Chapter 9 Design across the ages

Surprisingly, Albert not only obtained a munitions factory from his father, but also a Belgian arsenal with certain research and development capabilities, although the arsenal is currently only in a half-dead state, making a living by helping FN make parts, but I believe that with his product design ability, it is not too difficult to bring this factory back to life.

Albert reorganized the two factories into one, and set up a complete management organization and research and development department, which set up a research and development department for light weapons and a department for the development of munitions, while the factory was only responsible for production projects.

Albert's munitions program is divided into five parts, namely the Kramer mine, the development of the M203 grenade launcher, the use of the MOLLE tactical system vest, the Panamanian bottom jungle boots and desert boots, and the Type 99 parachute-soldier-knife.

M18A1 Broadsword mine is a kind of anti-infantry mine developed and produced by the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War in the 1960s. M18A1 has prefabricated fragmentation grooves, so the fragments can fly out in a certain direction when exploding, and together with the 700 steel balls contained in it, it can cause great damage in very small quantities.

The explosion kill range of M18A1 includes 50 meters in front and can spread in a sector range of 60 degrees at a wide angle; The height ranges from 2 to 2.4 meters. The maximum range of its steel balls can even reach 250 meters, including a moderate killing range of about 100 meters. It can be said that the unlucky egg who is hit by a steel ball will completely turn into a sieve.

However, the original Kramer mine used a 1.5-pound C-4-explosive, and it was not until 1956 that the C-4-explosive was developed in the Czech Republic, so Albert planned to replace the original C-4 with a T-N-T.

In November 1965, the Battle of the Derang River Valley in central Vietnam took place, in which the U.S. military verified the actual combat performance of the M18A1 mine. At that time, the 2nd Battalion of the 7th Cavalry Regiment of the US Army descended to the Derang River Valley by helicopter, but they did not expect that they had entered the encirclement of the Vietnamese people-civilian-army. The unsuspecting U.S. troops were divided into several groups and surrounded by three regiments of Viet Cong regular troops in a short period of time, and had to resist stubbornly on the spot without relying on the terrain in order to wait for the rescue of the large force. A small group of besieged U.S. troops suppressed the Viet Cong onslaught with continuous fire from M60 machine guns, but it didn't take long for the M60 machine guns to overheat the barrels due to the long continuous firing time. At the last moment, a US soldier detonated the igniter of the pre-planted M18A1 mine, and countless steel balls flew away with a whistling whistle, and all the enemy troops rushing to the front turned into colanders, and the US machine gunners took the opportunity to change to the backup barrel and continued to shoot, completely smashing the Viet Cong offensive.

Albert is also very optimistic about the future of the Broadsword mine, and not only the front-line troops can use this thing to effectively kill and injure the opponent's personnel. Reducing the number of opposing combatants, and also providing it to his private military contractors for covert infiltration missions, is simply a must-have weapon for killing people.

In the choice of the M203 grenade launcher, Albert did not choose to use the M203 grenade launcher produced by Colt, but chose the M203PI grenade launcher developed by the Miami RM company in 1987, because the M203PI system can make it easier to attach the grenade launcher to other rifles, such as the AKM and FAL rifles designed by Albert, so that it is perfectly compatible.

The M203PI grenade launcher, which can be attached to the FAL and AKM rifle handguards, makes these two rifles a combination of point-and-face kills. The M203PI can also fire high-explosive grenades, smoke grenades, flares, shotguns, CS gas grenades and training rounds, making it suitable for promotion in the police market for riot suppression. Albert has also developed a grenade launcher for the M203 to be used alone, allowing the M203PI to be used alone like the M79 grenade launcher.

MOLLE system is a new generation of tactical equipment loading system, this kind of tactical vehicle replaces the tactical vest, and a large number of PAL webbing ribbons are easily fixed on the carrying, which can be matched with equipment that meets the tactical needs according to the different types of soldiers' tasks, which is more practical and in line with the different changes in modern warfare.

MOLLE is also a modular load-bearing system that enhances the survivability and combat effectiveness of modern soldiers and marines, and coordinates the individual and overall components of the tactical system, including strengthening the tactical load-bearing vest. However, in this era when the infantry is not a son, according to this standard to equip the MOLLE system tactical vest and various modular accessories, it is estimated that the Belgian Congress is in charge of the money bag will open their mouths to scold their mothers.

Albert opted for a 6094 tactical vest with AK or FAL twin or triple magazine packs, sundries and medical kits for future Belgian Strategic Resources Cooperative military personnel. Private military contractors are no better than regular armies, they do not have a strong logistical supply system, they are basically on their own, so they will choose some ammunition that is common in the mission area, and those weapons of special caliber they will not use. In the future, as AKM and FAL become more widely available around the world, this foresight will be much more important.

Panama jungle boots and desert boots are extremely breathable, the ankle protection is also more thorough, and the edge of the sole touches the ground, the center of the sole is suspended, and the mud is not easy to attach to the sole, enhancing the comfort in muddy areas, Albert also has his own far-reaching plans for shoes, and in the future, his company's military contractors will act either in the African rainforest or in the desert of the Middle East, and now they must start thinking about the future.

Type 99 umbrella = soldier - knife - blade with a total length of 320 mm, a total weight of 550 grams, an insulated structure, and a non-conductive handle. The surface is also engraved with reticulation and annular grooves, which are not only comfortable to hold and feel good, but also anti-slip and good insulation. The cross-section is a solid oval, and the front section is provided with a transverse gauntlet, and there are holes in the gauntlet. At the tail there is a small shockproof north pin and safety rope. The tool holder material is made of black high-strength engineering plastic, which has the advantages of light specific gravity, high strength, good plasticity, impact resistance, high and low temperature resistance, corrosion resistance, aging resistance and so on.

The cutter body is a sharp, single-sided cutting edge that can quickly cut parachute lines and other ropes. The back of the knife has a sharp serration that can cut through the aluminum shell and cables of the aircraft. The blade body is engraved with a blood groove, which can be pulled out smoothly after piercing the enemy's body, and at the same time reduces the weight of the blade to 320 grams, and enhances the stiffness of the blade body, improving the bending and torsion resistance. The cutter body is made of high-strength stainless steel. In order to prevent the reflection of the cutter body and improve the concealment, the surface is sandblasted to make it dark gray.

The front of the scabbard is equipped with a leakage hole and a tie rope, which is usually wrapped around the scabbard, and when used, it is untied and tied to the leg to fix the umbrella knife firmly, and the umbrella knife can also be tied to a long pole or branch with a rope to be used as a spear. The back of the scabbard is inlaid with a whetstone and a whistle for contact, and protected by a cover piece made of fabric. At the lower end there is a steel insert containing a screwdriver, corkscrew and can opener. The scabbard lanyard is made of nylon braided tape and has a metal buckle, which can be carried with the paratrooper carrying gear, and the scabbard can be easily removed or attached from the user. For added safety, Velcro is also used to ensure that you don't get out of the sky. Although the scabbard has many accessories, it weighs only 230 grams.

These six products are Albert's choice to open the door to the equipment market, these things are not too complicated, but they can improve the quality of individual soldiers.

Albert handed over the blueprints to the head of the plant and asked them to conduct a trial production, and with the exception of the MOLLE tactical system, everything else could be handed over to the army for unconditional trial.

With the successful trial production of six products and the delivery to the Belgian Army for unconditional trials, the Belgian infantry immediately liked these high-performance products. As the reputation of these products quickly spread in the Army Division, it attracted the attention of the Quartermaster General of the Belgian General Staff, who immediately realized the value of these equipment and were ready to come up with the idea of a complete replacement of equipment. In addition, Emperor Leopold III, who was very influential in the army, kept blowing the wind on the ears of those who were in charge of money bags in the Congress, and in early October 1945, the Belgian Congress successfully passed a resolution that Albert signed an order from the military department and began mass production.

Coupled with the good reputation of AKM and FAL rifles in the army, the Belgian army is currently full of praise for Prince Albert, and even those old guys who never easily boast have a great impression of this 13-year-old prince, and strongly hope that Albert can take the time to come to the War Department as a guest to discuss a larger rifle order.

Albert was so happy that he was able to survive even if the Belgian Strategic Resources Cooperation Company was in a state of loss before receiving orders in the early days, thanks to the profit support of NORINCO.