A squad automatic weapon (SAW) is a light or general-purpose machine gun, usually equipped with a bipod and firing a 7.62 mm or 5.56 mm rifle bullet in NATO client circles, or in 7.62mm X 39 and 5.45mm X 45 in former Warsaw pact client circles. A SAW is used to provide suppressive fire for an infantry squad or section. A Home Army (Polish resistance) soldier equipped with an Brno ZB26 LMG during the Warsaw Uprising of 1944. ... A general purpose machine gun (GPMG) in concept is a compromise weapon, a machine gun intended to fill the role of either a light machine gun or medium machine gun, while at the same time being man-portable. ... A bipod is a support device that is similar to a tripod or monopod, but with only two legs. ... There are many cartridges which use 7. ... U.S. Military 5. ... Suppressive fire is a military term for firing weapons at the enemy with the goals of forcing him to take cover and reduce his ability to return fire, such as when attacking an enemy position. ... A squad is a small military unit subordinate to an infantry platoon. ... A section is an infantry unit in the British Army consisting of eight soldiers, including a Corporal as section commander, a Lance-Corporal as second-in-command, and six privates. ...

The basic use of this weapon is to force enemy troops to take cover and reduce the effectiveness of their return fire while friendly troops attack. This increases the likelihood of a successful attack against an enemy position. Therefore, a SAW must be light enough for an individual soldier to carry and fire from the shoulder.

A SAW can also be used to defend against a massed assault. However, it is not as effective in this role as a medium or heavy machine gun, as a SAW is not mounted on a tripod, and therefore cannot be set up to cover preset arcs of fire.

Many SAWs (such as the RPK-74 and L86) are modified assault rifles. Most SAWs in current operation are derived from only three basic patterns: RPK, the Stoner Weapons System, or FN M249. The RPK 74 is a Kalashnikov type machine gun chambered in 5. ... British soldier with L85 in the 1991 Gulf War British soldier with L85 SA80 (Small Arms for 1980s) is a family of related arms that include the British Armys standard combat rifle. ... M16A2 (US). ... The RPK (Ruchnoy pulemyot Kalashnikova, Russian: Ручной пулемёт Калашникова) is the light machine gun that replaced the RPD in the role as squad automatic weapon for Soviet infantry. ... Caliber: 5. ... Caliber: 5. ...

Operation Iraqi Freedom saw the advent of the M249 Para-SAW for some United States Army and Marine Corps infantry units. This updated model, featuring a shorter barrel and collapsable buttstock, is lighter and more wieldy than its precursor. It has proven especially valuable in urban operations such as room clearing, where tight spaces decrease the effectiveness the full size SAW.

Doctrine

Assault rifles often provide a full automatic setting, but troops too often become excited in combat and waste large amounts of ammunition. Therefore, in many modern armies, military doctrine requires the ordinary soldier to avoid using his weapon's fully automatic mode unless defending against a mass assault or an ambush. M2 machine gun An automatic firearm is a firearm that will continue to load and fire ammunition as long as the trigger (or other activating device) is pressed or until it runs out of ammunition. ... Military doctrine is a level of military planning between national strategy and unit-level tactics, techniques, and procedures. ...

This doctrine greatly reduces logistics loads, including combat pack weights, aerial resupply, and fuel requirements. It reduces training requirements and expense. It also extends patrol time for a typical soldier.

The problem is that this doctrine provides no fire support during an assault. The SAW was invented so that a machine gun could be carried on assaults. It is a specialist weapon to avoid unnecessary use of ammunition, and reduce both the training and combat pack loads of a squad.

When applied to civil or irregular militia, this doctrine makes private purchase of ammunition affordable, and allows militia to train and operate with standard military doctrines using nonmilitary repeating rifles. In war time, such lightly equipped civil militia can be easily upgraded by distributing relatively few SAWs, one per squad, and training. Lexington Minuteman representing militia minuteman John Parker A militia is a group of citizens organized to provide paramilitary service. ...

Further benefits:

• Training requirements are reduced. Fully automatic weapons require large amounts of expensive live-fire training before troops learn to actually hit targets while not wasting ammunition. SAW doctrine reduces training costs by limiting advanced training to a few picked specialists, usually the men who carry the weapon and its spare ammunition.
• Effectiveness is increased. Hand-held fully automatic fire is difficult to aim and is less likely to hit an incapacitating part of the enemy's anatomy. A SAW usually has a bipod, which permits the operator to rest the weapon on the ground or other object, increasing accuracy and reducing operator fatigue. This makes a SAW more effective than an assault rifle in fully automatic fire.
• The equipment is more reliable. A practical assault rifle needs to be lightweight, and is therefore prone to overheat or malfunction under the stresses of continuous fully automatic fire. Because it is carried by a specialist with a specialized pack load, a SAW can have a heavier barrel and a sturdier action without unduly burdening the entire squad.

A bipod is a support device that is similar to a tripod or monopod, but with only two legs. ...

See also

• Light machine gun