Air Force Division Grounds M18 Handguns After Airman Dies On Wyoming Base

The Air Force unit that oversees missile and bomb bases has suspended the use of the M18 modular handgun after an airman’s Sunday death in Wyoming, the unit announced Tuesday.

An active-duty airman assigned to the 90th Missile Wing died at F.E. Warren Air Force base in Cheyenne, Wyoming, while on duty early Sunday morning, the base announced in a Monday statement.

The division’s public affairs office declined Wednesday to release the airman’s name or more details, citing time needed for next-of-kin notifications.

The Laramie County Coroner's Office declined to release information on the fatality. 

“We are deeply saddened by the loss of a valued member of our Mighty Ninety team,” said Col. Terry Holmes, 90th Missile Wing commander, in the statement. “Our thoughts and heartfelt condolences are with the Airman’s family, friends, and his fellow Defenders during this incredibly difficult time.”

Pausing This Now

One day after his death, the Air Force Global Strike Command, which oversees Air Force bases, announced a pause on the M18 pistol “until further notice.”

The decision is “following a tragic incident,” the Sunday fatality at F.E. Warren, says the military division’s statement.

The pause will remain in place during “comprehensive investigations by the Air Force Office of Special Investigations and the AFGSC Safety Office,” the statement says, adding that Security Forces Airmen will be equipped with the M4 rifle during that time.

AFGSC started fielding the M18 in March 2019.

One site, the Malmstrom Air Force Base of Montana, touted the M18’s adoption as an upgrade from the M9, which it had been using for more than three decades.

An FBI report released in recent weeks, however, raised concerns about Sig Sauer M17 and M18 pistols firing without someone pulling the trigger, The War Zone reported.  

Sig Sauer refuted the evaluation results, saying the bureau didn’t reproduce those results using a mutually approved testing protocol.

For A While Now

Military, police, and private gun users have seen problems with the Sig P320 series — which includes M18s — for years now, Laramie-based gunsmith Brian Dimoff told Cowboy State Daily.

“This is a common problem,” said Dimoff. “The amount of memes that are just crucifying Sig Sauer on the internet have been going on for years.”

Dimoff said he believes the issue is that the company tried to design its striker system without infringing Glock’s patent of that same system, and so made an ill-fitting design that may slip over time.

The internal pieces are under spring pressure and a block keeps the firing action at bay. If the pieces don’t fit together well, they’ll loosen over time and be prone to jolts.

“If one part begins to slip off another part, it’s a matter of time before it moves all the way down and you’re going to have a striker hit the primer,” Dimoff said.

As for Dimoff, he owns a P320 and says it’s a “great gun,” but he’s had it both customized and tested to the point of comfort.

The company responded to widespread criticism in a March 7 statement on X, formerly Twitter, captioned, “It ends today” and claiming reports of the guns firing on their own are either mischaracterized or fabricated.

“In the decade since its introduction, the P320 has undergone the most rigorous testing and evaluation of any firearm, by military and law enforcement agencies around the world,” says the statement. “Multiple plaintiffs’ so-called experts have conceded (that) it is not possible for the P320 to discharge unless the trigger is fully actuated.”

Three months later, a Sig Sauer P320 “went off” in its holster — an incident documented on video — wounding a police officer in the leg, California-based paper the Ceres Courier reported.

Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.