Personal defense weapon

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A personal defense weapon (often abbreviated PDW) is a compact firearm, smaller than a full-size assault rifle, but with increased range and better armor penetrating capabilities than a pistol or submachine gun.

1 Overview
2 Modern PDWs
3 See also
4 References

[edit] Overview

In 1986, United States Army Infantry School based at Fort Benning issued the reference document Smalls Arms Strategy 2000, which defines the APDW (Advanced Personal Defense Weapon).

PDWs were developed during the late 1980s for non-combatant troops, as compact automatic weapons that could defeat enemy body armor. Standard pistols and submachine guns chambered for pistol rounds proved ineffective against armored soldiers, and compact lightweight weapons capable of penetrating body armor were needed. In this role, they were supposed to be a more convenient alternative to the standard assault rifle, as their smaller size and lighter weight would be less of an encumbrance to a person whose primary function on the battlefield was not frontline fighting. This concept has largely flopped, however, due to the fact that short and so-called miniature assault rifles are much cheaper to manufacture. Additionally, PDWs usually require a special cartridge, generally with less range and power than an assault rifle. One example is the 5.7x28mm Cartridge for the FN P90 PDW. Though they have never become very popular for military applications, many personal defense weapons have found their way into the hands of security forces and some special forces as direct replacements for submachine guns.

Typical PDWs use small-caliber, high-velocity bullets cabable of penetrating soft kevlar body armor up to Level IIIa. Additionally, they tend to have a very high rate of fire which, when combined with the lower recoil of the smaller cartridges, increases the probability of multiple hits. However, the wound characteristics of such ultra-light, high-velocity bullets are the object of some debate.

The M1 Carbine used in the Second World War can be considered a forerunner of modern personal defense weapons. It filled a similar role — it was primarily intended not for front line troops, but for others such as drivers, engineers and medics to defend themselves in an emergency.