With the conclusion of the DSEI 2017 at the Excel in London, one firearm has gotten our attention --- the F90MBR Bullpup Rifle. Announced by Thales during the show, this is an update of the F90 bullpup rifle, which is the export version of the Australian EF88 Rifle made by Lithgow Arms, whose parent company is Thales Australia. The EF88 Austeyr rifle itself is a licensed version of the Steyr Aug made by Steyr Mannlicher of Austria (at least I got the countries right as other people usually interchange these countries) though it has a lot of distinct upgrades.

It is a light bullpup rifle, weighing 3.25kg. In terms of operation, with fully ambidextrous -forward bolt and magazine release controls. With the rifle’s open architecture it incorporates a NATO tri-rail system and magazine compatibility to so it will be interoperable with existing NATO weapons.

It will be available in multiple barrel lengths, and a “drop free’ magazine release function that regardless of the dominant hand of the shooter, it will facilitate faster magazine changes. Its case deflector can be easily reconfigured by the shooter without the need for tools, so it can be placed either for left or right handed ejection. Depending on the mission requirements, the shooter can reconfigure the rifle with the Grab Case --- change the barrel and attach compatible weapon accessories.

It can be used by amphibious forces with its ‘Over the Beach’ capability with soldiers able to fire the weapon upon emerging from the water surface after a swim. And they can shoot accurately with it up 600 meters.

“The F90MBR is the result of our ambition to support soldiers on operations – we’ve made long term investment in an advanced weapons manufacturing capability in Australia, and this is reinforced by over 100 years of weapons engineering and leading design expertise, at our facility in Lithgow, Australia,” said Chris Jenkens, the CEO of Thales Australia in the Thales press release.

He further adds that, “The F90MBR is a weapon ideally suited to the modern integrated solider. Light, compact and adaptable, its compatibility with existing NATO weapons and ammunition offers a cost-effective upgrade with a substantial degree of future-proofing.  The new generation weapon is evolved from a reliable, battle-proven platform in the F90 Assault Rifle, unsurpassed for its high levels of accuracy and reliability.”

Now, if we get another bullpup airsoft rifle in the market, as there is a dearth of new bullpup airsoft rifles for airsoft players to choose from. The F90MBR or even its older F90 sibling, are good candidates for airsoft.