GLOCK Awarded Pistol Contract for the French Army

GLOCK announce on January 14, 2020, that they were awarded a contract by the
 French Armament General Directorate (Direction générale de
l’armement - DGA) to re-equip the entire French Army with its new
G17 Gen5 and multiple accessories, as their new standard handgun.

The G17Gen5 featuring a coyote frame with a black
slide and front serrations, luminescent U-shaped
sights and extended slide lock replace decades old
 PA MAS G1 S and PA MAC50 pistols.

The contract over the next three years includes
 over 75,000 pistols, holsters, magazine pouches,
 suppressors, several types of ammunition and
 protective cases. The offered pistols under went stringent testing by the French STAT (Section
Technique de l’Armée de Terre) under the supervision
of the DGA, to make sure the selected pistols and
 holsters fit their high standard military requirements 
due to the high operational employment of the
 French forces.

The tender was launched in early March 2019
 where the tender size was announced and possible
 candidates were asked to hand in their profiles.
 The French DGA selected a number of all possible
 candidates to proceed to the following phase.

The try-outs were composed of a series of stringent tests to assess both the reliability and user friendliness
of the offered pistols and accessories, in particular with a minimum expected lifetime of
 26,350 rounds.

PA MAC 50 (Pistolet Automatique – Automatic pistol) is a standard semi-automatic pistol (also known as the MAS 50) used by the Foreign Legion. It had been produced initially by Manufacture d’Armes de Chatellerault (MAC), thereafter by Manufacture d’Armes de Saint-Étienne (MAS). The PA MAC 50 had been using in the French Army since 1950. It has been replacing by the PA MAS G1 since 2000.

“This award follows several Armies in Europe
 and throughout the World. The importance of the
program is underlined by the fact that it will equip 
all French troops both regular but also special
 operations with GLOCK pistols. We are very proud
and honored to deliver our high-quality Safe Action
 pistols, as well as excellent and reliable accessories
to the French military.” Declares Richard Flür, 
International Sales Director at GLOCK.

Throughout this great challenge, GLOCK GmbH
is accompanied by “Armurerie de la Bourse”,
 GLOCK’s partner for the military market in France.
 The first G17 Gen5 pistols and accessories are to
 be distributed to the French troops within the first
 months of 2020.