The good buddy of mine (sitting right next to me at current time) is a marine, and he did three tours in Iraq. I read him your post and this was his response.
"The M-16 and the M-4 will work in the thick of the s*** if you keep them clean. A dirty weapon with tight tolerances is going to be prone to jamming. But the ss109 and black hills ammo that they are using over there has been designed to run in the M-16s and that has eliminated many of the problems associated with that operating system.
The reason you see the AKs in use, is because in CQ scenarios, they are just better suited. When clearing a house the short barrel, heavier projectile, and fully automatic capability are better than the M-16 with it's longer barrel, lighter projectile, and three round burst. The weaknesses of the AK are not apparent in the ranges encountered in house clearing, and those of the M-16 are.
The M-16 is much better suited for an open battlefield (as in the open desert etc), it allows you to engage opposition before they come into their effective range. The AK is just better in close quarters."
And that sir, is straight from the horse's mouth.
|