The Lightweight Small Arms Technologies program (LSAT) started in 2003 with the goal to provide soldiers with a more effective, lightweight solution on the battlefield. The concept of equipping soldiers with lighter weapons and ammunition has been constant almost from the day the first combat weapons were created. There was an interesting observation in the original American Rifleman article, (available on the Wayback Machine) that stated: The Army-led Joint Services Small Arms Program (JSSAP) challenged the defense industry to develop and present innovative ideas for dramatically reducing the combined gun and ammunition weight in a family of small arms. These new arms are intended to bridge the gap between what is in use now and the directed energy “ray guns” or other radical armament that might be available to the American soldier of 2025. We are now in 2026, almost a quarter of a century (yes that long) later and still no “ray guns”. Nevertheless, these developments are still ongoing and maybe at some time soon there might be some new Squad Automatic Weapon system? Time will tell, but in 2024 the current next generation SAW was chosen as the XM-250 chambered in the 6.8 x 51 (or 277 Fury for the civilian version).
