UK company wins big U.S. Army deal for training ammunition

The U.S. Army awarded UTM Ltd. a contract worth up to $257 million to supply 5.56mm marking ammunition used in force-on-force training, the Department of War announced. The contract covers M1042 loose and M1071 linked cartridges for the Close Combat Mission Capability Kit.

UTM, formally Ultimate Training Munitions Ltd., is based in Bury St. Edmunds, United Kingdom. Bids for the contract were solicited online, and the Army received one bid. Army Contracting Command in Newark, New Jersey, is managing the contract, designated W15QKN-26-D-A102, with an estimated completion date of August 24, 2031.

The Close Combat Mission Capability Kit is a temporary weapon conversion system that lets soldiers use their standard-issue rifles and machine guns for realistic force-on-force training, with the M1042 round fired from M4/M4A1 and M16-series rifles fitted with a conversion bolt, and the M1071 fired from the M249 Squad Automatic Weapon under the same setup. Both cartridges use a low-energy aluminum-cased projectile designed to leave a bright, water-soluble marking compound on impact without penetrating a soldier’s uniform or body armor.

UTM’s marking rounds achieve an average muzzle velocity of about 375 feet per second and maintain a shot group of roughly four inches or less at 30 meters, with the low-energy projectile striking the ground at about 70 meters, according to the company. The Army has adopted a 75-meter surface danger zone for training with the ammunition, which allows units to conduct exercises in a wider range of locations than live-fire training typically permits. The cartridges must meet military performance specifications MIL-PRF-32313 and MIL-PRF-32315.

UTM has supplied similar marking ammunition to the Army for more than a decade. The Army awarded the company a $93 million contract for the same type of cartridges in 2020, with a completion date of July 2026. The Army issued a presolicitation notice for the current requirement in March, structured as a firm-fixed-price contract with five one-year ordering periods.

Work locations and funding for the new contract will be determined as the Army places individual orders, and the Army has not disclosed how many cartridges it expects to purchase under the five-year ceiling.