muzzle in a safe direction. With your left hand, insert
the loaded magazine into the magazine housing. Push
upward until the magazine catch engages and holds the
magazine. Rap the base of the magazine sharply with
the heel of your hand to ensure positive retention. If the
action is open, release the bolt by depressing the upper
portion of the bolt catch with the thumb of your left
hand, allowing the action to close, chambering the
round. If the action is closed when the magazine is
inserted, pull the charging handle fully to the rear with
your right hand and release it. (Refer to figure 11-10.)
WARNING
Don’t ride the charging handle forward with
the right hand. If the charging handle is eased
forward from the open position, the bolt may
fail to lock. If the bolt fails to go fully forward,
use the bolt closure forward assist assembly
(fig. 11-4) with the heel of your right hand. The
rifle is now loaded and is ready to fire when you
place the selector lever in the automatic or
semiautomatic position. If it is not ready to fire,
make sure the selector lever is on SAFE.
After the last round has been fired, the bolt catch
holds the bolt carrier to the rear. To change the magazine
for reloading, press the magazine catch button and
remove the empty magazine from the weapon.
FIRING THE RIFLE
The rifle fires semiautomatic or burst (automatic
for the M16A1) when you move the selector lever to
the desired position. (Refer to figure 11-8.) With the
selector lever in the semiautomatic position, the rifle
fires one round each time you pull the trigger. With
the selector lever in the burst position, the M16A2
fires in short bursts of three rounds. (NOTE: The
M16A1 rifle fires fully automatically and will
continue to fire until the magazine is empty or you
release the trigger.) When the rifle is fired in either
SEMI or BURST or AUTOMATIC, the bolt locks in
the open position when the last round from the
magazine has been fired.
UNLOADING AND CLEARING THE RIFLE
As you read this section, refer back to figures 11-8,
11-9, 11-10, and 11-11. To unload the rifle and make it
safe, place the selector lever on the SAFE position (fig.
11-8); and remove the magazine by pressing the
magazine release button (fig. 11-9). Pull the charging
handle to the rear (fig. 11-10), ejecting any round from
the chamber. Inspect the chamber and receiver to
ensure that it is clear. Releasing the charging handle
will allow the bolt to close. To keep the bolt open,
depress the lower portion of the bolt catch before
returning the charging handle forward (fig. 11-11).
The rifle is clear only when the following conditions
exist:
No case or round is in the chamber.
The magazine is out.
11-8
Student Notes:
Figure 11-13.—Unloading the magazine with the nose of a
cartridge.
