British Armed Forces The
British Armed Forces adopted the AWM rifle chambered in .338 Lapua Magnum as the
L115A1 Long Range Rifle. The British L115A1 rifles are outfitted with Schmidt & Bender 3-12×50 mm PM II/MILITARY MK II 3-12×50 mm 0.1
mil telescopic sights. The L115A1 was in service with the
Royal Marines, British Army and RAF Regiment in Afghanistan and Iraq. In November 2007 the British
Ministry of Defence (MOD) announced that their snipers in the Army, Royal Marines and RAF Regiment were to get a new rifle. Accuracy International would supply 580
L115A3 Long Range Rifles with daytime telescopic sights. The L115A3 is being supplied as part of a broader Sniper System Improvement Programme (SSIP) which also includes night sights, spotting scopes, laser rangefinders and tripods. The L115A3 rifle was first deployed to Afghanistan in May 2008. When the L115A3 Long Range Rifle was only six years into its life cycle the British Ministry of Defence (MOD) recognized the improved capabilities of the AX series rifles in regard to special forces use. The AX series new chassis system provided more flexibility to utilize (future) low light and day light aiming optics, laser designators, and other accessories without the need for custom made mounting interface kits. The right folding AX series chassis system was also more compact in the folded configuration making it more portable and concealable, and featured a pistol grip. On request of the MOD Accuracy International explored the possibility of updating the L115A3 Long Range Rifle to the AX series chassis system, to produce a rifle that is a hybrid of AWM and AX features. The AX enhancements were well received by the MOD and British snipers, and an update programme was launched thus producing the
L115A4. The L115A4 can easily be mistaken for a new AX series rifle. The Schmidt & Bender 5-25×56 mm PM II LP/MILITARY MKII 5-25×56 as well as the suppressor, bipod and several other accessories from the L115A3 were reused in the L115A4 resulting in significant cost savings. Along with the rifle updates, the L115A4 includes a new deployment case, maintenance kit, and other accessories.
Dutch Armed Forces The AWM-F commonly referred to as
Geweer Lange Afstand (GLA) (Long Range Rifle) chambered in .338 Lapua Magnum has been introduced from 1996 by the
Dutch Army's
Korps Commandotroepen snipers and the AWM is used by all
Schutter Lange Afstand (SLA) (Long Range Marksmen) of the
11 Luchtmobiele Brigade (airborne infantry),
13th Light Brigade (motorised infantry),
43rd Mechanized Brigade (mechanized infantry). In 2007 the snipers of the
Netherlands Marine Corps also received this sniper rifle. The Dutch AWM-F rifles are outfitted with Schmidt & Bender 10×42 PM II and 3-12×50 PM II telescopic sights. The rifles are designated as
Accuracy, .338 (Accuracy anti personnel sniper rifle .338) and the
Military of the Netherlands claim a maximum effective range of for their AWM-F rifles and have used these rifles in Afghanistan with great success.
German Armed Forces . Since 1998 the
Bundeswehr fields an AWM-F chambered in .300 Winchester Magnum (7.62 × 67 mm in Bundeswehr nomenclature), with a 3–12×56 SSG telescopic sight made by the German company Zeiss, under the designation of
G22 (for
Gewehr 22) or
Scharfschützengewehr 22 (
sniper rifle 22). The German G22 rifles have folding stocks and emergency iron sights. For their G22 rifles, the Bundeswehr claims an effective range of and muzzle velocity of . The Carl Zeiss Optronics (previously branded as Hensoldt) telescopic sight has a
mil-dot reticle and a scale that enables the operator to see the dialled in elevation setting through the rifle scope's ocular. The Bundeswehr 3–12×56 SSG telescopic sight differs somewhat from the further developed 3–12×56 SSG-P telescopic sight. The Bundeswehr telescopic sight has no parallax setting option and the range scale has a setting range from 0 to 10 instead of 0 to 11 symbolizing the 11.2 milliradian elevation adjustment range shown in the current Carl Zeiss Optronics 3–12×56 SSG-P telescopic sight brochure. The
G22A1 has a Schmidt & Bender 3-12×50 telescopic sight and Harris Engineering bipod and is in use with German special forces. The
G22A2 is an upgraded variant featuring an AX series chassis stock, a new monopod and bipod, a new double chamber muzzle brake and a Steiner-Optik GmbH M5Xi 5-25×56 MTC LT LPF – TreMoR3s telescopic sight. The accessory pack besides spare and maintenance parts includes a Kestrel 5700 Elite Weather Meter with an integrated ballistic calculator. In 2019 Accuracy International was awarded a contract to refurbish and upgrade all G22 and G22A1 rifles to the G22A2 standard.
Royal Malaysia Police The
Unit Tindakhas (UTK) of the
Pasukan Gerakan Khas (PGK)
snipers from the
Royal Malaysia Police use the AWM chambered in .338 Lapua Magnum alongside the
Accuracy International Arctic Warfare chambered in 7.62mm.
Russian Alpha Group The snipers of the Russian
Alpha Group counter-terrorism unit are using the AWM-F chambered in .338 Lapua Magnum with Zeiss 3–12×56 SSG series telescopic sights. ==Users==