Marine Corps launches infantry modernization initiative

Marine Corps personnel said the Systems Command’s Program Manager for Infantry Weapons (PM IW) has initiated a modernization project designed to increase infantry squad lethality.

“This is the largest modernization of the infantry squad in the last 25 years,” Lt. Col. Tim Hough, Marine Corps Systems Command (MCSC) program manager for Infantry Weapons, said.

The endeavor seeks to redesign the force to meet the challenges of a new age of power competition. Through PM IW, the Marine Corps plans to field numerous new weapon and optic systems over the next 10 years.

PM IW has started procurement of the Modular Handgun System (MHS), an effort is underway to expand the use of the M27 Infantry Automatic Rifle, and PM IW is also enhancing its optic systems via the Squad Binocular Night Vision Goggle – a helmet-mounted system offering improved depth perception and the ability to detect and recognize targets in extreme low light, in inclement weather and the presence of obscurants.

The Marine Corps will partner with the Army to procure the Next-Generation Squad Weapon (NGSW) system to replace the M27 and become the primary individual weapon for infantry units – boosting the lethality of the individual soldier and Marine.

“In line with the Commandant’s Planning Guidance, we’re looking to lighten the load and increase the overall lethality of Close Combat Forces—specifically infantry Marines,” CW4 David Tomlinson, an infantry weapons officer with PM IW, said.