Member-only story
When Added Features Lead To Death
The Client isn’t always right
The Scientists
It was obvious to the Generals at the start of the Vietnam war, that the US rifles needed updating. They had been in use since World War 2 and had to be modernised.
Enter the Armalite AR15.
The scientists couldn’t help but smile at all the fancy innovations they had developed in the new weapon. They had successfully reduced the bullet size from .30 to .223. This meant it could be fully automatic like a machine gun but have greater accuracy.
The reduction led to more added benefits. It was better at killing. The smaller rounds would lodge fatally in the enemy, instead of just passing through. It was lighter, which meant the troops could carry more and thus kill more.
It was even more reliable. All through testing, the results were outstanding. The scientists could comprehensively prove its reliability.
In 1959, the Springfield Test Armory said:
“It is the best lightweight automatic rifle ever tested by the armoury.”
“A squad of 5–7 men armed with the AR15 would have better hit distribution and capability than the present 11-man squad.”
“The troops favour the AR15 because of lightness…
