Infantry Weapons

Heckler & Koch G3

Also known as
  • HK G3
  • H&K G3
  • G3 rifle
  • Gewehr 3
  • G3A3
  • G3A4
  • G3K
  • AG-3
  • G3-A3
  • G3-A4

The Heckler & Koch G3 is a roller-delayed 7.62 x 51 mm NATO battle rifle developed in West Germany from the CETME rifle family. Its long service life and licensed production have left G3-pattern rifles in multiple conflict arsenals, including documented Boko Haram small-arms holdings in the Lake Chad basin, RSF-linked evidence in Sudan, Saudi-linked G3 rifles reported in Yemen, and G3/BA64 rifles still circulating in Myanmar's post-2021 war.

Heckler & Koch G3, 7.62 mm select-fire battle rifle, Infantry Weapons
Image source: Commons G3A3 Rifle Image

Role in Conflicts

2023 Sudan War
Frontline Assault

Amnesty International identified G3 rifles in 2023 Sudan War visual evidence from East Darfur and reported Yemeni transfer markings, with the broader report tying verified battlefield imagery to parties in the conflict.

2021 Myanmar Civil War
Frontline AssaultCaptured, Seized & Recovered
Side
State Administration Council and allied forcesPeople's Defense Forces and ethnic armed organizations

The Diplomat reported that Myanmar's military still relies on domestically produced G3/BA64 rifles after the 2021 coup and that resistance fighters are frequently shown with captured or repurposed G3 rifles.

Profile / Specs

Specifications

Caliber
7.62 x 51 mm NATO / .308 Winchester
Operation
Roller-delayed blowback, select fire
Feed system
Detachable box magazine, commonly 20 rounds; Small Arms Survey lists 20- or 30-round boxes
Barrel length
450 mm in the BICC profile; Small Arms Survey identification data lists 488 mm for the illustrated G3A3
Overall length
About 1,024-1,025 mm for fixed-stock rifles; G3A4 retractable stock about 840 mm closed
Weight
About 4.38 kg in the BICC G3A3 profile; Small Arms Survey lists 4.58 kg unloaded for the G3A3 and 4.6 kg for the G3A4
Muzzle velocity
About 780-800 m/s
Rate of fire
About 500-600 rounds per minute
Sights
Front post with rear V notch/rotating aperture pattern in Small Arms Survey identification data
Accessories
Bayonet and bipod listed in Small Arms Survey identification data
Design And Licensed Production

The G3 is best read as a family of licensed and locally marked rifles rather than a single West German production run. Small Arms Survey traces the design from the Spanish CETME Model B and lists producer or marking evidence across Germany, Pakistan, Iran, Mexico, Myanmar, Norway, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and other users.

Operating concept

Roller-delayed, selective-fire 7.62 x 51 mm NATO rifle built around detachable box magazines.

Sources: HK G3 SALW Guide; Small Arms Survey G3 Identification Sheet.

Identification clues

Stock type, handguard shape, sighting arrangement, and receiver markings help separate G3A3, G3A4, G3K, AG-3, POF, FMP, Iranian, Saudi, and other G3-pattern rifles.

Source: Small Arms Survey G3 Identification Sheet.

Conflict relevance

Licensed and diverted examples matter because modern conflict evidence often identifies G3-pattern rifles by markings or transfer context, not just by the Heckler & Koch brand.

Sources: Amnesty International; Middle East Monitor; The Diplomat.

Variants

G3 designations mainly separate stock, sighting, barrel, and licensed-production configurations. The page keeps these as family variants unless a related catalog record covers a different weapon class.

VariantConfigurationDesignation notes
G3A3Fixed-stock production rifle

Small Arms Survey identifies the G3A3 among the plastic-furniture fixed-stock variants and lists multiple licensed production countries for the model.

Sources: Small Arms Survey G3 Identification Sheet

G3A4Retractable-stock rifle

The G3A4 is the retractable-stock family member, with the identification sheet listing Germany, Greece, Turkey, Iran, Mexico, Pakistan, and Portugal among associated producers or designations.

Sources: Small Arms Survey G3 Identification Sheet

G3A3ZFOptical-sight variant

Small Arms Survey lists the G3A3ZF as a German optical-sight variant inside the G3 family.

Sources: Small Arms Survey G3 Identification Sheet

G3KShort-barrel variant

The G3K appears in Small Arms Survey's variant list as the short-barrel G3 configuration.

Sources: Small Arms Survey G3 Identification Sheet

AG-3Norwegian G3A3 designation

Small Arms Survey lists Norway's AG-3 as a G3A3-family designation, and the ARES report treats Norwegian production as part of the wider licensed G3 production pattern.

Sources: Small Arms Survey G3 Identification Sheet, The H&K G3 Rifle

Saudi-produced G3 riflesLicensed-production conflict-relevant examples

Middle East Monitor reported German concern over Saudi-licensed G3 rifles appearing in deliveries for anti-Houthi militias around Aden.

Sources: German government seeks clarification from Saudi Arabia on supply of German weapons to Yemen

Yemeni-marked modified G3 riflesConflict-documented modified rifles

Amnesty International identified G3 rifles in Sudan with Yemen transfer context, making the modified examples relevant to conflict-use documentation rather than a formal factory variant.

Sources: New Weapons Fuelling the Sudan Conflict

Ammunition Fired

The rifle's core compatibility is the full-power NATO cartridge around which the G3 family was built.

AmmunitionAmmunition typeFiring evidence
7.62x51mm NATO cartridge, NATO-standard rifle and machine-gun cartridge, Munitions7.62x51mm NATO cartridgeRifle cartridge

The G3 is documented as chambered for 7.62x51mm NATO, making this cartridge an explicit firing compatibility rather than an inferred one.

Sources: HK G3 SALW Guide

Compatible Feed Components

The G3's detachable box magazine is cataloged separately because the component also appears in recovery and compatibility records.

Compatible itemItem typeCompatibility evidence
G3 20-round detachable box magazine, 20-round detachable box magazine, Support EquipmentG3 20-round detachable box magazineDetachable box magazine

Small Arms Survey identifies the G3 feed device as a 20- or 30-round detachable box magazine, and the linked support page covers the standard 20-round G3-family magazine.

Sources: Small Arms Survey G3 Identification Sheet

Timeline

Heckler & Koch G3 Key Events

  1. CETME-derived development period begins

    Small Arms Survey traces the G3's development from the Spanish CETME Model B rifle across the 1954-1959 period.

    Sources: Small Arms Survey G3 Identification Sheet

  2. Production period opens

    The ARES G3 report and catalog background sources place original and licensed G3 production from the late 1950s onward.

    Sources: The H&K G3 Rifle

  3. Saudi licensed-production context

    Middle East Monitor reported that Saudi Arabia obtained a license to manufacture G3 rifles in 1969, a fact later cited in questions about G3 rifles appearing in Yemen.

    Sources: German government seeks clarification from Saudi Arabia on supply of German weapons to Yemen

  4. G3 rifles reported around Aden

    German reporting summarized by Middle East Monitor described television footage showing G3 rifles landed from Saudi aircraft to support anti-Houthi militias around Aden.

    Sources: German government seeks clarification from Saudi Arabia on supply of German weapons to Yemen

  5. G3 recovered in Borno State operation

    Nigerian-Chadian forces reported recovering a Heckler & Koch G3 rifle among arms and materiel after a joint operation against Boko Haram-area militants near Wulgo.

    Sources: Nigeria-Chad operation kills 27 'terrorists' near Wulgo as ISIS claims multiple attacks

  6. Amnesty documents G3 rifles in Sudan evidence

    Amnesty International published visual-evidence findings that included G3 rifles in East Darfur with Yemen transfer context during the Sudan war.

    Sources: New Weapons Fuelling the Sudan Conflict

  7. G3/BA64 rifles reported in Myanmar's post-coup war

    The Diplomat reported continued G3/BA64 use by Myanmar's military and captured or repurposed G3 rifles in resistance hands during the post-2021 civil war.

    Sources: The German Connection in Myanmar's Civil Wars

Media

Heckler & Koch G3 Videos

Heckler & Koch G3 Images

Heckler & Koch G3, 7.62 mm select-fire battle rifle, Infantry Weapons - view 1
Source: Commons G3A3 Disassembled Image
Heckler & Koch G3, 7.62 mm select-fire battle rifle, Infantry Weapons - view 2
Source: Commons Portuguese G3 Rifle Image
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Sources

HK G3 SALW GuidePublisher: Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies | Note: Supports G3 background, ammunition, operating mechanism, dimensions, and technical specifications. | Accessed: 2026-07-04The H&K G3 RiflePublisher: Armament Research Services | Note: Supports development history, widespread licensed production, variants, and service background for the G3 family. | Accessed: 2026-07-04Small Arms Survey G3 Identification SheetPublisher: Small Arms Survey | Note: Supports G3 identification, development from the CETME Model B, technical data, variant distinctions, and licensed-production markings. | Accessed: 2026-07-04The End User: How did western weapons end up in the hands of ISIS and AQAP in Yemen?Publisher: Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism | Note: Supports 2014 Yemen Civil War direct-use context: G3 rifles used by or supplied to anti-Houthi forces in Yemen, with captured examples reported in Houthi hands. | Accessed: 2026-07-04Weapons and Ammunition Dynamics in the Lake Chad BasinPublisher: United Nations Department of Peace Operations and United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs / Lake Chad Basin Commission | Note: Supports 2009 Boko Haram Insurgency direct conflict use: G3 rifles used by Boko Haram are listed among manufactured small arms in the Lake Chad basin. | Accessed: 2026-07-04Nigeria-Chad operation kills 27 'terrorists' near Wulgo as ISIS claims multiple attacksPublisher: The Defense Post | Note: Supports 2009 Boko Haram Insurgency direct conflict use: a Heckler & Koch G3 rifle used by Boko Haram or ISWAP-area militants was reported recovered by Nigerian-Chadian forces in Borno State. | Accessed: 2026-07-04New Weapons Fuelling the Sudan ConflictPublisher: Amnesty International | Note: Supports 2023 Sudan War direct conflict use: modified G3 rifles were used by or fielded by armed groups in Sudan, including an example seen with RSF forces. | Accessed: 2026-07-04The German Connection in Myanmar's Civil WarsPublisher: The Diplomat | Note: Supports 2021 Myanmar Civil War direct conflict use: G3/BA64 rifles are described as still used by Myanmar military forces and as captured or repurposed by resistance fighters after the 2021 coup. | Accessed: 2026-07-04German government seeks clarification from Saudi Arabia on supply of German weapons to YemenPublisher: Middle East Monitor | Note: Supports 2014 Yemen Civil War direct-use context: G3 rifles supplied to or landed for anti-Houthi militias around Aden in 2015. | Accessed: 2026-07-04Dealing in Double Standards: How arms sales to Saudi Arabia are causing human suffering in YemenPublisher: Arms Trade Treaty Monitor | Note: Supports 2014 Yemen Civil War direct-use context: G3 rifles transferred to Saudi Arabia were reported as diverted to Yemen and air-dropped to conflict parties. | Accessed: 2026-07-04Commons G3A3 Rifle ImagePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance and licensing for the primary G3A3 rifle image. | Accessed: 2026-07-04Commons G3A3 Disassembled ImagePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance and licensing for the disassembled G3A3 gallery image. | Accessed: 2026-07-04Commons Portuguese G3 Rifle ImagePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance and public-domain licensing for the Portuguese Army G3 gallery image. | Accessed: 2026-07-04