More Marines Will Test Lighter Polymer-Cased Ammunition as Experiments Expand to Fleet
A Marine with 2nd Maintenance Battalion, 2nd Marine Logistics Group, loads a chain of ammunition into a M2 .50-caliber machine gun during a live-fire training exercise on SR8 Multi-purpose Machine Gun Range aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, N.C. (Alex Mitchell/Marine Corps)
9 May 2021
The Marine Corps has been testing the performance of a polymer-cased .50-caliber ammunition in a lab environment, and leathernecks soon will get a chance to see how the lighter rounds hold up in the field.
Marines at the schools of infantry on both coasts, Advanced Machine Gunners Course, and 1st and 2nd Amphibious Assault Battalions will likely be the first to try out the new round for the Ma Deuce M2 machine gun, said Kelly Flynn, a Marine Corps Systems Command spokeswoman. Officials then want members of I and II Marine Expeditionary Forces to test the round on static and maneuver ranges, she said.