.
5,200 K2C delivered in 2012-2013. Known to be used by Malawian soldiers in the
United Nations Force Intervention Brigade
The United Nations Force Intervention Brigade (FIB) is a military formation which constitutes part of the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO). It was authorized by the United Nations ...
.
* : Purchased in 2011.
* : First customer of K2. Purchased 3,000 in 1983, and another batch in 1996.
Additional 30,000 rifles were sold in 2006.
* : used by
Special Forces
Special forces and special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...
at least since the 1990s. North Korean special forces with imitation ROK Military digital camo uniform and K2 rifles (unlicensed locally made copies) were reported by ROK Army soldiers during the 2015 North Korean exchanges of artillery fire with South Korea across the Western Front.
* : Purchased K2C in 2013.
* : Used by the ''
Infantería de Marina del Perú'' (
Peruvian Naval Infantry
The 3,000 personnel Peruvian Naval Infantry ( es, Infantería de Marina del Perú - IMAP) includes an amphibious brigade of three battalions and local security units with two transport ships (one used as a training ship), four tank landing ships, ...
).
*: Purchased K2C1 in 2019, used by
Philippine National Police
The Philippine National Police ( fil, Pambansang Pulisya ng Pilipinas, acronymed as PNP) is the armed national police force in the Philippines. Its national headquarters is located at Camp Crame in Bagong Lipunan ng Crame, Quezon City. Current ...
based from a contract in 2018.
* : Purchased 100 K2 rifles in 2003.
* : 403 K2s transferred according to a 2019 SIPRI small arms report.
Non-state actors
* : Captured from Iraqi troops.
Also used by ISEA and various IS affiliated militants across Africa
* : Seen in the hands of Syrian rebels
*
Boko Haram
Boko Haram, officially known as ''Jamā'at Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Da'wah wa'l-Jihād'' ( ar, جماعة أهل السنة للدعوة والجهاد, lit=Group of the People of Sunnah for Dawah and Jihad), is an Islamic terrorist organization ...
: Seen in Boko Haram captures and in use
Replacement versus upgrades
S&T Daewoo (now S&T Motiv) proposed the
XK8, a
5.56×45mm NATO
The 5.56×45mm NATO (official NATO nomenclature 5.56 NATO, but often pronounced "five-five-six") is a rimless bottlenecked intermediate cartridge family developed in the late 1970s in Belgium by FN Herstal. It consists of the SS109, L110, and ...
bullpup
A bullpup firearm is one with its firing grip located in front of the Chamber (firearms), breech of the weapon, instead of behind it. This creates a weapon with a shorter overall length for a given barrel length, and one that is often lighter, ...
version of the K2 in early 2000. After a series of field tests, the XK8 was rejected by the South Korean military and was never mass-produced.
More recently, the development of the
S&T Daewoo K11
The S&T Daewoo K11 DAW (Dual-barrel Air-burst Weapon) is a multi-weapon resembling the earlier US Objective Individual Combat Weapon in concept, design and operation. It consists of two separate weapons combined into a single unit: a lower assaul ...
dual-barrel air-burst weapon, which uses 5.56×45mm NATO and 20×30mm air-burst grenade, prompted the
South Korean military
The Republic of Korea Armed Forces (), also known as the ROK Armed Forces, are the armed forces of South Korea. The ROK Armed Forces is one of the largest and most powerful standing armed forces in the world with a reported personnel strength o ...
to plan for the replacements of all K2 rifles in service with the K11, making K11 the standard service rifle for the armed forces. However, due to the K11's extremely high cost and weight for a standard rifle, the armed forces scrapped its original plan and decided to provide 2 K11 per squad in order to increase firepower. As of 2019, the K11 project is in a state of complete suspension. As a result, The K2 was retained as the standard service rifle.
In 2014, an upgraded K2 rifle, the K2C1 was introduced, and the
South Korean Army
The Republic of Korea Army (ROKA; ko, 대한민국 육군; Hanja: 大韓民國 陸軍; RR: ''Daehanminguk Yuk-gun''), also known as the ROK Army or South Korean Army, is the army of South Korea, responsible for ground-based warfare. It is the l ...
performed field tests which were successful. K2C1 mass production began in 2015 to replace the K2 as the standard issue rifle for the ROK armed forces. Additional production of K2C1 rifles will push out K2 in active service, and eventually replace the reserve forces' M16A1s with K2 in the near future.
However, K2C1 is considered as temporary replacement for aging K2 rifles.
See also
*
M16 rifle
The M16 rifle (officially designated Rifle, Caliber 5.56 mm, M16) is a family of military rifles adapted from the ArmaLite AR-15 rifle for the United States military. The original M16 rifle was a 5.56×45mm automatic rifle with a 20-roun ...
: used prior to and replaced by K2, and was license produced by the Arsenal of National Defense (now S&T Motiv).
*
AK-47
The AK-47, officially known as the ''Avtomat Kalashnikova'' (; also known as the Kalashnikov or just AK), is a gas operated, gas-operated assault rifle that is chambered for the 7.62×39mm cartridge. Developed in the Soviet Union by Russian s ...
: influenced in designing gas piston system.
*
Daewoo Precision Industries K1
The Daewoo Precision Industries K1/K1A is a South Korean selective-fire assault rifle developed by Agency for Defense Development (ADD) and manufactured by Daewoo Precision Industries (now S&T Motiv) and Dasan Machineries (since 2016). It enter ...
: shared same development program.
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S&T Daewoo XK8: proposed replacement, rejected after field test.
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S&T Daewoo K11
The S&T Daewoo K11 DAW (Dual-barrel Air-burst Weapon) is a multi-weapon resembling the earlier US Objective Individual Combat Weapon in concept, design and operation. It consists of two separate weapons combined into a single unit: a lower assaul ...
: proposed replacement, rejected after field test.
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Dasan Machineries K16
The Dasan Machineries K16 is a 5.56×45mm NATO selective fire assault rifle based on DSAR15PC, which is a modified CQB variant of DSAR15P designed and manufactured by Dasan Machineries.
History
The Republic of Korea Armed Forces classifies K1 ...
: possible replacement of K2 in the Republic of Korea Armed Forces.
References
External links
S&T Daewoo Homepage{{AK-47 derivatives
5.56 mm assault rifles
Military equipment of Fiji
Post–Cold War weapons of South Korea
Daewoo assault rifles
Kalashnikov derivatives
Weapons and ammunition introduced in 1985
Military equipment of Bangladesh