New Aircrew Self Defense Weapon

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US combat pilots currently have knives in their ejection survival packs, and, on occasion, a sidearm. A new weapon will provide better protection if their aircraft is shot down or if they have to eject in enemy territory. US Air Force fighter and bomber crews are adding a semi-automatic stand-off rifle – the new ultra-compact Aircrew Self Defense Weapon (ASDW).

The service has begun fielding the longer-range weapon, known as the GAU-5A Aircrew Self Defense Weapon, Maj. Docleia Gibson, Air Combat Command spokeswoman, told Military.com.

The ASDW will be given to all combat-coded ejection aircraft, e.g. F-15 Eagles, F-16 Fighting Falcons, etc., and allow aircrew to have a longer stand-off range.

Gibson said the gun, based on the M4 carbine, does not replace any part of the survival pack now. “This is just an addition to the current capability that they already have,” she said.

The GAU-5A is currently being made at the rate of 100 per week. ACC estimates that 2,137 total will be fielded, she said.

The semi-automatic carbine is capable of firing a three-round burst, and uses a standard 5.56mm round with a range of more than 200 meters.

Much like the current M4, the GAU-5A is a shoulder fired weapon. It can be assembled/ disassembled in 60 seconds without tools, reports thefirearmblog.com.

The US Air Force has not found itself in an air-to-air, dogfight combat scenario in more than two-decades. However, officials have said they are increasingly worried about crews potentially entering contested environments in the next large-scale war with a near-peer adversary like Russia or China, and have even taken lessons learned from environments like Syria.