FOR GERMAN SPECIAL FORCES: G95 K - A Gun Elite Warriors Fell in Love With | WELT Documemtary

The majority of the handheld weapons used by the Bundeswehr are supplied by Heckler & Koch from Oberndorf in the Black Forest. The town has a long tradition of weapons manufacture. Heckler & Koch was founded in 1949 by former employees of the Mauser factory that was also based here. The defense manufacturing company has been supplying the Bundeswehr with high-quality weapons since the late 1950s. In the company's own weapons laboratory, developers are testing the G95K, a new assault rifle for the Kampfschwimmer and special forces command. In the so-called over-the-beach test, the weapon is submerged in a water tank until it fills up completely. It will be subjected to this kind of stress on a routine basis when in use by the combat swimmers and special forces. In order to get close to their target undetected, the special forces also operate underwater. Their weapons must remain fully operational at all times. The developer removes the rifle from the tank and fires it. Three single shots and two automatic bursts. The weapon should perform flawlessly. The Bundeswehr G95K assault rifle weighs nearly 3.7 kilograms. It shoots 5.56 millimeter by 51 NATO rounds and has a theoretical rate of fire of 850 rounds a minute. It has a maximum effective range of up to 300 meters. The G95K consists of 250 individual parts. Its manufacturing begins by hardening the special steel. The components are heated to 900 degrees Celsius for several hours and then cool down rapidly. This increases the mechanical strength. The receiver sections are made from a high-strength forged aluminum alloy. The parts are machined in several steps using modern CNC milling machines. The machining work is performed to tolerances of just a few hundredths of a millimeter. Work continues around the clock in three shifts. All function and safety relevant parts of the G95K are made by Heckler & Koch on location. The central element of every weapon is its barrel. Here the steel tubes are heat treated so that they can withstand the extreme temperatures and pressures they will be subjected to later when in use. The barrels of the G95K are cold forged. Here the barrel of the G95K is forged around the mandrel. The so-called lands and grooves are created in the process. And these lands and grooves are forged into the barrel and are responsible for the precision of the barrel and spin of the bullets. The spin, the precisely adjusted barrel and the ammunition together with the sight are the parameters required to hit the target with pinpoint accuracy. Besides all the state-of-the-art machinery there's one other very special expert required to manufacture the barrel, the human being. The barrel of the assault rifle must be absolutely straight, a job for the barrel straightener. This trade has been around for as long as there have been guns. The barrel straightener's job is to straighten the barrel and he uses a technique that's been around for well over a century to do so. The specialist is able to detect the smallest distortion in the barrel and straightens it with the help of a special straightening jig. His eyes can detect inaccuracies much faster and more reliably than a machine. Every single barrel is checked and straightened by hand. Besides a good eye the work requires enormous concentration and years of experience. Manual straightening is a prerequisite for producing a high-precision weapon. Meanwhile in the ballistics lab the next stress test is being performed. The standard issue pistol of the German armed forces, the P8, is undergoing the icing test. Every weapon of the Bundeswehr, whether assault rifle or pistol, must remain fully functional even under extreme negative temperatures. The weapon is stored for 24 hours at minus 30 degrees Celsius in the climate chamber, then sprayed several times with a mist of water. This simulates freezing fog conditions. The deep frozen weapon must fire accurately and reliably even in this state. Only then will it pass the stress test. Over 80 people work in the Heckler & Koch development department. It takes several years to develop a new rifle like the G95k. The weapons begin their lives as 3D models on a computer. This is then used as the basis for constructing and testing the prototypes. The development goes through several stages at the end of which the weapon is ready for series production. Heckler & Koch spent a total of three years working on the G95k before it was ready to be issued to the special forces of the Bundeswehr. In the assembly department the 250 individual parts of the assault rifle are put together to make the finished functional weapon. And it's done by hand. Great care is taken when assembling every weapon. Each G95k is individually marked and labeled along the way. Serial number, proof marks, manufacturer symbol, caliber, model designation, production date and owner ID are laser engraved onto the weapon. Now the weapon is completely assembled and ready to be fired for the first time. The test firing is done in the company's own shooting range. This is where the G95k is fired to check its accuracy. Every newly manufactured G95k is fired with live ammunition a total of three times. With the legally required overpressure shot, functional shot and precision shot. The special forces rifle is subject to the most stringent requirements. The Bundeswehr demands 100% accuracy. Around 45,000 rounds will be expended over the course of testing the roughly 1,600 special assault rifles ordered by the Bundeswehr. After passing the firing test, which is monitored by a proof house, each weapon is issued an individual proof certificate. If the weapon doesn't meet the criteria, it has to be readjusted. The G95k is ready for use and can now be delivered to the special forces of the Bundeswehr. The location of this site and most of the details about the training methods are top secret. This is where the Bundeswehr snipers are trained. Their task? Reconnaissance and engagement of hostile forces at large distances with aimed single shots. We're now at our final position. My partner is preparing his weapon and also partially camouflaging it. He's finished preparing the ammunition. We'll be ready for action soon. Then we'll take up position. Set the weapon up for the target. I set up right next to my shooter. With my scope, I align myself with the target so I can observe the shot directly. If the first shot doesn't hit the target, I can correct the second one so we can neutralize the adversary with the second shot. But the first shot will hit the mark, of course. The G22 sniper rifle being used here is manufactured by the British company Accuracy International. With the G22, the Bundeswehr now has a dedicated sniper rifle in its armory for the first time. The snipers use the current combat-enhanced version, the G22A2. The over 1.2 meter long G22 weighs 9 kilograms. It fires 7.62 mm by 67 caliber ammunition and can take out targets at distances of up to 1,100 meters. A NATO standard picatinny rail is fitted to the top of the weapon. This can be used to mount a night sight in addition to the telescopic sight. The telescopic sight of the combat-enhanced version has a variable magnification of between 5 and 25 times. The high-performance scope has an illuminated graticule plate and allows shock corrections for elevation and windage. Should the telescopic sight fail, the sniper can still engage targets up to a distance of 600 meters using a backup sight. In combination with the NSV-80 night sight, the G22A sniper rifle is night combat capable. The G22 can additionally be fitted with a silencer, a so-called flash suppressor. This reduces the muzzle blast, thus making it more difficult for the enemy to spot the sniper. The G22 can fire either full metal jacket or armor-piercing ammunition. It's a bolt-action rifle, so each round in the five-round magazine has to be fed manually. This has the advantage that when a shot is taken, no other parts of the weapon that could affect accuracy move. Manual reloading takes time but results in far greater shot accuracy than is possible with semi or fully automatic weapons. To work the bolt, I move the bolt lever upwards, pull the bolt back. This ejects the cartridge. Then I have to slide the bolt forward again. The bolt strips off the new cartridge. Feeding it into the chamber, lock the bolt again. The cartridge is chambered and the weapon cocked. The G22 precision rifle is stored in a special rifle case together with a comprehensive range of accessories. The snipers transport the equipment needed for their mission to the deployment location in backpack carrying systems, often weighing 30, 40 or 50 kilograms. The required equipment includes a muzzle cap, honeycomb filter, extra magazine, weapon cleaning kit, silencer, tools and laser range finder. The snipers use a weather meter with integrated ballistics program to determine all the relevant data for the perfect projectile trajectory. A sniper team always consists of two soldiers, usually with longer service ranks. They're commanded by their sniper team commander. He is generally the one to give permission for the shot. Fire when ready, delay enemy. Should the snipers become cut off from their unit, they fulfill their mission on their own initiative. Target at 750 meters. Set elevation five and seven. Five and seven. And set windage. Four left. I'm on it. Okay, ready. Nowadays, it isn't just the regular armed forces that employ modern reconnaissance equipment, but irregular combatants as well. Because of this, a sniper team must remain as invisible as possible and not generate any signals that could reveal their presence. This includes visual or acoustic cues, for instance. But heat and electronic signals could be picked up by an enemy and thus also betray the team. The snipers make themselves practically invisible with specially made camouflage suits, so-called ghillie suits. The soldiers weave twigs, earth and grass into their suits so that they blend in with the natural surroundings in an emergency. Snipers have to meet high character, physical and technical skills requirements. Only a fraction of the candidates pass the selection process. The first few weeks are a test of fitness and condition. 7,000 meters speed march with 20 kilos of equipment. And you have to finish in under 52 minutes. And then 5,000. That's 5,000 meters on the tartan track in under 22 minutes. Those are just the physical challenges you have to meet to begin with to prove you have a basic level of fitness. Because you're always carrying a lot of gear with you. And then you have to show you can work effectively under stress and without making mistakes. Mistakes happen, but they have to be prevented. And then it continues with shooting training, observation training, range determination, basically everything you need as a sniper. So that if the technology stops working, you can use your head and still get the job done with the equipments you have, like calculate ranges without a laser rangefinder. Determine the lead for a moving target. How fast is the target moving? How much do I need to lead by? With my sight, with my scope. Approach, camouflage. How do I camouflage myself in the field? How do I move in the field? How do I move quietly? How do I communicate in the field? Without radio, just using hand signals. You need to learn all of this. And then you return to Hammelburg for a four-week training course. And then you'll test again. If you pass, you then get to call yourself a sniper. Extensive training and the character, mental and physical aptitude of a sniper are indispensable. Something even the best rifle cannot replace. Besides making a deadly shot, snipers have a demoralizing effect on the opponent. Hits intimidate and frighten the enemy. As well-camouflaged scouts, snipers also provide valuable intelligence. While snipers engage high-value targets, other infantrymen fight the enemy directly. In the Lüneburger Heide, the paratroopers from Seedorf are engaging fictitious snipers. Their weapon of choice for combat at short and medium ranges is the G28 semi-automatic designated marksman rifle. The G28 marksman engages targets that either couldn't be tackled with other handheld weapons or only by expending large amounts of ammunition. It has an effective range of up to 800 meters. The weapons are only used when explicitly ordered. Charlie one, this is spotter one, over. Enemy contact, two shooters about 500 meters in front of ours, in the open, over. The over one meter long G28 weighs 7.7 kilograms. It fires 7.62 millimeter by 51 caliber ammunition as aimed single shots and has a maximum effective range of 800 meters. The optics include the telescopic sight we have attached at the moment. Then there's a patrol version of the G28, which has a shorter one fitted. And for close combat, the aim point we can see on top here. The receiver is made of steel and is milled from a solid block. The handguard is made from lightweight aluminum. Only the pistol grip is composed of robust plastic. Another special feature is the color of the rifle. Green-brown coloration of the weapon has proven to be a universally applicable camouflage color. The G28 is used to put aimed single shots on identified targets. The Bundeswehr does not envisage the weapon being used to fire bursts. The illuminated dot sight mounted on the 3 to 20 times magnification telescopic sight is used to engage targets at close ranges of up to 100 meters. The first thing we need to field strip the G28 is the tool from the pistol grip. The tool is used to release this pin here from this side. You then press it through. You can't pull it out completely. Tilt the weapon and remove the bolt carrier and charging handle. Then you remove the retaining pin. You can't pull this out completely either, only partially. The pistol grip now comes away. The only thing left to remove in the field is the bipod. The G28 is now stripped. The NATO 7.62 mm by 51 caliber used by the G28 has a much higher target effectiveness than the smaller caliber of the standard issue G36. The G28 marksman has discovered an enemy squad and takes aim. A team member assists him in communicating with his superior. Sitrep, enemy squad up ahead. The G28 marksman engages especially dangerous targets, including technical targets like the optics of weapons mounted on enemy vehicles. Destroyed. The Bundeswehr in joint forces combat. Here, attack helicopters, modern tanks, reconnaissance drones, and infantry are fighting together on the battlefield. The Panzerfaust III RPG is used when engaging enemy tanks. The Bundeswehr soldiers also use it to attack combat vehicles with the latest armor protection technology, because it can pierce up to 900 mm thick tank steel. The Panzerfaust III is deployed as a squad weapon, so there are two RPG gunners, close protection soldiers, and a squad leader. The Panzerfaust III can only be used once. This means that after firing, the grip is folded away, we take up alternate positions, and the second RPG gunner immediately steps up and fires another round as required. The ready-to-use, roughly 1.2 m long Panzerfaust III is relatively light at 13 kg. Its maximum effective range is around 400 m. It fires mono- or tandem-shaped charge warheads as single shots. The Panzerfaust III consists of two parts—the trigger assembly and the grenade. To fire it, the gunner slides the trigger assembly with telescopic sight onto the launch tube with warhead and presses until it audibly engages. The sight has a 2.5x magnification. The penetrative performance depends on the material and armor protection of the target. Depending on the target, the gunner can pull out the spike on the warhead. The warhead of the Panzerfaust III has a spike. If this spike is extended, the weapon works like a shaped-charge warhead and is thus suitable for anti-tank defense. If the spike is not extended, the Panzerfaust III works like a high-explosive squash-head charge, so it explodes close to the impact site. The most modern variant is currently the Panzerfaust IT, which features a dual-shaped charge warhead. This allows it to go up against most of the main battle tanks that are protected by ERA tiles. The trigger assembly with telescopic sight can fire up to 1,500 grenades before having to be replaced. To field strip, operate the lever, remove the trigger assembly, and the Panzerfaust III is stripped. In combination with the NSV-80 night vision attachment, the Panzerfaust III is night combat capable. The NSV-80 is basically an add-on adapter, so I still use the normal sight and can therefore engage targets at 400 meters. This means that a quickly deployable and effective weapon is available for night combat as well. It's very simple to install. The Panzerfaust III can also be used to engage bunkers and targets behind cover. The Bundeswehr soldiers engage targets that can't be destroyed using the Panzerfaust with the recently purchased MELS anti-tank system. MELS is intended as a replacement for the Milan guided missile system. The heavy airborne infantry platoon is 31 soldiers strong. It consists of the platoon leader, a sniper squad, a GMG squad, and an anti-tank squad with three MELS crews. You could say we come into play where the Panzerfaust is no longer effective. The MELS team never works alone. We always have other soldiers, fireteams, squads, and platoons on the flanks to support us with reconnaissance beforehand. And as mentioned, our weapon comes into play where others reach their limits because we have an engagement distance of 300 to 4,000 meters. It takes several months of special training to operate MELS. It also requires a high degree of physical fitness as the heavy weapon is carried to the deployment site by the MELS squad. MELS consists of a 14-kilo guided missile, 10.1-kilo ICU, and 1.1-kilo battery pack, and a tripod weighing three kilos. The advantage of MELS, rapid deployment, ready to fire in one minute. The 1.2-meter-long weapon weighs a total of 26 kilograms. The MELS squad can engage armored targets at ranges of up to 4,000 meters. It uses tandem-shaped charge and fragmentation warheads against vehicles or troops. The MELS anti-tank weapon consists of a launch tube containing the guided missile and is mounted on a tripod for infantry use. A battery pack and launch controller complete the system. The highly sensitive infrared sensor built into the seeker head of the rocket allows the gunner to track the missile's flight on a control monitor. The paratroopers are using MELS to attack an enemy tank. The target is approximately 3.5 kilometers away. The three-man MELS squad takes up position and prepares the weapon system. It takes the soldiers about a minute to set up. They take aim at the sighted tank. The gunner can acquire targets that are not visible after launch using the missile's infrared camera and adjust the trajectory to target accordingly. The Infantryman of the Future project is part of the Bundeswehr's drive to modernize the infantry. The program is designed to improve the combat equipment and communication between the soldiers. The program consists of three interconnected core elements. Clothing and protective equipment for worldwide deployment in all climate zones. Weapon systems and optronics including command and control systems. Here the soldier's mission is to gather intelligence on enemy forces. The infantrymen have adapted their modular clothing for the mission profile. Reconnaissance in urban terrain. On the back of their body armor, the soldiers wear computers that operate reliably even under extreme conditions. All of the system components like weapons, display and control devices are connected with the core computer. In this way, the soldiers exchange information about their position and the situation via the command and control information system. Soldier systems originated in the soldier modernization projects of the NATO forces in the 1980s. They've been developed significantly since then and are all designed along similar lines. They're divided into clothing, protection and carrying systems. Weapons, optics and optronics. And all the command and control systems. Like radios, linkups, tablets and so on. Around 50 countries are currently working on soldier systems. The Bundeswehr first introduced the enhanced infantrymen of the future system in 2012. And in 2017 placed a follow-up order for equipping additional infantry soldiers with the modular system. Using a monocular, the soldier can determine the range to object by laser and transmit the data to the command post. The soldier also has a helmet system with display. It provides him with information such as the target and line of approach. He can even identify friendlies by means of superimposed symbols. This enables him to distinguish between enemy and friendly forces even in chaotic situations. The weapons of the infantrymen of the future system can be individually configured for each mission. The soldier has a choice between different optics, such as a high-performance night vision device. A daytime-capable thermal imaging add-on can also be mounted. The squad leader has access to portable CNC computers. They offer additional functionality. The squad leader quickly transmits the sketches with the directions to his comrades in the boxer. The operation is over. The soldiers have completed their reconnaissance mission. With the infantrymen of the future system, the Bundeswehr has a state-of-the-art combat system for dismounted combat forces in the army, air force and navy. What's more, the system is being continually updated. A command, optics and weapons concept that offers the Bundeswehr soldier greater firepower and accuracy. The combat infantry, the ground soldiers, will also continue to play a key role in possible future conflicts. The Bundeswehr is constantly adapting its weaponry and training concepts for international missions in particular. In addition, the Bundeswehr must continually reassess its capabilities with regard to state and national defense in order to maintain and enhance them.