About Military Knives

The knife is one of the oldest human weapons, and it is still used both as a tool and for combat. The U.S. Military uses several knives and knife-type weapons, including dual-use knife-bayonets, with the major user being the two services most concerned with ground combat: the U.S. Army and the U.S. Marine Corps. By and large, the Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard adopt Army and Marine knives for their purposes.

Function

Knives are used to cut wood and roots, dig trenches, open cans and engage in hand-to-hand combat. An additional function specific to the military is that some knives are also bayonets, meant to be locked into place on the end of a rifle and convert that rifle into a short spear.

History

The most famous U.S. military knife still in use today is the Ka-Bar of the U.S. Marine Corps. Originally a hunting knife, the Ka-Bar was picked out of a hunter's catalog in 1942 as a replacement for existing knives, which were considered unsuitable for duty in the Pacific. Although Marines carried many types of knives during World War II, the Ka-Bar became the most common and popular, and continued in service after the war. The simple, tough, basic design of the Ka-Bar has kept it in service ever since, and now the knife is virtually synonymous with Marine Corps service. Modern Ka-Bars are made with a tool steel blade and synthetic handle. The design of the blade is so ubiquitous that the U.S. Army's M-9 Bayonet, the basic knife of that service, is based on it.

Types

As previously mentioned, the US Marine Corps uses the Ka-Bar, the Strider MARSOC SMF, the Gerber Mark II and the MPK. A related item is the OKC-35 bayonet, which it uses instead of the M-9 favored by the Army.
The Army uses the M-9 as its basic knife. It has a variant called the M-11, which has a hammer pommel and is issued to demolition and bomb disposal specialists. They are also very fond of the Gerber Mark II.
Generally, the Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard merely adapt knives from the other services to their uses. A major exception would be the divers of the Navy and Coast Guard, who favor the Aqualung Master Dive Knife. The U.S. Navy SEALs use this knife and also SOG's SEAL Knife and SEAL Pup knife, and the MPK. Indeed, the MPK was picked up by the Marine Corps after it was already in use by the US Navy SEALs.

Features

One military knife type is more of a classification: the ASEK, or Aircrew Egress Knife. This tool was developed by the US Army for use by its helicopter aircrewmen for use in getting out of a helicopter after a crash. However, there are actually a handful of designs that meet ASEK qualifications and are in use (the two major examples are made by Ontario Knife Company and Gerber Legendary Blades). Both have a hammer pommel, can cut through sheet aluminium, and have a point that can double as a screwdriver. The Gerber model is insulated in case live power lines are cut during an emergency evacuation of a helicopter.

Considerations

Knives like the Ka-Bar and M9 are often made by a wide variety of manufacturers, and not simply one company as is the case with Mission Knives MPK. For example, the M9 has been made by Buck, LanCay, Ontario, and Phrobis at different times.

[leepearl]

on 3/11/2009 Ka-Bar - the king of knives