For decades, the American military has struggled with ways to improve handgun effectiveness while avoiding the bad press of using hollow point ammo (sometimes called “Dum dum” bullets). Picatinny Arsenal announced that the Modular Handgun System (MHS) now under development, will shoot hollow points in combat.
A recent study by the Federal Bureau of Investigation concluded that 9mm hollow-point rounds produce reliable incapacitation. This has not been lost on the military who is always looking for increased performance and force protection.
The effectiveness of hollow points is proven, the argument against their military use is legal, based on Article IV, Section 3 of the 1899 Hague Convention. The Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907 drew heavily from the Lieber Code, which was issued by President Abraham Lincoln on 24 April 1863, during the Civil War.
The Hague Convention of 1899, Declaration III, prohibited the use of bullets which readily expand or flatten in the human body by national armies engaged in international warfare.
The U.S. ratified the first three articles of the 1899 Hague Convention but never signed Article IV. Additionally, Article IV, Section 3 states that the prohibition on the use of hollow points applies only in a conflict between two signatories. Even if the U.S.A. signed Article IV, the provisions wouldn’t apply to the United States unless fighting another signatory state.
A grey area of international law has always been the treatment of irregular fighters. The Great Powers did not appreciate participation by non-nation state actors in their conflicts. At the 1899 Hague Conference, the Martens Clause determined that non-uniformed insurgents were unlawful combatants subject to execution on capture. This means that according to Hague, the laws of warfare do not apply to guerrillas. pirates and terrorists. SOCOM has used this to their advantage.
In the 90’s, U.S. Special Operations Command lawyers successfully argued that the Sierra 7.62 Matchking hollow point bullets and the Winchester .45 caliber 230 grain Jacked Hollow point were not designed to caused unnecessary suffering and these rounds were then fielded in combat.
Finally catching up, current U.S. military lawyers argue that that the shift to jacketed hollow point (JHP) ammunition by conventional forces does not increase suffering and reduces risk to non-combatants.
FUN HISTORY FACT: The Imperial German Army in WW1 knew a few things about effective weapons. They had deployed flame throwers, poison gas, machine guns and high explosives. In 1918, the German’s ran into Americans carrying the Model 97 Trench Guns (a 12 gauge pump shotgun) shooting 00 buckshot. They filed a diplomatic complaint that the shotgun was cruel and illegal citing the 1907 Hague Convention. When the Americans laughed at this, the German Army threatened to execute soldiers caught with shotguns. Challenge accepted! American General Pershing replied that Germans caught with flamethrowers or saw-bladed bayonets would be shot.
Hollow point bullets are commonly used by law enforcement agencies and citizens who carry handguns for self-defense because of reduced risk of from ricocheted bullets and over-penetration. A fortuitous side effect is faster incapacitation of a threat. U.S. Army Military Police have been authorized to use hollow points on bases since 2010.
The Modular Handgun System (MHS) contract does not specify caliber. The requirement is that the MHS must perform 10% better than currently issued 9mm NATO, 124-grain full metal jacket (FMJ). The MHS candidates will fire 35,000 rounds of JHP for reliability and endurance testing.
The shift to hollow points is legal and logical. I applaud the Army and the Department of Defense for making a common sense decision to protect our troops and our nation. May the best gun win.
(Featured Image Courtesy of Sig Ammo)
35k for a handgun today is not really that big of a deal. It will be interesting though to see the company that is selected for the ammo, the bullet type, weight, and velocity. I just hope they aren’t blind enough to only go for rounds that go 12″ like the HST. Id say let the units decide and the individual use an ammo that is approved terminally. But that might be asking too much.
Honestly, in a military application I would think the Lehigh extreme defense round would be desirable. It performs roughly the same as a hollow point but much better barrier penetration.
I also think it would have skirted this whole issue.
The problem I see with hollow points is that they don’t perform as well if the bullet passes through hard objects. For civilians and police this is less of an issue but military fights people who are wearing gear. Are hollow points reliable after passing through a magazine full of ammo? Do they work as well when passing through materials commonly used in combat vests and the like?
I think hollow points are a step up. Generally if they fail they are basically a fmj round. Just wonder if they are the best.
I do not like the Lehigh. it is all hype. it isn’t reliable and consistent. it costs more than its worth and doesn’t hold a candle to conventional designs. the military wouldn’t invest in a round that cant offer consistent performance, no matter the barrier performance.
The Lehigh round was designed to create a massive wound channel in ballistics gelatin. Ballistics gel is widely reported to mimic human flesh since it is made out of water and humans are mostly water (by weight). However, humans have complex levels of tissue density that keep it from mimicking much other than flesh. As a result, ballistics gel only serves to be a consistent medium with which to test rounds and universally report their statistics.
I don’t understand why we are having the debate for the military. I had two tours overseas and never even drew my M9 (and I suspect I am not the only one). The only branch of the military that repeatedly uses a sidearm is military police.