In June, the HK team suggested that this writer come out to their newest test of the 40mm GMG, a select-fire grenade machine gun. Yuma, Arizona in August is consistently above 110 degrees Farenheit. History is filled with tales of cannon, catapult, mortar, sappers and grenadiers, and many of the stories are of the mishaps involved. Mechanical fuses were an innovation that solved many of the problems, and the newer spin-armed types have allowed more security to the operators.
Modern armies have many types of weapons at hand.
The grenadier of the 1960s had a dedicated weapon, the M79. Then there was a helicopter pod-mounted unit that fired a newer, longer 40mm x 53 round. This new round had a much longer range than the old one, and it had too much recoil to be used as a shoulder-fired weapon. Ranges of 2000 meters were recorded. It was with these two thoughts in mind that this individual participated in the Yuma tests.