Why do servicemen complain of the stopping power of the .223 round?

Answer 1

Its a wonderment why some people even bother to respond when they have nothing to contribute.

The reason for its lacking stopping power is factored into two things, its small size, and the amount of powder behind it. Its a good close quarters round but from actually shooting the round, one must hold a good 12 inches above a target at 300 yards to drop it in.

This is why the .308 is making such a big comeback in Iraq, its got the oomph that our soldiers need. My Grandfather carried both the Garand (30 odd 6 round, which is a little bit bigger than the .308) and the M1 Carbine in WWII (30 cal round, VERY similiar to the .223), he said sure the Carbines nice to carry around but when you want to reach out and touch someone the Garand is the way to go. Its all factored into the size of the round and how much powder is behind it. This is shown the best by the .50 cal BMG round, when that thing passes through a human it literally seperates the torso from the legs if its a gut shot.

Answer 2

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RE:
Why do servicemen complain of the stopping power of the .223 round?

Answer 3

During the Korean and Vietnam wars the .223 (5.56mm)rounds were ill suited for jungle warfare as they were easily deflected by leaves and branches because the relative small size of the bullet compared to the 7.62 mm.

However the .223 travels farther and more accurately than the 7.62.

Also at closer range the .223 round will simply poke a small hole due to the higher muzzle velocity. So unless this round hits something vital there is no "stopping" happening. However at 100m or more the .223 bullet will most likely tumble within the body and in doing so tear up everything in its path in the body....hence "stopping."

But the .223 will not penetrate a wall in order to do so as a 7.62mm might.

Answer 4

Simple, the 5.56 round (.223) was designed to maim or injure. If you injured one, then you took one or two more out of battle to care for the injured. You could also carry more 5.56 rounds for the M16 than you could 7.62 for the M14.

The 5.56 has no stopping power, that is why the 7.62 (.308) is demanded more and more. Sub calibers of the 7.62 are being developed that fill that role also. Watch the discovery channel show "future weapons". They might have a re-run of that episode.

Answer 5

a good illustration is the sport of hunting. a .223 is used, by hunters, to hunt varmits, smaller game type animals that weigh less than 50 pounds. and some of the game hunted with this rifle is in the 10 pound range. things like coyotes, ground hogs, etc.

hunting larger game, like a 200# deer which is roughly the weight of a man, hunters use a much bigger rifle, like a .270 or a 30-06.

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if you placed a .223 cartridge and a .270 cartridge side by side, the difference is like a pint of milk carton beside a quart of milk carton.

Answer 6

The military has gone from teaching marksmanship to teaching shoot as many rounds as you can and hope you hit something. In my opinion its the wrong strategy.

The M1 garand and the M14 had larger rounds, .306 and 7.62x55 I think, and they were much more accurate and had a longer range than the m-16 which uses a 5.56 mm round.

A lot of squads have gone back to one of the squad members carrying an m-14 because of its range and accuracy.

Answer 7

It could also be that the current ammo load is configured for armor. So in a way, it has "too much power" and as stated above, goes through the target instead of tumbling around and shredding the insides.

Answer 8

Having used it in combat,I can tell you that it was designed to produce casualties rather that high numbers of dead.
It takes 2 men to carry off the wounded for treatment,the dead can be picked up later.
Of course a wounded enemy can still take you down,so I much prefer the M-14 in 7.62 mm. 1 round ,center of mass and they stayed down and out of the fight.

Answer 9

Because it doesn't have the knockdown capacity of the 7.62mm shell that's being fired AT them (AK-47, for example). If you're in the unfortunate position of having to shoot at an enemy combatant, you at least want the assurance of knowing that once you fire a well-aimed round at him, he's out of the equation. If he continues charging at you it tends to erode your confidence in your equipment and (more importantly) in your survivability.

Answer 10

The 5.56 is a politically correct Ammo, to appease our NATO
Allies. It lacks Knockdown Power, our old 30.06 ammo, killed
not wounded the enemy.