Colt Automatic Rifle

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Colt Automatic Rifle
Danish LSV (Light Support Weapon) M/04 with optical sight and 100-round Beta C-Mag
Type	Squad automatic weapon Light machine gun
Place of origin	United States
Service history
In service	1994-present
Wars	Iraq War War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Operation Atalanta Mali War Military intervention against ISIL
Production history
Designed	1982
Variants	See text
Specifications
Mass	5.78 kg (Unloaded)
Length	1,000 mm (39.4 in)
Barrel length	20 in (510 mm)
Cartridge	5.56×45mm NATO
Action	Gas-operated, rotating bolt
Rate of fire	600–750 round/min
Muzzle velocity	991 m/s (3,251 ft/s; using the M193 round) 945 m/s (3,100 ft/s; using the M855 round)
Effective firing range	600 m
Feed system	Various STANAG Magazines.
Sights	Adjustable front and rear iron sight optical sights

The Colt Automatic Rifle or Colt Light Machine Gun is a 5.56 mm NATO, open-bolt, full-automatic-only firearm developed by Colt Defense. It is based on the M16A2/A4, and has a distinctive squared-off handguard, vertical grip, carrying handle and integrated bipod.^[1]

It is one of many squad automatic weapon-type firearms that have been developed from the Armalite AR-15 that use the Stoner bolt and carrier piston system.^[2] The family name was derived from the original AR-15 by adding "Colt", resulting in the CAR-15, to stand for Colt Automatic Rifle, even though the "AR" in AR-15 stands for Armalite Rifle, the original manufacturer.^[3] The CAR-15 weapons system consisted of the AR-15 and five variations, including the Colt Machine Gun and CAR-15 Heavy Assault Rifle.^[4]