People talk alot about controllability of various assault rifles, but the reality is the only time a shoulder-fired rifle caliber weapon should be fired automatically is trench clearing and in FIBUA.
The level 3 marksmanship test we do is called the run-up. Start at 300M, shoot from the prone, sprint to 200M, fire prone and kneeling, sprint to 100M, prone and kneeling, sprint to 75M, standing, sprint to 50M, standing, sprint to 25M, only then do you fire full auto. Shooting a rifle-caliber weapon full auto much further than that is not necessary.
I do think the 5.56mm is a better military round, but the reason is not full-auto fire. You can carry more ammo for less weight, the weapon itself is lighter, and most importantly it's alot easier to use in semi-auto. Remember, most soldiers in this day and age go to basic training never having shot a rifle before. And even infanteers don't get to go to the range and practice nearly as much as they should, because there are so many other skills required of a modern soldier that need to be learned and refreshed. We don't have the time or the budget, and neither does almost any other army.
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