"So the matter of a forthcoming military pistol remains afloat. The new pistol, if any, will apparently carry the same cartridge we have used since 1911."
No. There probably will not BE a new service pistol. Various specialty branches of the armed forces have been buying their own guns in .40 and .45 ACP, and even 45 GAP calibers for quite some time, but the all-purpose sidearm will most likely remain the 9 mm. The 9 mm fmj round is, and will continue to be in short supply, as it is not a priority, and the military no longer maintains it's own bullet manufacturing facilities. Clinton shut down the armory's, and Rumsfeld convinced Bush that buying ammo was cheaper in the long run than making it ourselves. This was a boon for the civilian manufacturers, but they cannot service the military, law enforcement, and civilian needs all at the same time, so something had to give and it was the military because out of the three, guess which provided the lowest profit margin.
Glock spent tons of money making a service pistol in .45 ACP specifically for the US military, then was told do forget about it. This is a good thing, as the gun is one helluva sweet piece and will be available for sale to the common man sometime next year.
I really don't know who was giving the Colonel advice, but he was pretty much dead wrong in everything he said about military weapon systems for the last decade or so. When in doubt, contact the munitions manufacturers and try to pry some scoop from them, and with his reputation he could easily have done so, but to be honest most modern bullet makers would cringe when speaking to Jeff as he didn't hold much stock in making fancy bullets when training was all a man needed to kill an enemy.
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