British Army switching over to the Glock 17

[funkychinaman]

The British seem to drag their feet when it comes to sidearms. They stuck with the Webley and Enfield into the sixties, well after most countries had switched to automatics.

Are officers still expected to purchase their own sidearms? If not, is that still even an option?

[commando552]

Originally Posted by SPEMack618

Yes, yes the Glock is a good weapon. And yes it is cheap.

But is anyone else just a tad nostalgic about the Hi-Power going away?

I loved the Browning, all the photos that were comparing the old L9A1 to the Glock did was get me to remember how great the Hi-Power was (assuming you can get a friendly armourer to "accidentally" remove the magazine safety).

Originally Posted by funkychinaman

The British seem to drag their feet when it comes to sidearms. They stuck with the Webley and Enfield into the sixties, well after most countries had switched to automatics.

Are officers still expected to purchase their own sidearms? If not, is that still even an option?

No, the only pistol you will ever have in the British forces is an issued one. Seeing as how all pistols are 99.9% illegal in the UK for private ownership, that system wouldn't really work anymore.