If you were a security contractor in Iraq, what weapons?

[Min]

What weapon would you take?

Rifle

Sidearm

Knife

Any other gear you might want to list



For me:

Rifle: DSA FAL

Sidearm: Glock 20 10mm with 15 round mags

Knife: My made-to-order A2 steel fixed blade

(I'd also pack a Remington 870 Police pump shotgun)




Another question: would you do it for a year, at $100K a year, tax-free?

 

[KaceCoyote]

AK-47

Makarov

AK bayonet


why? I dont wanna look like a contractor. Walkin round with an M4 or whatnot means that to the average idiot with an RPG, you look exactly a special forces operator of somesort.

Edit:HELL YES I WOULD!

 

[Gabe]

Rifle: SIG 550

Handgun: HK USP45

Knives: Trace Rinaldi Tempest in S30V + CR Sebenza + Leatherman Wave


Would I go? Absolutely but I'm far from qualified for that kind of work.

 

[Delmar]

I doubt seriously that I am going to be mistaken for a native, so the equipment isn't going to make much of a disguise:

M1A with suitable scope

MAC10 in 45 ACP

M1911A1

Would do a short barreled 870 and a mag extension

Knife-Standard issue Bayonet would do okay.

Air Conditioning would be pretty nice.

 

[Orion]

I'll second the SIG 550.

SIG 220st.

Ontario survival knife Army Issue circa 1987. (still got it no reason to switch now)

 

[duckfoot]

Remington 1100 Comp Master, 1911, 3 M15 WPGs and as many M67 FHGs as in want.

 

[Daniel]

Contact initiated by RPK and RPG fire. Not to mention a landmine attack where you cannot respond in kind; no siree, not a job for this little black duck.

* Best and heaviest armor avail. Weight does not matter; no marching -- need to survive (unlikely) your vehicle/outpost getting wasted by a RPG or riddled with RPK fire.
* A LMG as a primary weapon (249, RPK), you need to destroy the ambush by heavy and accurate suppressive counter fire (will allow your less heavily encumbered and surviving companions to maneuver).
* Sidearm choice doesn't matter, but I choose a 1911 for 1911's sake.
* Any decent knife.

Not a good place to be without heavy armour support (tank).

 

[Preacherman]

You left out some of the most important parts. Your own rifle, handgun and knife are less important than:

1. VEHICLE: Personally, I'll take an M1 Abrams, please.

2. BACKUP: A company of Marines, thank you very much.

3. AIR SUPPORT: A flight of A-10 Warthogs, methinks.

4. OTHER: Unlimited fuel, ammo and other necessary supplies for myself and all the above.

That should help to keep me alive out there...

 

[ZekeLuvs1911]

Let see.....I would go with a H&K G3, a M1911A1, and any well made combat/survival knife.


I would go also if I had the right training and credentials.

 

[IRONFIST]

I think I would like that DSA Para FAL with the 9" barrel. If I miss them with the lead, the muzzle blast alone should knock 'em down. Put a nice red-dot scope up top and give me a vertical foregrip too. The last couple of shots in my mags would be tracers. For the pistol, I'll take an HK USP .45 with a laser module on the rail, holster would be a thigh rig with a couple spare mags. For the knife, I'll take a Himalayan Imports Kukri. You never know when you might have to lop off some heads and arms and the Kukri does double duty as a short sword. Body armor is a must and If I could handle the hassle of it, throw a trauma plate in there as well. I would most definetly be wearing whatever the local folks would be wearing at the time. I would always try to have a street map with me. I also think I would be carrying around a tube of some kind of pigment to rub into my lily-white skin in case I had to get the hell outta Dodge city on foot. Of course, all the above thinking and planning are moot if the creeps slam an RPG into the cab of my vehicle or they jack me with an IED... then its game over.

 

[hd1.]

As long as we're indulging our fantasies here, how about:

1). A hydrogen bomb,

2). A fleet of bulldozers,

3). Comfortable shoes for doing the "happy dance".

 

[Ktulu]

Life insurance, clean (no holes) underwear, etc.

 

[Evil_Ed]

Realisticly, I would buy a full set of body armor before I left the states with my sign-on bonus. I would keep some cash handy for when I get to Iraq and buy an AK-47 with plenty of mags and 2 of whatever pistol I could get ahold of (probably a Makarov in 9x18). Taking weapons there would be nigh unto impossible and even harder to bring back to the US so buying them in country would be easier and waaaaay cheaper. I would never go anywhere unarmed in that country and I would never agree to leaving for a high risk area like Tikrit unless we had a military escort (more for bait than protection, the military vehicle is more likely to draw RPG fire than a civilian contractor vehicle).

 

[trapshooter]

Hint:

Where do you get extra ammo when you run out?

Kind of limits the caliber to:

5.56 Nato

7.62x39

9MM

Unless you want to pack all your own in. Gets kind of tough. Spare mags are hard to come by, too. Quality holsters, slings, good sights. Body Armor. Extra shooters. Knives are good for cutting open MRE's. If you need it for something else, you are guilty of failing to solve the 'sufficient ammo' issue.

Cutting to the chase:

M4, RPK, AK, SAW, and a very well armored, fast vehicle wioth a Mk-19 or M2 up. Fill all seats with shooters. Drive very, very fast. Avoid crowds and blocks. Look for the IED thing all the time. Forget blissful, meaningful conversations with your fellow shooters, too.

JMVHO

 

[Ky Larry]

AK-47
CZ Skorpion
Winchester 1300 12 ga.
Remington 700 ADL .30-06
1911A1
Cold Steel Tanto
Ma Duce .50cal (For serious social work)
AC-130 Gun ship

Hell no, I wouldn't go. God let me come home from an unorganized cluster f**k thirty-some years ago and I've thanked Him every day since. He might not be so kind the next time.

 

[XavierBreath]

Rifle
AK47

Sidearm
HK USP in 9mm

Knife
Two. One of them a big sharp non-folder. The other a Swiss Army.

Weapons choices due to reliability and ammo selection. Knives due to lessons learned.

 

[Foreign Devil]

I would take a high quality select fire AK/RPK clone in 7.62 x 39. Maybe the Robinson Arms VEPR if they make them select fire for the military.

A good folding stock may be needed if lots of travel in vehicles is anticipated.

 

[JamisJockey]

Edit: I wouldn't 'take' any firearms, just knives...I'd get what I needed in contry. Except the primary sidearm, that way I'd be armed as soon as I'm 'in country'.
Rifle(s):
AK with folding stock. Preferably the a 75-100round drum mag in it. No optics. Shotgun in vehicle (870 would be fine).
SMG: Anything that I could get my hands on. For convienence, but alot more firepower then a sidearm.
Sidearm(s): Something high (sorry, 'normal') capacity. Wouldn't matter much what, as long as it holds alot of rounds. Probably a Glock in 9mm because I shoot Glocks well.
Bug: Not sure. Probably a Makarov.
Knife: K-bar 'just in case'. Leatherman wave tool for everyday living. Pocket folder, also.

The best way to get out of an ambush is with overwhelming firepower. While a LMG would be nice, the AK would be a better compromise on portability, ability to fire from inside a vehicle, etc. Empty drum mag in direction of attackers and try to get the outa dodge!

Before I had a son, I would have gone in a heartbeat. 100k pretax is alot of money, and the experience would be worth it. Now...no, I wouldn't go.

 

[fix]

Protective equipment and night vision equipment...maybe a sidearm. Plenty of weapons to be had in country, and in fact that's what many of the contractors use.

 

[Kobun]

SG551 or SG552, with aimpoint or a 1-4x scope, 8 30rnd mags.
Glock 34 and 26with atleast six 20rnd mags.
Cold Steel Recon Tanto.
Infrared strobe.
Frag grenades, atleast six.
Level IV plates in carrier.
Surefire weaponlights.

 

[444]

The ones they issued me.

"would you do it for a year, at $100K a year, tax-free?"

No

 

[AJ Dual]

As long as we're indulging our fantasies here, how about:

It would probably take a wearable EXACS: Exo-Mechanical Armored Combat Suit, to get me over there

Right arm: 7.62 NATO Mini-Gun
Left arm: Mk19 grenade machine gun.
Shoulder hardpoint: quad mount AT4 rockets.

Sidearm? Nahh, I'd just use my "feet".

Squish.

 

[Richardson]

Rifles: DSA 16" tactical carbine (out and about) and an AK47 (camp & indoor rifle), and a Remington 700 TWS in .308 (when we're gonna be sitting in a relatively open area) ..... There will be different situations requiring different tools ...

The pistol will not just be for defense, but would be a backup for the rifle, I'd take a SIG P226 in .40 S&W with several 12 round magazines.

Knifes: Cold Steel Black Bear Classic.... and a Spyderco Civilian... and a leatherman Juice.... Never can have too many knives...


Richardson

 

[Bravo11]

I'm with 444.
You take what you've trained with and what your company has planned for.
If your with a legit security company you could fly in any and all arms/equip you needed thru contracted cargo planes. Train then Shoot, Move, Communicate.

 

[George S.]

Unless the company provided a specific weapon, I would carry a similar weapon to that what is being used by either the occupying forces or the locals. For a place like Iraq, a rifle something like the M-16 or M4 in 5.56mm NATO or an AK-47 or similar using 7.62x39. Any of them should have full-auto capability. For a sidearm, a Beretta 92FS/M9 or Glock in 9mm or a 1911. A small backup pistol with possibly a leg holster too. I would want any of these to be NIB and completely tested and broken in by me and nobody else.

A rifle would be suitably equipped with a red dot, sling, folding stock, a number of (very) hi-cap mags and any tuning to make it very accurate. A large sheath knife such as a Ka-Bar would be my choice for a fighting knife and probably a backup knife like a switchblade or auto-opening knife. Night vision goggles and the most current and best body armor.

My thinking is that if I have something that is already in use in an area, I would have a source for ammo, spare parts, or somebody who could do some 'smith work if necessary. I don't think I would want to have something really unique; if it would break for whatever reason I might be without a suitable primary weapon until I found (or grabbed) a backup piece.

From the pics I have seen of the private security forces, it looks like an AR-type of rifle is the model of choice. Haven't paid a lot of attention what sort of pistols any of the private security guys carry, but I'm sure they have them.