Heckler and Koch MP7: the Replacement for HK MP5

The replacement for the famous submachine gun HK MP5 has finally arrived! The MP7 is made by Heckler and
Koch, the famous German armament company. It is mainly being used for anti-terror operations. In the UK,
Ministry of Defense Police are the first force to have them, and the Metropolitan Police are very interested, as
well as other forces. So far after their testing, the gun has been very successful and is much liked by the MoD
Police. As armed police, their guns have to be limited to single shot firing. The mags hold 20 rounds and the
ammunitions will penetrate both kevlar and other sorts of body armor. 40 round box mags can also be used. The
gun can be shot single handedly or with both hands on the gun, the grip can also be folded back as well as the
stock pushed in. Another advantage of this gun is that there is hardly any recoil. At 900 RPM, it is an incredibly
versatile and powerful gun.

The gun is classed as a Personal Defense Weapon and at the moment is being used by the following forces:
German Army, Norwegian Army, UK MOD Police, Irish Garda Siochana, Malaysian Police Special Force and
South Korean Police.
It weighs:
• 1.8 kg (3.96 lb) empty
• 1.9 kg (4.2 lb) with 20 rounds
• 2.0 kg (4.4 lb) with 40 rounds
Length:
• 340 mm (13.4 in), stock retracted
• 541 mm (21.2 in), stock extended
Barrel Length: 180 mm (7.1 in)
Cartridge action: 4.6×30 mm
Action: Gas-operated, rotating bolt
Effective range: 200 m.
The HK MP7 Personal Defense Weapon (PDW) is a member of a relatively new class of small arms, called
Personal Defense Weapons (PDW; such specialized weapons are build since the start of WW2). The PDW are
intended, as name implies, to be a defensive sidearm for second-line troops, vehicle crews and other military
personnel who normally not issued with assault rifles. Previously, these troops were issued with pistols or
submachine guns, but proliferation of body armor in recent years made those guns ineffective. The first firearm,
intended as “the new age PDW” and offered in that class was Belgian-made FN P90, and it had special low-
impulse, high-velocity ammunition, capable of penetration of current military body armor and helmets at ranges
of 100 meters and beyond, while being much smaller and lighter, than assault rifle. The HK MP7, originally
known simply as HK PDW, is another entry in the PDW class, and thus is a direct rival to FN P90.

The HK MP7, first announced in 2000, entered production in 2001 and, by early 2007, is officially adopted by
German military, as well as some German special police units, such as KSK, and also offered for export sales.
The British Military Police issues HK MP7A1 to its personnel since 2005, and it is believed that some South
Korean special forces also use MP7A1.
The HK MP7 submachine gun / personal defense weapon has layout of a typical compact submachine gun (or a
large pistol), with magazine being inserted into pistol grip, with folding forward grip and telescoped buttstock.
The action of the MP7A1 is somewhat unusual for weapon of such small size, since it is gas operated, rotating
bolt design, which strongly resembles the action of the HK G36 assault rifle, suitably scaled down. The
ambidextrous fire mode selector/safety switch allows for semi-auto and full-auto modes. MP7A1 it designed to
fire special, high velocity ammunition, 4.6×30mm, that looks like scaled down rifle round. That ammunition is
unique to the MP7 and another HK weapon, the HK UCP / P46 pistol.
The receiver of MP7A1, along with integral pistol grip, is made from the polymer with steel reinforcements. Top
side of the receiver hosts a Picatinny-type accessory rail for sight mountings. Standard sighting equipment is
usually a set of low-profile open sights on quick-detachable mounts, plus a collimating (red-dot) sight
Additional rails can be installed on either side of receiver, next to its front end. The MP7A1 could be fired
single-handedly, or using both hands, either like the pistol or using a front grip. Telescopic buttstock can be
extended to give additional stability. With buttstock and front grip are collapsed, the MP7 can be carried like any
big pistol in the special holster, and can be effectively used in close combat.

The 4.6×30mm ammunition is loaded with pointed all-steel bullets with brass jacket. Bullet weight is 1.6 gram
(25 grains) and the muzzle velocity is 725 m/s (ca. 2400 fps). Manufacturer claims the 100% penetration of the
CRISAT body armor (1.6mm of Titanium plus 20 layers of Kevlar) at the distance of 200 meters. Other types of
ammunition, including tracer, frangible, spoon-tip (rapid-tumbling for use against unarmored human targets),
blank and trill (inert) also available for MP7A1; ammunition is currently manufactured in UK by BAE
Systems / Radway Green plant.