XM25 ‘individual airburst weapon system’ is fitted with a chip that receives a radio signal from the gun sight which uses a laser range finder to determine the exact distance of the obstruction

The US Army is all set to use the XM25, a futuristic rifle capable of firing radio-controlled smart bullets, for the first time in Afghanistan. The XM25 has a range of 2,300 feet and has been designed to fire 25mm grenades, which can be set to explode right in mid-air after having travelled a particular distance. The XM25 ‘individual airburst weapon system’ developed by Heckler & Koch, is an effective airburst grenade launcher rifle derived from the XM29 OICW.

The XM25 rifle has been developed with the aim to address all the existing capability gaps when it comes to defeating the defilade targets. The system has extra features to increase its potential battlefield deployment, an attraction for armies across the world. This system offers improved features that can increase the soldiers’ efficiency when engaged in combat. It has an increased ability to hit every type of point target at a distance of almost 500 metres.

The XM25 has 25mm munitions including the highly effective high explosive air-burst (HEAB), door breaching, armour piercing and anti-personnel munitions together with two types of munitions that are not lethal—the agent and blunt dispersing airburst. The weapon was initially designed to provide the soldiers fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan increased ability to set the necessary fuse of every round in order to have it explode over the chosen target. After placing the aim point of the XM25 on the target, the soldier will be able to activate the additional laser range finder in order for the weapon to evaluate and calculate the necessary range to that particular target. The weapon will convert this to the necessary time of flight requested by the fuse setting. The XM25 has been designed to enable the soldier to utilise the existing XM116 integral fire control system. This highly effective system includes night and day channels thus increasing the battlefield adaptability of the weapon. The system includes a ballistic computer, a laser rangefinder, a compass, a fuse setter and an internal display.