On Monday, April 7, 2025, the 3rd Regional Logistics Base in Kraków (3. RBLog) announced the launch of a restricted accelerated procurement procedure for the supply of technical materials, spare parts, and special tools intended for maintenance and repair operations of 40mm AGL K4 automatic grenade launchers.
Photos: D. Wielgus via 6. BPD/X
The order has been divided into two parts (technical materials/spare parts and special tools), and the deadline for submitting requests to participate in the procedure is April 15, 2025, at 8:00 a.m. The sole criterion for selecting the offer will be price (100%), and the contracting authority expects the contract to be completed within 190 days from the date of signing.
Details regarding the type and quantity of specific items will be provided during the second stage of the procedure to the contractors invited to submit offers.
As stated in the justification, in accordance with the tasking letter addressed to the contracting authority, preparations for the procurement procedure of technical materials (spare parts) and sets of special tools necessary for the maintenance and repair of the 40mm AGL K4 automatic grenade launcher were initiated without delay.
Due to the urgent need to acquire the aforementioned materials and tools—essential to ensure the continued operation of the AGL K4 grenade launchers within the Armed Forces of the Republic of Poland—it is necessary to award the contract without delay. Failure to procure the required items will result in the suspension of the equipment’s operation by Polish Armed Forces personnel, directly affecting the military’s ability to carry out operational tasks.
On July 4, 2023, the AGL K4 grenade launchers were presented for the first time as part of the armament of the 18th Bielsko Airborne Battalion, which is part of the 6th Airborne Brigade.
News of the grenade launcher purchase surfaced on September 25, 2022, when the technology policy department of South Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) was reportedly expected to grant approval to the national research institute of the government’s Agency for Defense Development (ADD) for a technology transfer to enable production of the K4 in Poland. The ADD holds the production rights to this weapon system.
However, a day later, on September 26, 2022, then-spokesperson for the Armament Agency, Lt. Col. Krzysztof Płatek, stated that Poland had not purchased a license to produce the weapon. Instead, an emergency order had been placed for several hundred K4 grenade launchers along with half a million rounds of ammunition, worth several million USD. The contract had reportedly been signed a few weeks earlier, with deliveries expected to take place within a few months.
The K4 automatic grenade launcher, developed between 1989 and 1991 and introduced into service in 1993, uses 40mm x 53SR HV (High Velocity) NATO-standard ammunition. It weighs 65.9 kg and has a theoretical rate of fire of 325 rounds per minute, with an effective range of up to 1.5 km. For night operations, the launcher can be equipped with a KAN/TVS-5 night vision scope. It is also used by the armed forces of South Korea—specifically the Republic of Korea Marine Corps (Daehanminguk Haebyeongdae)—as well as the armed forces of Iraq, Libya, Mexico, and Singapore.