Winchester Wins $16 million FBI Ammo Contract For .40 S&W

Written by Jacki Billings

Winchester Ammunition will supply the Federal Bureau of Investigation with .40 S&W ammo, a contract that is worth $16 million according to the FBI.

Despite the contract being awarded in September, an official announcement from Winchester was made last Thursday.

Under the contract, Winchester will provide a variety of ammo to include full metal jacket (FMJ), bonded jacketed hollow point (JHP) service cartridges, and frangible training rounds to federal law enforcement. Though the feds announced in mid-2016 that agents would be making the jump to 9mm with the Glock 19M serving as the organization’s official sidearm, the FBI says the need for .40 S&W still exists.

“As a deliberate and planned phase of the Federal Bureau of Investigation transition to a new pistol caliber, the agency requires a .40 S&W ammunition contract to support the currently issued legacy pistols which are incrementally being phased out,” the FBI said in the original solicitation.

Winchester alluded that its 180 grain JHP was a formidable contender in the bidding and evaluation process due to its reverse -jacketed, bonded bullet. The ammo maker says the JHP is capable of penetrating a variety of intermediate barriers all the while producing consistent penetration paired with reliable expansion. The JHP uses a nickel-plated cartridge that resists corrosion in addition to cleanly feeding and extracting, according to Winchester. The cartridge’s design culminates with flash suppressed powder, meeting the FBI’s darkened range requirements to ensure agents’ night vision is not compromised while firing.

“The FBI uses one of the most rigorous ammunition tests ever developed and we are very proud that Winchester has been identified as having the best product performance,” explained Matt Campbell, vice president of marketing and sales for Winchester.

While the FBI selected its primary supplier of .40 S&W cartridges, the bureau is still on the prowl for 9mm ammunition to fill Glock 19M magazines. A solicitation issued in September 2017 requests a variety of 9mm rounds to pair with the Glock service pistol. With a contract estimated at $35 million, the bureau is expected to make an award announcement sometime in the third quarter of 2018.

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