The HK416: Made in Germany, used by French army and shot by British soldiers
The Heckler & Koch HK416 is now the standard issue rifle for the French army, having been introduced from 2017.
A German-manufactured firearm, the French variant, the 416F, is more than 36 inches overall, making it longer than the British Army's weapon of choice at just over 30 inches.
The bullpup configuration of the SA80 L85 means that, despite being shorter, it does have a longer barrel, but both rifles can take the same ammunition – the standard 5.56x45mm Nato round.
Piston, not impingement
And there is another similarity, as the HK416 also uses a short-stroke gas piston system where the expanding gas pushes a piston rod that strikes the bolt carrier assembly.
This makes it more reliable in harsh conditions as it runs cooler and reduces carbon build-up.
The system is known for being "overgassed" to guarantee reliability.
This can increase recoil and gives faster, more aggressive cycling compared to the direct impingement system used in other AR-15-type rifles like the Royal Marines' and Ranger Regiment's KS-1.
Similar, but not the same
Soldiers from 1st Battalion, The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment have been training on the firearm for a joint exercise in France, Exercise Gaulish, in which they used French weapons instead of their own.
Skill at arms instructor Corporal Leon Murray said of the French weapon: "It's fairly simple, it's all the same stuff.
"As long as you can load and make ready and operate the weapon system, you can't go wrong.
"It's got an extendable butt, it's also got an ambidextrous safety catch. The difference is it's got a cocking handle on the rear [the L85's is on the right-hand side of the body of the rifle].
"They're the main differences between this rifle and our rifle."
Pros and cons
The battalion spent weeks training on the system in the UK ahead of deploying to the CENZUB urban training area in northern France for the exercise.
"It's been nice getting hands on a new weapon system over on this exercise," Cpl Murray explained. "It's got its pros and cons.
"Obviously, we've been primarily working in urban, so it's quite hard getting the weapon system around the doors or whatever.
"So that's the main issue with this. It's just a bit longer than what we're used to working with."
But he added: "We've all enjoyed the opportunity working with the HK416.
"Some people do really like using a weapon system, so it's been good for the lads."
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