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December 1, 2003
While the U.S. Special Forces are experimenting with a 6.8mm round for their rifles (M-16s and M-4s), they are also looking into new types of 5.56mm rounds. One of the more effective new developments is the APLP (armor piercing, limited penetration) round. Made with a blended-metal process, the 60 grain bullet will penetrate metal or other hard objects, but when it hits a warm body, it fragments rapidly. The effect is similar to an explosive round, and turns a non-fatal wound into a kill. SOCOM (Special Operations Command) has so far resisted adopting the round, largely because tests on gelatin did not show the explosive wounding effect. But tests on warm, but dead, animals, show the effect. And a former SEAL, working for a contractor in Iraq, got into a firefight with Iraqis and hit one in the butt with an APLP round, and killed the Iraqi. The former SEAL was had medic training and was able to examine the dead Iraqi and verified the dramatic effect of the APLP round. This bullet is not recommended for regular troops, because any incident of friendly fire would likely be fatal. But for commandos, it would probably be used exclusively, for these men get into battles where every shot counts. Normally, armor piercing bullets go right through people, doing less damage than non-AP bullets, which are designed to break up when they hit something and increase the damage.
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