H & K MP7

The MP7 is a German submachine gun manufactured by Heckler & Koch (H&K) and chambered for the 4.6x30mm cartridge. It was designed in conjunction with the new cartridge to meet NATO requirements published in 1989 calling for a personal defence weapon (PDW) class firearm with a greater ability to defeat body armour than current weapons, (which are limited due to the use of conventional pistol cartridges). The MP7 went into production in 2001 and is a direct rival to the FN P90, which was also developed in response to NATO’s requirement. The weapon has been revised since its introduction and the current production version is the MP7A1.

The proliferation of high-quality body armour has begun to make guns that fire pistol ammunition (such as HK’s earlier MP5 submachine gun or USP pistol) ineffective. In response to this trend, HK designed the MP7 (along with the now cancelled UCP pistol, which uses the same ammunition) to penetrate body armour, but small enough to be used in place of either a pistol or a submachine gun.

It is currently in service with military and police forces in over 20 counties, including the UK and USA.