The CAR 816, also called Caracal Sultan or simply Sultan, is a 5.56×45mm NATO, gas-operated, magazine-fed assault rifle that is produced by Caracal International in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The rifle is also called Sultan in memory of the Emirati Colonel Sultan Mohammed Ali al-Kitbi who was killed in action in Saudi-led intervention in Yemen. History The Caracal CAR 816 shares lineage to the Heckler & Koch HK416. The principal firearms engineers for the CAR 816 were Robert Hirt and Chris Sirois. Hirt was instrumental in the development of the HK416. Following his time with Heckler & Koch, Hirt was recruited by SIG Sauer to work with then SIG engineer Chris Sirois on an improved version of the HK416: the SIG Sauer SIG516. Hirt and Siriois were then recruited by Caracal to develop a rifle that was superior to both the HK416 and SIG516. From this, the CAR 816 was created. The CAR 816 is the primary infantry assault rifle of the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces. Design and features The CAR 816 is a gas operated, select fire assault rifle with ambidextrous controls that fires from a closed rotary bolt. The AR 816 is based on the AR-15 platform ergonomic architecture, but uses a short-stroke gas piston operating system (unlike the AR-15's piston-operated gas impingement system) with a user-adjustable gas system. With the help of the three position regulator (normal, adverse conditions and suppressor/silencer settings), the gas system can be adjusted to function reliably with various propellant, projectile, fouling, operating environment and configuration specific pressure behavior. The chamber is modified so the rifle is over-the-beach capable to let the CAR 816 fire safely as quickly as possible after being submerged in water. The M4 carbine profile hammer forged chrome lined barrel has a twist rate and features a standard A2-style flash suppressor at its muzzle end. Stock The CAR 816 handguard features four STANAG 2324/MIL-STD-1913 Picatinny rails. These allow for direct accessory attachment onto the rail mounting points, and can be removed without the usage of tools. The shoulder stock is a telescoping 6 position type stock which is adjustable for length of pull. Trigger The CAR 816 uses a mil-spec direct trigger. Fire selector The selector settings are: safe, semi-automatic fire and automatic fire. Sights The CAR 816 basic version features rail mounted flip up rear and front iron sights. The integrated rail on the upper receiver