First test fire of M17 M18 pistol by 101st Airborne Division

The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) is the first unit of U.S. army to receive the Army's new Modular Handgun System that began fielding the M17 and M18 pistols, November 28, 2017. The M17 is a variant of SIG Sauer's P320 handgun, while the M18 is a compact version of the M17.

U.S. soldier with 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), fires the new M17 or Modular Handgun System at the 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne) indoor range, Nov. 28. (Source picture US MoD)

In January 2017, The Swiss based Company Sig Sauer Inc., Newington, New Hampshire, was awarded a $580,217,000 firm-fixed-price contract for the XM17 Modular Handgun System a variant of the Sig Sauer P320 9x19 Parabellum including handgun, accessories and ammunition to replace the current U.S. Army Beretta M9.

The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) received its shipment of more than 2,000 M17 and M18 handguns, Nov. 17, and unpacked, inventoried, inspected and test fired a portion of the pistols, Nov. 27.

According to the Army, the MHS program is the first in a line of modernization efforts that the service will pursue over the next few years.
The new handguns also have an external safety, self-illuminating sights for low-light conditions, an integrated rail for attaching enablers and an Army standard suppressor conversion kit to attach an acoustic/flash suppressor.

The M17 and M18 pistols are manufactured by Sig Sauer, who earned the $580 million contract to produce the weapons in January after winning the Army and Air Force's modular handgun competition.

M17 9mm caliber pistol standard version

M18 9mm caliber pistol compact version