The U.S. Army is looking forward to getting its new submachine gun and this one does not come from Sig Sauer which has been winning contracts for its guns in the military and police organizations in the U.S. For the new submachine gun, the Army selected the Swiss-made Brugger and Thomet APC9K and it also marks the first official SMG for the Army since the introduction of the M3 “Grease Gun” in World War II. The category the U.S. Army calls the SMG as the Sub Compact  Weapon (SCW).

In what was expected to be a win for Sig Sauer’s MPX Copperhead, B&T won the bid worth US$2,575,811.76 which was announced quietly by the U.S. Army last March 29, 2019:

The P-OTA is awarded based upon successful completion of the prototype project proposed by B&T USA LLC in response to Sub Compact Weapon (SCW) Prototype Opportunity Notice: W15QKN-18-R-032M, evaluation of testing results, and subsequent updated proposal request letter for Follow-on Production Award. The purpose of this P-OTA is to purchase 350 SCWs, with an option for additional quantities of up to 1,000 SCWs, with slings, manuals, accessories, and spare parts.

The contract expects B&T to supply at least 350 APC9K with an option for the Army to get an additional 1,000 units in the future. It also includes accessories, parts, and services which were unspecified in the announcement.

The B&T APC9K that will be delivered to the U.S. Army might be a based on the B&T APC9 PRO K which is civilian legal variant. This variant in the APC9 family that was developed in cooperation with Austria’s counterterrorism unit, EKO Cobra, is the most compact and fires the 9 x 19 mm using the Close bolt blow back system. The APC9 PRO K is semi automatic but the U.S. Army version might be modified to fire in fully auto mode. For sighting its primary is the Aimpoint Micro TL with a Flip-up emergency sight being the secondary. It usually comes with two 30-round translucent magazines.

It is possible that the U.S. version can be compatible with the Sig P320’s magazine, which is designated as the M17 pistol in the U.S. Army as there are versions.

It is not yet known when the U.S. Army will be receiving these and what units will get first dibs to use them.