The Stryker, the AH-64 Apache helicopter and the Close-In Weapons System are nearing elimination thanks to large leads held by the Abrams tank, A-10 Thunderbolt II ("Warthog") and Nimitz-class aircraft carrier, respectively. The narrowest of these matchups boasts a margin of about 700 votes — far from an insurmountable lead, but a significant hole from which to climb.
But back to the knife hand-vs.-machine gun showdown.
The Mk 19's road to the round of eight wasn't all that easy: A second-round win over the Ka-Bar knife surprised many who thought traditionalists would rally behind the legendary blade, and a third-round victory over the M4 carbine proved the Mk 19's run with the big boys wasn't a fluke.
Staff Sgt. Misty Dedonder, a truck driver in the 443rd Transportation Company, an Army Reserve unit headquartered in Nebraska, fires an Mk 19 grenade machine gun at dead tanks at a range in Camp Atterbury, Indiana, in 2009.
Photo Credit: Spc. John Cro/Army
- 1,500-meter range for a point target and more than 2,000-meter range for an area target.
- Ability to take down rotary-winged aerial threats as well as armored enemy vehicles.
- Per one Army guide, a sustained rate of fire of 40 rounds per minute, rapid rate of 60 rpm and cyclic rate of 325-375 rpm.
The knife hand is less about the numbers, although when the creator of the Terminal Lance comic strip needed a title for a collection of his first 100 pieces, the choice was clear.
Voting to save the knife hand, or to help the Mk 19 put it out of its misery? Head here to cast your ballot, then share your decision with the hashtag #BattleBracket on social media.
Kevin Lilley is the features editor of Military Times.
