FN SCAR

Belgium's modular special-operations combat assault rifle — the Mk16 SCAR-L (5.56 mm) and Mk17 SCAR-H (7.62 mm) — adopted by USSOCOM and over a dozen other forces, combining a short-stroke piston with quick-change barrels in a folding-stock platform.

Overview

The FN SCAR (Special Operations Forces Combat Assault Rifle) is a modular, select-fire rifle family engineered by FN Herstal for the US Special Operations Command’s (USSOCOM) SCAR competition. It is fielded in two principal calibers: the Mk16 SCAR-L chambered in 5.56×45 mm NATO and the heavier Mk17 SCAR-H in 7.62×51 mm NATO. The weapon’s short-stroke gas piston, quick-change barrel, and aluminium-alloy receiver give it the flexibility to serve as a compact carbine, a standard infantry rifle, or a designated marksman’s platform, and it has been adopted by both special operations forces and conventional armies across NATO and beyond.

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