DI MA-1 Mk. III

The '''DI MA-1 Mk. III''' is a family of Myanma-made Bullpup assault rifles chambered for 5.56×45mm NATO, based on the QBZ-97s that were exported to Myanmar in 2009. Despite claims that Myanmar made them as an indigenous weapon, the MA-1 Mk. IIIs were made without any licensing agreements with China.

The MA designation on the weapon means Myanmar Army.

History
Myanmar decided to adopt a bullpup rifle again after Tatmadaw troops reported multiple failures with the EMER-K1, ranging from gun jams to stoppages. At the time, some of them were issued to Tatmadaw forces on patrol duties at the Yadana gas field in 1998. Myanmar originally wanted to acquire QBZ-97s and eventually set up a production line to manufacture them on their own, but China refused to honor them due to arms sanctions against the State Peace and Development Council.

The QBZ-97s sold to Myanmar were reverse engineered again; they did not seek Chinese assistance in creating the MA-1 Mk. IIIs. During analysis of the rifles in 2009, they were reported to be suitable for the Tatmadaw in jungle operations and for use by an average Myanma soldier.

The MA-1 Mk. IIIs were first shown in public in 2012. They were subsequently shown at various Tatmadaw Armed Forces Day parades.

Plans were made to fully adopt the MA-1 Mk. III by 2016, but it was delayed due to quality issues. At the time, it was reported that the MA-1 Mk. IIIs had poor reliability in the field. Chinese media criticized Myanmar for cloning the QBZ-97 without permission after the rifle was publicly revealed.

In 2020, Myanma social media photos showed an improved version of the MA-3 Mk. III, implying that production issues were mostly resolved.

Design
According to the Special Advisory Council for Myanmar (SAC-M), the rifle family is reportedly being manufactured at DDI's KaPaSa 22 factory.

While the MA-1 Mk. III has visual similarities with the QBZ-97, the difference lies with the use of phenolic plastic materials instead of engineered plastics, which gives off the brown finish. Another way to tell the difference is the shape of the handguard and the vent holes on it.

The MA-1 Mk. IIIs do not use the same Type 95 bayonet made for the QBZ-95. Instead, the Tatmadaw uses a clone of the Type 81 bayonet for the rifles. Only the MA-1/3 Mk. III have bayonet lugs installed as a default option.

There were unconfirmed reports that Myanmar sought the assistance of Singaporean defense companies in order to improve on the manufacture of the MA-1 Mk. III by secretly acquiring machinery for the factories. This supposedly resulted in the improvement of using engineered plastics and the rifle's design. For the MA-3 Mk. III, some of the more recently made carbines have carry handles that have a more rectangular shape, more ergonic front hanguard and vent holes, making it resemble the QBZ-97.

MA-1 Mk. III
The standard assault rifle variant based on the QBZ-97.

MA-2 Mk. III
The light machine gun variant with a long barrel and a bipod.

MA-3 Mk. III
A carbine variant. Known to be used by Myanma special forces units.

MA-4 Mk. III
A variant of the MA-1 Mk. III equipped with an underbarrel grenade launcher. It is also known to be used by Myanma special forces units.

Users

 * 🇲🇲 Myanmar: Used by the Tatmadaw. This includes the Myanmar Navy SEALs.