Ideally, my backpacking survival gun would be an over/under 12 ga.
shotgun (for bear defense) and 22 LR (for shooting birds for food). And
it would be made of titanium and composites for light weight. Of course
this weapon does not exist, was just hoping.

Yes the AR-7 was also used by the AF.

I would not want to have to use a Baretta 9mm for survival. But that
seems to be what our AF is stuck with. Maybe the whole notion of having
to survive in the wild is a thing of the past, what with GPS, satellite
beacons and all.



Having a firearm for a survival situation is a bit of an anachronism, combat or
peacetime. I am not aware of one ever having been successfully used in either.
Weight alone would preclude carrying enough firepower to hold off a charging
bear and nothing short of a .50 cal would be enough firepower to hold off an
enemy patrol ot even angry natives with pitchforks for very long. I liked to
think of the .38 I caried as a signalling device and carried a pack of tracers
for that purpose.