The Colt 1911 pistol faithfully served as the primary sidearm of the United States military from 1911 to 1985.
In the early 1980s, the United States military initiated the Joint Service Small Arms Program (JSSAP) to determine a pistol to replace the venerable 1911. The Beretta 92FS in 9mm Parabellum, designated as the M9, won this competition.
Then in the mid-2010s, the time came to replace the M9 in favor of a more modern pistol yet again in the form of the XM17 Modular Handgun System competition. The winner this time was the SIG Sauer P320, designated as the M17 and M18 for the full-size and compact models respectively.
Between these two competitions, the U.S. military thoroughly evaluated and rejected several reputable service pistols that found great success or noteworthy attention in other markets.
So what are these noteworthy service pistols that the military ended up rejecting? Let’s find out…
1 – SIG Sauer P226 (9mm)
The SIG Sauer P226 is one of the most successful handguns that SIG has ever designed. At the conclusion of the Joint Service Small Arms Program, it and the Beretta 92FS were the only two pistols left standing.
The Beretta was ultimately selected because it was slightly less expensive, but the P226 went on to find much success in other military and law enforcement units across the world, including in the hands of the U.S. Navy SEALs.
2 – Walther P88 (9mm)
Walther’s entry into the JSSAP was the P88 pistol. While noted for its excellent accuracy, the P88 failed to meet the requirements because it failed the drop safety test and suffered a cracked frame after 7000 rounds.
In the early 1990s, Walther submitted a smaller version of this gun called the P88 Compact to the German Army to replace the Walther P38 pistol, but it lost out to the Heckler & Koch USP. P88 pistols today, both in the full-size and compact variations, are highly collectible and command a high price on the used market.
3 – Smith & Wesson 459 (9mm)
Smith & Wesson’s entry into the JSSAP was their Model 459 pistol.
Smith & Wesson had a history of supplying supplemental sidearms to the United States military before; for example, their Schofield, M1917, and M10/15 revolvers saw limited service and were well-respected.
The 459 was initially promising in the JSSAP, but after repeated testing it ultimately lost out to the SIG P226 and the Beretta 92FS.
4 – Steyr GB (9mm)
The Steyr GB is a unique pistol noted for its sleek appearance, gas-delayed blowback action, and (for its time) large 18-round magazine capacity. It ultimately failed reliability testing in the JSSAP.
Steyr also expected that the GB would be chosen as the standard sidearm for the Austrian military, but it lost out to the Glock 17. Despite its failures to obtain military contracts, Steyr GB’s are highly prized on the collector’s market today.
5 – FN Hi Power Double Action (9mm)
The FN Hi-Power Double Action, like the name suggests, was an updated version of the venerable Browning Hi-Power pistol.
Also known as the BDA9, it incorporated numerous ergonomic improvements over the Hi-Power and upgraded the Hi-Power’s single action only configuration to a double action/single action.
While it failed to win the JSSAP tests, it went on to be adopted as the standard sidearm of the Finnish military and several U.S. police departments.
6 – Heckler & Koch P7A10 (9mm)
Perhaps the most visually distinctive pistol to be entered into the JSSAP was the Heckler & Koch P7A10 pistol. This compact pistol is noted for its squeeze-cocker safety function, meaning that the front of the grip must be depressed in order for the pistol to fire.
While it failed to win the trials, it still found success on the German police market, and remains highly collectible today.
7 – Colt SSP (9mm)
The Colt SSP, or Stainless Steel Pistol, was Colt’s attempt to maintain their contract supplying the primary sidearm to the United States military after it was announced that the Colt 1911 would be phased out.
The gun was ultimately withdrawn in the middle of the JSSAP trials from Colt, and it was never released onto the commercial market. Nonetheless, it remains an interesting if lesser-known addition to Colt’s lineup.
8 – Beretta M9A3
When the U.S. military announced that they would be replacing the M9, Beretta attempted to preserve the contract by releasing the M9A3 pistol. This was an updated version of the M9 that was meant to address many of the perceived shortcomings of the original gun.
The M9A3 featured a thinner grip, sand-resistant magazine, Picatinny rail, Tritium sights, and a threaded barrel. However, the military ultimately declined to evaluate the M9A3 and to proceed with adopting an entirely new handgun.
9 – Beretta APX (9mm and .40 S&W)
Image Credit: Springfield Arms
After the M9A3 was rejected by the military, Beretta submitted their APX (Advanced Pistol X) pistol as an alternative for the XM17 trials. The APX is a modular pistol design that could accommodate both the 9mm Parabellum and the .40 S&W rounds.
The gun performed very well in the testing, but the military ultimately went with the P320 instead. According to Beretta, the APX is capable of a 45,000 round service life with 5,000 rounds in between stoppages.
10 – CZ P-09/P-07 (9mm and .40 S&W)
CZ’s planned entries into the XM17 trials were the P-09 and P-07 pistols; the former is a full-size and the latter is a compact. These guns are essentially modernized versions of CZ’s proven and widely successful CZ75 platform.
CZ actually withdrew both guns early in the competition due to their lack of a modular frame and DA/SA mechanism, both of which the military did not want.
11 – FN FNS (9mm and .40 S&W)
Also known as the FN 509 for the civilian market, the FNS was Fabrique Nationale Herstal’s entry into the XM17 trials. FN conducted rigorous testing of the FNS pistol (more than 1,000,000 rounds) before entering it into the competition.
While it ultimately lost out to the SIG, it still found success on the civilian and law enforcement markets.
12 – KRISS Sphinx SDP (9mm)
Like the P-09 and P-07 pistols, the Sphinx SDP is also based heavily off of the CZ-75 design. Developed by the Swiss-based arms manufacturer Kriss, the Sphinx SDP utilized a hybrid polymer/metal frame and ambidextrous controls, but failed to meet the modularity requirement of the XM17 trials. This pistol has found greater success in Europe
13 – STI-Detonics STX (9mm and .45 ACP)
The STI-Detonics STX was a direct collaboration between Detonics Defense and STI, a manufacturer of competition guns. This pistol is unique on the handgun market because it’s the only metal-framed pistol that can accept two different grip and four different slide/barrel assemblies. The gun was withdrawn from the XM17 trials for unexplained reasons.
14 – Smith & Wesson M&P9 2.0 (9mm)
The Smith & Wesson M&P has been one of the most popular pistols in the hands of American law enforcement agencies over the last several years. The 2.0 version offers a more aggressive grip texturing and better trigger over the original M&P.
The M&P 2.0 was entered into the XM17 competition, but ultimately failed because the gun was not actually modular unlike several of the other contestants.
Glock 19X (9mm)
The Glock 19X combines the frame of the Glock 17 with the slide and barrel of the 19. It the runner up to the SIG Sauer P320 in the XM17 competition.
The selection in favor of the SIG was controversial and Glock protested the decision, but the military proceeded with the P320 regardless.
Nonetheless, the 19X has proven to be very successful on the civilian market, with over 100,000 units sold within six months of its release.
