The US Army has partnered with Ohio defense company Battelle to implement the full material release of the new M111 Offensive Hand Grenade.
The US Army has partnered with Ohio defense company Battelle to implement the full material release of the new M111 Offensive Hand Grenade.
The collaboration supports the system’s transition to full-rate production as the military’s first new hand-thrown explosive since the Vietnam War era.
Conducted in participation with the military’s Close Combat Systems Program Office, the firm’s work involved the bomb’s assembly, concept design, process verification trials, and other qualification phases.
Battelle noted that it produced almost 7,000 testbed grenades and conducted first article and lot acceptance testing as part of the approval process.
Production took several years to refine the weapon’s manufacturing procedures, lethality, and operational safety, the company added.
“With our unique position as a trusted development partner, we were able to ensure the government is now positioned to meet current and future production needs,” said Sam Knutson, division manager for advanced materials and energetics at Battelle.
‘Safer Alternative’
Battelle highlighted that the octagonal M111 is built to equip warfighters with a “safer alternative” to the legacy M67 “baseball” grenade by applying blast overpressure effects instead of shrapnel fragmentation.
That architecture, which fully consumes the bomb upon detonation, was selected to reduce the risk of fratricide while optimizing utility in close combat.
“Battelle is focused on rapidly advancing innovative solutions that directly benefit the warfighter,” Battelle National Security Business General Manager Dan Pikora stated.
“We are excited to continue … to deliver technologies that support mission success.”
