Heckler & Koch G11 Country Germany Type Assault rifle Manufacturer Heckler & Koch Introduction 1990 Specifications Weight 3.6 kg (8.0 lbs.) empty, 4.3 kg (9.5 lbs.) loaded Length 750 mm Barrel length 540 mm (155 mm per twist) Cartridge 4.73x33 mm caseless ammunition bullet mass 3.25 g Rate of fire 550r/m full auto, 2200r/m 3 round burst Muzzle velocity Approx. 930 m/s Effective range 400 m Feed system 45 or 50-round detachable box magazine Sights Integrated optical sight

The Heckler & Koch G11 is a non-production prototype bullpup assault rifle developed during the 1970s and 1980s by the Gesellschaft für Hülsenlose Gewehrsysteme (GSHG) (Corporation for Caseless Rifle Systems), a conglomeration of companies headed by firearm manufacturer Heckler & Koch (mechanical engineering and weapon design), Dynamit Nobel (propellant composition and projectile design), and Hensoldt Wetzlar (target identification and optic systems). The rifle itself is noted for its distinct blocky shape, bullpup configuration, and use of caseless ammunition. It was primarily a project of West Germany, though it was also of significance to the other NATO countries as well. In particular, versions of the G11 were included in the U.S. Advanced Combat Rifle program.

Reportedly, around 1,000 rifles were delivered to units of the army of West Germany shortly before German reunification in 1990, though the weapon never entered into full production. Reunification imposed new strains on the German army and forced a major reassessment of defense needs. Additionally, the Federal German army inherited the entire East German stockpile of AK-74 assault rifles following the merger. Given the wider political implications of reunification, it was hard to justify the additional cost of the G11.

By 2004, the technology developed for the G11 was licensed for the Lightweight Small Arms Technologies project, the current project of which is a light machine gun prototype for the US Army. The design is intended to be able to proceed with either a cased cartridge using a composite case or a caseless ammunition design developed from the G11. Both ammunition designs are telescoped ammunition like that used by the G11, however the current ammunition design has a plastic case in contrast to the fully caseless G11 ammunition. The design, like the G11, uses a rotating bolt, but rotating along the longitudinal axis of the weapon.