Heckler & Koch P11

Heckler & Koch P11 History

Members of special forces have long required specialized weapons and training to perform their specific missions. As a result, there were many types of unique weapon designs throughout the decades of the Cold War that formed many of the special forces today.

One of the more interesting categories of guns is the "underwater pistol," which, as the name suggests, gives special forces members the ability to shoot underwater. This weapon was developed in the United States and the Soviet Union as well as in Germany.

In the 1970s, the West German company Heckler & Koch began developing and testing the underwater pistol, introducing the weapon in 1976 under the designation "P11" (though it was not officially recognized until 1997). A five-barrel modular assembly is used, each holding a 4" long steel dart. Power is electric, provided by a battery pack embedded in the pistol grip.

These components combinedalong with the trigger groupmade up a large pistol, but were considered effective for its intended function.

P11 The use of steel darts is common practice for underwater weapons, as standard land-based cartridges have proven poor when fired in water. The official caliber of the dart is 7.62x36mm Spezial, and it has a range of up to 50 feet underwater. When held, the weapon can also fire (albeit with reduced accuracy) over water at a range of up to 100 feet.

Sights were added to the gun to ensure some accuracy at a distance. Once consumed, the entire five-barreled module of the weapon is simply replaced. The modular barrel itself can only be reloaded at the Hong Kong factory.

In addition to being used by the German Special Forces (GSG-9), the P11 has also been adopted by several other countries, including Denmark, France, Israel, Italy (COMSUBIN), Malaysia (PASKAL), the Netherlands, Norway and the Kingdom of the United States (special boat service) and the United States (SEALs).

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