Free Republic

As I understand it; When LT Kerry first came under fire his M-16 jammed {operator error?}. He switched to an M-79, which works like a 19th century shotgun. After he injured or scared himself with that weapon, he switched again, to the 1911 model of the 45 pistol. After his Navy Years, He returned to the low tech shotgun.

UNITED STATES AIR FORCE FUTURE WEAPONS PROPOSALS AIR FORCE 2025 STUDY Hypersonic Attack Aircraft A high-speed strike vehicle capable of projecting lethal force anywhere in the world in less than four hours. Operating at Mach 12 and a cruise altitude of 100,000 ft, this vehicle is a reusable two-stage system comprised of an unmanned boost vehicle and a manned hypersonic strike aircraft. The gas turbine-engined boost vehicle requires a conventional runway and accelerates the strike vehicle to Mach 3.5 and 65,000 ft. The strike vehicle then separates and uses a ramjet/scramjet engine to reach its cruise condition. The total system...