Retired US Army Special Forces NCO: After More Than 2,000,000 Rounds of Testing, the FN SCAR Was No Favorite of US Special Forces

A retired U.S. Army Special Forces non-commissioned officer described why the FN SCAR became unpopular with some special-operations users despite surviving extensive trials. The program aimed to produce one weapon family covering 200 meters indoors to 800 meters in a sniper role, in two calibers, using a single receiver. FN Herstal won the contract on Nov. 5, 2004, delivering the Mk 16 in 5.56 NATO and the Mk 17 in 7.62 NATO, with reported more than 80% common parts and 100% common ergonomics. Testing fired over 2 million rounds from August 2005 to September 2008 across jungle, winter, mountain and maritime conditions. SOCOM approved for production on April 14, 2010, but later dropped the Mk 16 after about two months, citing insufficient performance versus the M4. The article notes SEAL teams received many Mk 16s and faced issues including a folding stock that collapsed under light impacts and charging handle placement that could scrape knuckles.