A fire cracker going off under the plugged barrel?
That photo is odd.
A fire cracker going off under the plugged barrel?
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Look closely - firing blanks
Probably already addressed, but- no, that M240B is equipped with a Blank Firing Adapter (BFA- the orange item at the muzzle), and is firing blank cartridges. Basically it is a plug at the muzzle with a small vent, which allows the blank round to pressurize the bore/gas system, operating the mechanism as if it was firing a round with a bullet. The flash you see is the vented propellant gases.
They are using blank ammo, the only way to get the weapon to cycle is to plug barrel.
Exactly. I saw that too.
Blank adapter. Used in training to allow automatic fire where no projectile is involved to generate pressure needed to cycle mechanism.
Blank firing adapter, blast focused downward.