The Marines are re-issuing the Colt 1911
.45 Pistol Because The 9 mm Is Too Weak!!! being called a glorified pellet gun.
I was a Marine combat correspondent at the time, it was the end of my deployment, and I was downright tired. Nonetheless, when I sat down with McGinty, I'd read his Medal of Honor citation about 25 times.
Rare was the opportunity to talk to a living MOH recipient.
My first question was about one line of his citation which had particular weight with me:
"So your citation has a line that reads," looking down at my notepad then, "quote — 'When the enemy tried to out flank his position, he killed five of them at point-blank range with his pistol.' — and I just have to ask, what's it like to kill five guys at point-blank range with a pistol?"
McGinty chuckled then, as old men do when confronted by the zeal of their younger counterparts, then he said the obvious, "Well, hell, son, it was downright scary."
McGinty said the enemy fighters had rounded the corner of his bunker and he turned to see them pointing their weapons at him, dead to rights. They all fired high.
"That AK, it's got a nasty kick. And they don't control it well if they're just holding down the trigger," McGinty said he drew down with his 1911 and let loose.
"Let me tell you one thing, if it weren't for that Colt 1911, I'd be dead right now."
Though they "had very little clout to throw around, believe it or not."
Being qualified with the weapon, I have to say don't blame him, most Marines I'd ever talked to hated the standard issue 9 mm Beretta. It's a glorified pellet gun, as far as I'm concerned, it has no balls, no stopping power. If you're shooting at a motivated target, and you don't hit vitals, that target will just keep coming.
What does this mean for the Colt bottom line? PLENTY! - a $22.5 million order for the Connecticut-made pistols.
McGinty got his wish, Fox News reported that Marines have recently started to fill orders for a new 1911 .45-caliber colt pistol.
The Marines are calling it the "M45 Close Quarters Battle Pistol," and I'm sure the Marines carrying it will have a lot more confidence in close quarters.
Geoffrey Ingersoll — Business Insider
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The Marines Are Reissuing The 1911 Colt .45 Pistol Because The 9 mm Is Too Weak - Business Insider
The M1911 Colt .45
The Colt .45 M1911 is making a big comeback, now that the U.S. Marines have placed a $22.5 million order for the Connecticut-made pistols.
It’s been called the greatest handgun ever made, and it has barely changed sine 1911, when the legendary John Browning designed it especially for the U.S. Military.
And now, the Colt .45 M1911 is making a big comeback, now that the U.S. Marines have placed a $22.5 million order for the Connecticut-made pistols.
The gun, which has been wielded on film by John Wayne and in real life by Sgt. Alvin York and Maj. Audie Murphy, was the standard-issue sidearm in the military for decades, until it was replaced by the Beretta M9 in 1985.
The gun, one of the most successful pistols ever used at Camp Perry's National Matches, a competition known to be the main world event in artillery sports, has barely changed since it's creation. Dinkel says that shows the gun's "elegant design" just can't be improved on. And firearms experts agree.
"You can’t beat a .45 cartridge," Jack Lewis, firearms director for Cowan's Auctions, told FoxNews.com. "Some things are hard to replace," he said.
Colt Defense, based in Hartford, Conn., will supply as many as 12,000 of the 200,000 U.S. Marines with semi-automatic, tan-colored M45 Close Quarter Battle Pistols, and they will include spare parts and logistical support.
The gun has long been the weapon of choice for special operations agents, thanks to its reliability and the stopping power of its massive bullets.
"I'm really glad that they're keeping it in the American economy," Lewis, who used the gun while he was in the armed forces, said. "I was quite upset when they went to the Beretta," Lewis said.
Some reports suggest Marines are not happy with their main Beretta M9s for their lack of accuracy and stopping power. With M1911's now supplying Special Ops, growing interest may lead to a better solution.
"To have the 1911 selected again for U. S. Forces 101 years after its initial introduction is just an incredible testament to the timeless design and effectiveness of the Colt 1911," Dinkel said. "This is truly a gratifying contract award."
