The total amount that will be delivered is not known, but reports say there will be an initial supply of 20,000 pistols with an option for an additional 67,000. Italy’s Beretta is starting to deliver the 9x19mm Beretta APX service pistol to the Italian Army, German military website Soldat & Technik reported. The total amount to be delivered is not known, but reports say there will be an initial supply of 20,000 with an option for 67,000 more. 

Originally developed for the XM17 Modular Handgun System program of the U.S. Armed Forces, the Beretta APX is a firing pin lock pistol with a polymer grip and controls on both sides. In addition to an interchangeable back strap, the weapon has a MIL-STD-1913 rail on the underside of the frame. It is available in colors such as black, sand, olive and gray.

The website claims that the configuration of the weapons now being issued to the Italian Army is still unclear. Those currently being delivered have a mounted red dot sight and a barrel thread to accommodate a signature reducer. It is therefore quite possible that it is a special version intended for special forces troops.

The delivery to the Italian Army is Beretta’s second large-scale transaction involving the pistol in recent months. In December 2020, Israel Defense reported that the company won a tender from the Brazilian Ministry of Justice to supply 159,000 APX pistols to Brazilian public security units.